For almost 100 years, scientists recognized only two fundamental types of magnets. Now, a much newer class called altermagnets is emerging as one of the most exciting discoveries in physics, with the potential to make future electronics faster and far more energy-efficient.
Researchers at the University at Buffalo have now proposed a new quantum sensing technique that could make these elusive materials much easier to identify. Their theoretical approach uses tiny defects inside diamonds to detect the distinctive magnetic behavior that sets altermagnets apart.
The study was published in Physical Review Letters.
The proposed method works by placing a suspected altermagnetic material next to a diamond containing an extremely sensitive magnetic defect. By observing how the defect’s magnetic signal relaxes over time, scientists could detect the unique magnetic signature expected from an altermagnet.
“This could be the first building block of a new generation of experiments that determine whether a material is an altermagnet,” says corresponding author Jamir Marino, PhD, assistant professor in the UB Department of Physics, College of Arts and Sciences. “Altermagnets could completely revolutionize the way we transport information, but to confirm if this elegant theory is true, we need experiments that identify altermagnets and confirm they behave the way scientists predict.”
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