3 dimensional magnetic data storage

Magnetic materials form the basis of computer hard disk drive information storage and over the past ten years research has lead to an increase in areal density to values of 500 gigabits per square inch. These devices consist of a platter upon which there are tiny magnetised regions. If the magnetic north points in one direction, it is a digital “1” and if it points in the opposite direction it corresponds to a digital “0”. A significant disadvantage of such technologies is that all of the nano-magnets sit in one plane on the disk, effectively limiting the amount of information that can be stored. Recent advances in lithographic techniques have allowed the production of three-dimensional nanostructures of chosen geometry. This studentship will involve the fabrication of novel frustrated three-dimensional magnetic structures. Magnetic structures of different geometry, dimensions and material will be made in order to
mimic geometrically frustrated magnets known as spin-ice materials. These materials have recently been shown to be home to defects that behave as magnetic monopoles. The structures will be subject to a diverse range of characterisation techniques available at Cardiff including atomic force microscopy, scanning electron microscopy and magnetic characterisation. It’s expected that the structures will also be subject to novel experiments at synchrotron facilities such as the Diamond Light Source. The project may ultimately help pave the way to new three-dimensional magnetic storage devices.