Phys.org July 7, 2021
An international team of researchers (South Korea, Germany) has shown that dysprosium (Dy) atoms on magnesium oxide (MgO) have a giant (magnet/ic anisotropy energy) MAE of 250 meV, currently the highest among all surface spins. Using a variety of scanning tunnelling microscopy (STM) techniques including single atom electron spin resonance (ESR), they confirmed that there was no spontaneous spin-switching in Dy over days at ≈ 1 K under low and even vanishing magnetic field. They utilized these robust Dy single atom magnets to engineer magnetic nanostructures, demonstrating unique control of magnetic fields with atomic scale tunability. The work adds a new paradigm for quantum logic devices and quantum computation. Switchable ultrastable single-atom magnets placed at atomically precise locations provide a toolbox for extremely local but precise control of magnetic fields…read more. Open Access TECHNICAL ARTICLE
Magnetic contrast and large magnetic anisotropy in single Dy atoms on MgO. Credit: Nature Communications volume 12, Article number: 4179 (2021)