Interdisciplinary
Research
Electronic/Photonic Materials and Devices
Spintronics
The orientation of a polarized electron is called spin - "spin up" or "spin down" - and is analogous to the 0s and 1s in binary code. These two states can be used to store information. Spintronics, or spin electronics, has been used commercially for terabyte magnetic memory storage but is still actively under investigation for semiconductor spintronics. The capability to generate, control, and detect spin-based information in semiconductor devices will lead to semiconductor chips with memory, logic, and communications capability on a single chip. At Penn State, spin research encompasses theory, ferromagnetic materials research, and device fabrication.
Centers
- Center for Nanoscale Science - an NSF MRSEC
