An international team of researchers has described a new
physical effect that could be used to develop more efficient magnetic chips for
information processing. The quantum mechanical effect makes it easier to
produce spin-polarized currents necessary for the switching of magnetically
stored information. The research findings were published online on 28 July in
the high-impact journal Nature Nanotechnology ("Symmetry and magnitude of
spin–orbit torques in ferromagnetic heterostructures").