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Getting in a spin

Nature (1999)Cite this article

Two reports in Nature23may help to open up a new dimension in electronics. So-called 'spintronics' manipulates electrical signals conveyed by charge carriers (such as electrons) by means of their spins, not of their electrical charge. The studies show how to line up spins in an electric current injected into a device.

The current in a conventional electronic device such as a transistor is controlled by means of the charge on the mobile 'charge carriers': negatively charged electrons, and 'holes' in the electron sea which act like positively charged particles. But in principle, the spin of an electron provides an alternative handle for controlling the current.

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References

  1. Oestreich,M. Materials science: Injecting spin into electronics. Nature 402, 735 1999.

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  2. Fiederling,R., Keim, M., Reuscher, G., Ossau, W., Schmidt, G., Waag, A. & Molenkamp, L. W. Injection and detection of a spin-polarized current in a light-emitting diode Nature 402, 787 1999.

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  3. Ohno,Y., Young, D. K., Beschoten, B., Matsukura, F., Ohno, H. & Awschalom, D. D. Electrical spin injection in a ferromagnetic semiconductor heterostructure Nature 402, 490 1999.

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Authors
  1. Philip Ball
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Ball, P. Getting in a spin. Nature (1999). https://doi.org/10.1038/news991223-10

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/news991223-10

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