Generating, sustaining electrical currents with unique properties for information processing closer to reality

Spintronics is a form of signal processing similar to that used in traditional electronics, but it takes advantage of a property of electrons known as spin. Spin is often visualized as an arrow about which the electron rotates, much like a top spinning around its axis. Generating a stream of electrons in which these 'arrows' are all parallel—a so-called spin-polarized current (see image)—is the foundation upon which spintronics is based. Imperfections in a material, however, can easily destroy polarization. Simply applying an oscillating voltage across the device could help to maintain a spin-polarized current even in the presence of impurities, according to theoretical research by Seng Ghee Tan at the A*STAR Data Storage Institute, Singapore, and co‐workers.



via Phys.org: Physics News http://phys.org/news/2013-01-sustaining-electrical-currents-unique-properties.html