Defects at the spinterface disrupt transmission
Magnets made of organic materials have a number of advantages over the classic metal or alloy magnets. They are chemically more flexible, cheaper to make, and can be better adapted to various purposes and varying designs. In practice, researchers want to apply both types of magnets in electronics – in spintronic elements, which transport information not by electrical load but via the spin of the component molecules. This intrinsic angular momentum is a typical characteristic of particles, such as electrons. Reza Kakavandi, Professor Thomas Chassé and Dr. Benedetta Casu of the Institute of Physical Chemistry at the University of Tübingen have investigated just such a magnetic interface between the titanium oxide crystals in rutile form and a purely organic magnet. They found that the transition area where the materials met was highly sensitive to minimal defects in the surfaces.