Researchers have made a groundbreaking discovery of a previously unknown form of powerful magnetic material.

Researchers have ultimately verified the presence of a novel form of magnet, despite previously deeming it unattainable.

The group that identified the occurrence, known as altermagnetism, proposes its potential for improving the efficiency of electronic devices.

Altermagnets form a third branch of magnetism after ferromagnets – the kind found on kitchen fridges – and anti ferromagnets, which were first identified by the French physicist Louis Néel in the 1930s.

Scientists from the Czech Academy of Sciences and the Paul Scherrer Institut in Switzerland conducted experiments at the Swiss Light Source (SLS) to demonstrate the existence of alternative magnetism.

Initially proposed in 2019 by a group from the Institute of Physics in the Czech Republic and the University of Mainz in Germany, alternate magnetism can be observed in currently existing items.

Tomáš Jungwirth, a professor at the Czech Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Physics, who headed the research, explained the wonder of altermagnets.

Until recently, it was considered impossible, according to theoretical predictions, but now it has been proven possible. This is not limited to just a few obscure materials, but rather many crystals that were previously overlooked. As a result, with this new knowledge, people all over the world will have the opportunity to research and explore its potential impact on a larger scale.

The researchers predict that this breakthrough will not only advance the development of next-generation computers and electronics, but also enhance our comprehension of condensed-matter physics. This could have significant implications for the emerging field of spintronics.

Spintronics has the capability to transform computing by utilizing both the charge and spin of electrons to transmit data, in addition to traditional electronics which only rely on charged electrons.

The findings were outlined in a paper titled “Altermagnetic Lifting of Kramers Spin Degeneracy”, which was published in the scientific journal Nature on February 14th.

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