Putting a spin on it: Spintronics and super-fast computing

Cambridge University physicist Jason Robinson is combining two of the hottest fields in solid state physics, superconductivity and spintronics. Spin, being the property of a single electron, could allow for greater miniaturisation than conventional charge-based electronics. Jacob Linder, physics professor at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology in Trondheim, has also been looking at the challenges that arise with spin-based logic. C3 is a pioneering five-year program run by the US government high-risk research unit IARPA (Intelligence Advanced Research Projects Activity) within the Office of the Director of National Intelligence. Launched in December 2014, it is working with academic and industry partners to develop a prototype superconducting computer that will include new kinds of cryogenic spintronic memory. There is another new class of materials that might provide a route to room temperature superconducting spintronics. Topological insulators were discovered in 2007 by researchers at the University of Wurzburg in Germany. These are compounds based on bismuth, antimony, telluride and selenide. The other material that is being suggested for spintronics is graphene which was first identified in 2003.