Exploring the physics of 3D magnetic nanowires and 3D artificial spin-ice lattices

Magnetic racetrack memory is a pioneering 3D storage technology that was invented by IBM in 2008. The memory has the potential to be faster than the hard disk drive, whilst also offering orders of magnitude higher storage density. Today, the use of planar nanowires in prototype magnetic racetrack memory is limiting its performance due to power consumption whilst writing data. Recent theoretical work has indicated that the use of cylindrical nanowires will allow much lower power consumption. Such wires are difficult to fabricate using conventional lithography but can be achieved using 3D processing techniques.
Dr Sam Ladak has recently pioneered a novel fabrication method to realise 3D magnetic nanowires and by working directly with IBM, Zurich we have demonstrated that these nanowires can be measured using standard magnetic techniques. This project will utilise a new 3D lithography system and our recently developed technique to manufacture magnetic nanowires in the racetrack geometry. We will aim to manufacture and characterise cylindrical magnetic nanowires systems that have the potential to produce a step-change in prototype memory technologies.