GOALI: Phase Separated Ferromagnetic Metal - Metal Oxide/Hydroxide Nanomaterials as a Transformative Concept for Magnetic Field Sensors

本研究的目的是研究由新型相分离的铁磁性金属-金属氧化物/氢氧化物纳米材料制成的纳米触头的磁电阻。该方法是建立、测试和研究具有不同和良好特性的材料结构的原型纳米接触装置。这些器件将采用自下而上的制造方案，其纳米接触结构从单晶镍或铁到具有铁磁性矩阵的纳米接触具有一定比例的金属氧化物/氢氧化物相。智能优点本研究旨在探讨在纳米电极几何构型中合成铁磁性金属-金属氧化物/氢氧化物纳米材料作为制造磁场传感器的新方法的可行性。本项目将建立铁磁纳米触头的尺寸和材料结构与其磁阻之间的基本关系。更广泛的影响拟议的研究计划代表了一项多学科的努力，对开发用于磁记录、磁成像、自旋电子学和磁性生物传感器技术的未来磁场传感器具有巨大的变革潜力。在这个项目中创造的新知识将被纳入休斯顿大学纳米技术和纳米制造课程的本科生和研究生课程，并将通过由PI指导的电化学学会的短期课程成为广泛教育推广的一部分。这项工作将为三名博士生和几名参与国家科学基金暑期研究项目的高中教师和本科生提供培训。参与该项目的学生将有机会通过希捷科技提供的实习机会获得培训并在工业研究环境中工作。

The objective of this research is to study the magnetoresistance of the nanocontacts made of the novel phase-separated ferromagnetic metal-metal oxide/hydroxide nanomaterials. The approach is to build, test and study prototype nanocontact devices having different and well characterized material structures. These devices will be built using bottom-up fabrication scheme with nanocontact structures varying from single crystal nickel or iron to the nanocontact having ferromagnetic matrix with certain fraction of metal-oxide/hydroxide phase. Intellectual Merit The proposed research addresses the feasibility of ferromagnetic metal-metal oxide/hydroxide nanomaterials synthesized in the nanoelectrode geometry configuration as novel approach for fabrication of magnetic field sensors. This project will establish the fundamental relationship between the size and material structure of ferromagnetic nanocontacts and their magnetoresistance. Broader Impact The proposed research program represents a multidisciplinary effort which has a large transformative potential for development of future magnetic field sensors for magnetic recording, magnetic imaging, spintronics and magnetic biosensor technologies. The new knowledge created in this project will be incorporated into undergraduate and graduate curriculum of nanotechnology and nanofabrication courses at the University of Houston and it will become a part of the broad educational outreach through the Electrochemical Society's short course instructed by PI. This work will provide the training for three doctoral students and for several high school teachers and undergraduate students involved in the summer research programs sponsored by the National Science Foundation. The students involved in this project will have a chance to get the training and to work in industrial research environment through the internships provided by the Seagate Technology.