Concepts in Spin Electronics

Nowadays information technology is based on semiconductor and feromagnetic materials. Information processing and computation are based on electron charge in semiconductor transistors and integrated circuits, and information is stored on magnetic high-density hard disks based on the physics of the electron spins. Recently, a new branch of physics and nanotechnology, called magneto-electronics, spintronics or spin electronics, has emerged, which aims at simultaneously exploiting both the charge and the spin of electrons in the same device. A broader goal is to develop new functionality that does not exist separately in a ferromagnet or semiconductor. The aim of this book is to present new directions in the development of spin electronics in both the basic physics and the technologywhich will become the foundation of future electronics.

Professor Sadamichi Maekawa
Institute for Materials Research
Katahira 2-1-1, Aobaku
Sendai 980-8577, Japan
2005-present: Honda Professor, Institute for Materials Research, Tohoku University
1997-present: Professor, Institute for Materials Research, Tohoku University
1988-1997: Professor, Department of Applied Physics, Nagoya University
1984-1988: Associate Professor, Institute for Materials Research, Tohoku University
1971-1984: Research Associate, Institute for Materials Research, Tohoku University