Exploiting the spintronics potential at the surface of topological insulators

The tremendous potential of topological insulators for applications in the next generation of device technology has been known for some years, but finding a way to make use of their exciting properties has been difficult.

Researchers at RCaH and DLS have demonstrated that these insulators can be used to separate the spin and charge information carried by electrons, allowing a long-range interaction to take place between two separated ferromagnets.