MCSD Modeling Software Contributes to Top Ten Physics Story of 2002
Micromagnetic modeling software developed by ITL's Mathematical and Computational
Sciences Division (MCSD) contributed to one of the Institute of Physics' (IOP) top ten
stories of 2002. Number seven on the list compiled by IOP's physicsweb
was work of UK physicists who built a
nanometer scale logic gate made entirely from metal that works at room temperature. In
existing electronic circuits, semiconductor devices carry out logic operations. In such
devices, the density of electron flow is limited, restricting how small these devices can be
made. Metals have higher electron densities, so a metallic logic gate could be made
smaller than a semiconductor one. Such devices would be ideal for mobile applications
such as phones and smart cards because the data could be stored without a power source.
As reported in the June 2002 issue of Science, the team from the
University of Durham used MCSD's Object-Oriented Micromagnetic Modeling
Framework (OOMMF) software to determine the appropriate device widths for
containing and controlling the magnetic domain walls. The controlled motion of the
walls between magnetic domains is what enables fully magnetic logic operations.