Responsible of project

Vincent Garcia, Researcher CNRS at Laboratoire Albert Fert

This project focuses on a new class of magnetic materials that has yet to be explored: altermagnets. Combining the advantages of ferromagnets and antiferromagnets, these materials possess a unique electronic structure that opens up unprecedented possibilities in spintronics. Their ability to generate spin-polarized currents and harness ultra-fast dynamics could revolutionize information storage and processing.

Challenges

> Production and study of thin films and single crystals of altermagnets such as RuO₂, MnTe, and MnF₂, with advanced structural and magnetic analyses.

> Investigation of magnetic transport effects (anomalous Hall effect, spin-Seebeck, spin pumping) and magneto-optics to characterize time-reversal symmetry breaking and electronic structures.

> Imaging of spin textures, study of anisotropic exchange fields, writing and movement of antiferromagnetic domains, and analysis of dynamic properties using ultra-fast techniques.

Positioning the project with the PEPR

This project introduces a new, unprecedented class of magnetic materials: altermagnets. It aims to overcome the limitations of antiferromagnets (low optical and transport responses) and ferromagnets (limited GHz response and texture deformation in motion), in relation to TOAST, SPINCOM, SWING, and CHIREX. The development of this platform will rely on the TP1 SPINMAT infrastructure and the characterization tools of TP2 SPINCHARAC. More broadly, it will contribute to the objectives of the PEPR SPIN for a green digital transition by designing faster and more energy-efficient CMOS spintronic devices.