Nanowerk October 13, 2023
An international team of researchers (USA- Ohio State University, Sweden, UK) used a new method involving the reflection of polarized light on thin films of light metal chromium, successfully detected the orbital Hall effect. The orbital polarization was in-plane, transverse to the current direction, and scaled linearly with current density, consistent with the orbital Hall effect. Comparing the thickness-dependent magneto-optical measurements with ab initio calculations, they estimated an orbital diffusion length in Cr of 6.6±0.6nm. The potential application of this discovery in spintronics could lead to improve data storage in the next generation of computer devices reducing energy consumption, higher performance, and increased lifespan of magnetic materials… read more. TECHNICAL ARTICLE
(a) Schematics of the orbital Hall effect… Credit: Phys. Rev. Lett. 131, 156702, 11 October, 2023Â