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JST Press Release

January 08, 2015
Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST)
5-3, Yonbancho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 102-8666

Discovery of a novel principle of generating spin currents from insulators under light illumination

Electronics is now entering a new era of spintronics, where a spin current, a flow of magnetism, plays a central role in driving devices. The research group of associate professor, Ken-ichi Uchida at Tohoku University, has discovered a novel principle of generating spin currents from magnetic insulators under light illumination with the aid of surface plasmons. This research integrates surface plasmons with spin-current physics, opening the door to plasmonic spintronics. The observed phenomenon also enables hybrid energy generation from both light and heat in a single device in combination with the spin Seebeck effect, thereby paving the way for a breakthrough in spin-based devices and energy-harvesting technology.

Researcher Information

JST PRESTO
Research Area “Phase Interfaces for Highly Efficient Energy Utilization”
Research Theme “Creation of Innovative Energy Device Technology Based on Spin Currents”

Journal Information

K. Uchida, H. Adachi, D. Kikuchi, S. Ito, Z. Qiu, S. Maekawa, and E. Saitoh. “Generation of spin currents by surface plasmon resonance”. Nature Communications, Volume 6, Article number: 5910, doi: 10.1038/ncomms6910.

Contact

[About Research]
Ken-ichi Uchida Ph.D.
Associate Professor, Institute for Materials Research, Tohoku University
E-mail:
URL: http://www-lab.imr.tohoku.ac.jp/~kuchida/index.html

[About Program]
Masashi Furukawa
Green Innovation Group, Department of Innovation Research, JST
E-mail:

Japanese


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