Magnets produced at room temperature using lasers could one day produce better HDDs, faster non-silicon processors — and at 20nm, they are so thin that they could be used almost anywhere, even in the human body

• Researchers demonstrate room temperature laser control of magnons in thin magnetic materials
• Visible light pulses tune magnetic frequencies without cryogenic conditions
• Nanometer scale magnets show promise for faster storage and non silicon computing

Researchers have demonstrated a new way to tune magnetic behavior in extremely thin materials using visible laser pulses at room temperature.

The work focuses on controlling magnons, which are collective spin excitations that play a key role in magnetic devices.

The study, published in Nature Communications, shows that nanometer thick magnets can have their magnon frequencies adjusted both up and down on demand. The material used is just 20nm thick, making it compatible with dense electronic designs.