A newly proposed class of magnetism known as altermagnetism could open new possibilities for making computer memory smaller and more efficient. Now, researchers have found evidence that ruthenium dioxide, a quantum material long debated for its magnetic properties, may display this unusual form of magnetism when prepared as an ultrathin film only a few atomic layers thick.
The study was led by Rice University physicist Ming Yi, working with Bharat Jalan of the University of Minnesota and Milan Radovic of the Paul Scherrer Institute. Their findings were published in Science Advances.
“Ruthenium dioxide was one of the first materials to be proposed as an altermagnetic candidate, but studies on its bulk form didn’t return evidence of magnetism,” said Yi, an associate professor of physics and astronomy. “Our research shows that its ultrathin form, on the other hand, may be the key in making it magnetic.”
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