Researchers from The University of Texas at Austin and the Max Planck Institute for the Structure and Dynamics of Matter have made a groundbreaking discovery in the field of multiferroics. In a study published in Nature, they have identified nickel iodide (NiI2) as a material with exceptional magnetoelectric coupling, making it a prime candidate for fast and compact devices.
Multiferroics are materials with the unique property of magnetoelectric coupling, allowing for manipulation of magnetic properties with an electric field and vice versa. NiI2 has been found to exhibit greater magnetoelectric coupling than any other known material of its kind, opening up possibilities for technological advancements.
The research team, led by postdoctoral fellow Frank Gao and graduate student Xinyue Peng, conducted experiments on atomically thin nickel iodide flakes to uncover its exceptional properties. By exciting the material with ultrashort laser pulses and tracking changes in its electric and magnetic orders, they were able to demonstrate the strength of its magnetoelectric coupling.
The team attributes the strong magnetoelectric coupling in NiI2 to factors such as spin-orbit coupling and the specific form of magnetic order in the material. These insights could lead to the development of faster, smaller, and more energy-efficient devices, including magnetic memories, quantum computing platforms, and chemical sensors.
The researchers hope that their findings will pave the way for the identification of other materials with similar magnetoelectric properties and further enhancements in NiI2. This research was funded by various organizations, including the Robert A. Welch Foundation, the U.S. National Science Foundation, and the European Union’s Horizon Europe program.
Overall, this discovery marks a significant advancement in the field of multiferroics and holds promise for the development of innovative technologies in the future.