3 ECTS Credits — Semester 1 — Elective
This course introduces magnetic phenomena at the nanoscale and their modern applications. At the end of the course, students should be able to understand the microscopic mechanisms underlying magnetism in materials, identify effects specific to low-dimensional systems, describe the basic principles of spintronics and functional magnetic materials, relate spin dynamics to current and emerging device applications.
Syllabus
- Fundamentals of electronic magnetism and exchange interactions
- Magnetism in nanostructures: thin films, multilayers, nanoparticles
- Anisotropy, exchange coupling, and surface effects
- Magnetization dynamics and the Landau–Lifshitz–Gilbert equation
- Introduction to spintronics: spin injection and transport, giant and tunnel magnetoresistance
- Applications: magnetic devices, memories, and sensors
Suggested bibliography
- Introduction to Solid State Physics, Kittel (Wiley)
- Solid State Physics, Aschroft et Mermin (Brooks/Cole )
- Magnetism and Magnetic Materials, Coey (Cambridge University Press)
- Magnetism in Condensed Matter, Blundell (Oxford University Press)
Prerequisites
Basic knowledge of solid-state physics (crystal structure, electrons in metals and insulators), and elementary notions of quantum mechanics and magnetism (magnetic moment, spin, exchange interaction).