COMRAD — Cold Opto-Magnetism for Random Access Devices

Results in brief

Cold Opto-Magnetism for Random Access Devices

The ability to switch magnets between two stable bit states with the help of a magnetic field is the main principle of modern data storage technology. The move to wireless devices and the increase of cloud storage in the 21st century’s digital economy demands for even denser, faster and more energy efficient data storage. However, the heat produced by modern data centres is already a serious limitation to further increase their performance. Data centres presently consume 7% of the world electricity production, with an annual increase of 7%. It is not clear how to improve this situation which in future might contribute greatly to global warming and energy crisis. Within equilibrium thermodynamics, ultrafast magnetization reversal and least dissipative magnetic switching appear to be mutually exclusive processes. Moreover, it seems that the technology of spin switching with the help of magnetic fields is approaching its fundamental as well as practical limits, and it has been realized that even conventional magnetic-field-free, rotation-free magnetic random access memory can be much more energy efficient than hard-drives. Therefore, the demands of our digital society urge to search for new routes to control the magnetization beyond the limitations of equilibrium thermodynamics and by means other than magnetic fields. The ambition of COMRAD is to discover, explore and employ these “non- thermodynamic” routes in order to achieve the fastest possible as well as least dissipative magnetic switching leading to the ‘greenest’ random access devices. The key objectives of COMRAD are therefore: - Train a new generation of scientists and ambassadors of science in commerce. - Use the knowledge of ultrafast magnetism and spintronics to develop “low dissipation sub100 ps spin-orbitronics”. - Initiate developments of devices, such as unprecedentedly fast (THz) energy efficient magnetic memory and fs scanning probe microscopes. At the end of the action, - 15 ESRs have received a training from the action. All the trained ESRs are planning to continue they career either in academia or research related industry. - The action has already resulted in 50 publications practically reporting about research towards the goals of the project. - The action has also initiated developments of novel devices and scanning microscopes.

Data: CORDIS, © European Union

Project objective

The ability to switch magnets between two stable bit states with the help of a magnetic field is the main principle of modern data storage technology. Due to many new ideas, originating from fundamental research during the last 50 years, this technology has been developing in a breath-taking fashion. However, the heat produced by modern data centers is already a serious limitation to further increase their performance. It is not clear how to improve this situation which in future might contribute greatly to the global warming and energy crisis. Our proposal is inspired by several recent breakthroughs allowing ultrafast and energy efficient magnetic recording with the help of light. COMRAD will explore novel routes for the fastest possible and least dissipative magnetic switching in random access devices by bringing together the two disciplines of ultrafast magnetism and spin-orbitronics, creating sub-100 ps stimuli in spin-orbitronics and pushing the latter into a regime beyond the limitations of equilibrium thermodynamics. The ambition of COMRAD is to train ESRs in such a way that they gain a broad understanding of the challenges in the entire process of emergence and development of opto-magnetic data storage, from fundamental research to device and failure analysis. This is a new and disruptive technology with the potential to revolutionize information storage and manipulation. Working on the ambitious goals in the Consortium of academic and multiscale industrial partners, the trained ESRs will develop unique cross-disciplinary skills in applying advanced experimental and computational techniques, state-of-the-art device engineering and analysis. Being a new generation of scientists with an affinity to commercial enterprises and ambassadors of science in commerce, COMRAD-ESRs will be able to strengthen European innovation capacity feeling the frighteningly increasing gap between fundamental science and commercial applications.

Original text from CORDIS.

Participants

STICHTING RADBOUD UNIVERSITEIT · NijmegenCoordinatorNetherlands
AGENCIA ESTATAL CONSEJO SUPERIOR DE INVESTIGACIONES CIENTIFICAS · MadridSpain
COMMISSARIAT A L ENERGIE ATOMIQUE ET AUX ENERGIES ALTERNATIVES · ParisFrance
FORSCHUNGSZENTRUM JULICH GMBH · JULICHGermany
INTERACTIVE FULLY ELECTRICAL VEHICLES SRL · Sommariva Del Bosco CnItaly
TECHNISCHE UNIVERSITEIT EINDHOVEN · EindhovenNetherlands
THALES · MEUDONFrance
THE CHANCELLOR MASTERS AND SCHOLARS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE · CAMBRIDGEUnited Kingdom
UNIVERSITAET REGENSBURG · RegensburgGermany
UNIVERSITE DE LORRAINE · Nancy CedexFrance
UNIVERSITY OF LANCASTER · LANCASTERUnited Kingdom
UNIVERSITY OF YORK · YORK NORTH YORKSHIREUnited Kingdom
UNIWERSYTET W BIALYMSTOKU · BIALYSTOKPoland

COMRAD · Cold Opto-Magnetism for Random Access Devices

Results in brief

Cold Opto-Magnetism for Random Access Devices

Project objective

Participants

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