Prof Michael Coey of AMBER ,Trinity College Dublin

AMBER researchers make breakthrough in magnetic materials

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Pictured: Prof Michael Coey. Source: AMBER

1 July 2014

Scientists at AMBER, the materials science centre based at Trinity College Dublin have discovered a new material which could revolutionise IT, computer processes and data storage. The discovery was led by Prof Michael Coey, a principal investigator at AMBER from Trinity’s School of Physics.

Prof Coey’s group developed an alloy of manganese, ruthenium and gallium, known as MRG. Internally it is a magnet as powerful as any available today, yet seen from the outside it barely appears magnetic at all. This ‘zero-moment half metal’ could lead to a completely new line of research with applications in data storage, resulting in huge, superfast memory in personal computer devices. It could also eliminate the potential of external magnetic forces to ‘wipe’ computer data.

Commenting on the discovery, Prof Coey said: “Magnetic materials are what make reading and storing data – either on personal devices or on large scale servers in data centres – possible. Magnets are at the heart of every electronic device we use – from computers and laptops to tablets, smartphones and digital cameras. Given its unique insensitivity to magnetic fields, and the tenacity of its internal magnetic properties, MRG could now revolutionise how data is stored, which could have major implications for the future development of electronics, information technology and a host of other applications.”

AMBER is funded by the Department of Jobs, Enterprise & Innovation through Science Foundation Ireland.

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