December 14, 199 Meeting

On December 14, Dr. Stuart A. Wolf of the Defense Sciences Office of Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency presented a stimulating lecture on magnetic memory and sensor devices entitled, “Spintronics- Electronics for the New Millennium.”  Nonvolatile, radiation-hard magnetic memory (MRAM) provides the potential for a low cost, low power technology with the circuit density of DRAM and the high-speed performance of SRAM.  Magnetic sensor devices may be used for motion and rotation control, as well as high sensitivity magnetometers in defense applications.  Dr. Wolf presented speculative discussions on new spin devices that may have a large impact on future microelectronics, including spin tunneling and spin injected devices.  The lecture covered a wide range of topics, including a quick tutorial on the fundamentals of spin tunneling devices, an overview of basic research on the Giant Magneto-Resistance (GMR) ratio, scaling issues of MRAM circuits, and fundamental challenges of the physics of spin scattering at interfaces.  Dr. Wolf’s exciting presentation provided for a lively debate among the audience.