A new way in which magnetism and electric polarization are coupled has been discovered in CuFeO2

Magnetism and electricity are two of the fundamental forces of nature. Combining them in a single multiferroic material in which one controls the other is not only of basic interest, but also relevant for practical applications. "Multiferroic materials can be used as magnetic sensors that change the sign of their electric polarization with a small magnetic field," says Yoshikazu Tanaka from the RIKEN SPring-8 Center in Harima. After studying the properties of the multiferroic CuFeO2, Tanaka and his colleagues have been able to verify a new mechanism by which magnetism and electricity can be coupled in a single material.



via Phys.org: Physics News http://phys.org/news/2013-02-magnetism-electric-polarization-coupled-cufeo2.html