Daily Archives: July 4, 2017

July 4, 2017 Associate Prof. Barry Zink with (left to right) Devin Wesenberg, Alex Hojem and Rachel Bennett. Credit: University of Denver

New research from a team of DU physicists has the potential to serve as the foundation for next-generation computer technology.

In the quest to make computers faster and more efficient, researchers have been exploring the field of spintronicsshorthand for spin electronicsin hopes of controlling the natural spin of the electron to the benefit of electronic devices. The discovery, made by Professor Barry Zink and his colleagues, opens a new era for experimental and theoretical studies of spin transport, a method of harnessing that natural magnetization, or spin, of electrons.

"Our approach requires a fundamentally different way of thinking about the nature of how spin moves through a material," Zink says.

Computers currently rely on electrons to process information, moving data through tiny, nano-sized wires. These electrons generate heat, however, as they travel through the wires. This heat, along with other factors, limits computer speed.

Past research has successfully demonstrated spin transport using crystalline, or ordered, materials as magnetic insulators. In Zink's new study, recently published in Nature Physics, the team was able to demonstrate spin transport through a synthetic material that is notably amorphous, or non-ordered, both magnetically and structurally.

The discovery is significant because manufacturing this amorphous synthetic material, known as yttrium iron garnet, is easier than growing the silicon crystals currently used in computer processors.

"The existing materials known to have this type of spin transport are difficult to produce," Zink says. "Our material is very easy to produce, simple to work with and potentially more cost-effective."

Dean Andrei Kutateladze of the Division of Natural Sciences and Mathematics emphasizes the significance of the team's findings.

"This spectacular result from the Zink research group amply illustrates the vibrant research environment in the division, where teacher-scholars create new knowledge working hand-in-hand with students," he says. "It also underscores the critical importance of support for fundamental research. Just as basic research in Bell Labs in the '50s and '60s paved the way for smartphones and other wonders of the current technological revolution, physicists such as Dr. Zink are building platforms for the next great technological leap."

The research team includes Davor Balzar, chair of DU's Department of Physics and Astronomy, graduate students Devin Wesenberg and Rachel Bennett, newly minted doctorate holder Alex Hojem and colleagues at Colorado State University. The scientists carried out their research using custom-designed micromachined thermal isolation platforms in DU's physics laboratories. The team's next step is to undertake more testing and verification.

"We're looking to see if we can reproduce this in different types of amorphous materials, as not a lot is known about such materials," Zink says. "Twenty years from now, they could be an important part of how computers work."

A core mission of DU's Division of Natural Sciences and Mathematics is to offer students unprecedented access to research opportunities. By working alongside distinguished faculty mentors in state-of-the-art facilities, undergraduates and graduates are able to apply their newfound knowledge to research that changes lives and challenges ideas.

Explore further: Spinning electrons open the door to future hybrid electronics

More information: Devin Wesenberg et al. Long-distance spin transport in a disordered magnetic insulator, Nature Physics (2017). DOI: 10.1038/nphys4175

A discovery of how to control and transfer spinning electrons paves the way for novel hybrid devices that could outperform existing semiconductor electronics. In a study published in Nature Communications, researchers at ...

An electron carries electrical charge and spin that gives rise to a magnetic moment and can therefore interact with external magnetic fields. Conventional electronics are based on the charge of the electron. The emerging ...

Modern computer technology is based on the transport of electric charge in semiconductors. But this technology's potential will be reaching its limits in the near future, since the components deployed cannot be miniaturized ...

Computers process and transfer data through electrical currents passing through tiny circuits and wires. As these currents meet with resistance, they create heat that can undermine the efficiency and even the safety of these ...

Researchers from the Harvard John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) have made a discovery that could lay the foundation for quantum superconducting devices. Their breakthrough solves one the main ...

It doesn't happen often that a young scientist makes a significant and unexpected discovery, but postdoctoral researcher Stephen Wu of the U.S. Department of Energy's Argonne National Laboratory just did exactly that. What ...

By gently prodding a swirling cloud of supercooled lithium atoms with a pair of lasers, and observing the atoms' response, researchers at Swinburne have developed a new way to probe the properties of quantum materials.

Researchers at the University of Southampton have cast doubt over established explanations for certain behaviours in pulsars - highly magnetised rotating neutron stars, formed from the remains of supernovae.

New research from a team of DU physicists has the potential to serve as the foundation for next-generation computer technology.

Scientists at The Australian National University (ANU) have designed a new nano material that can reflect or transmit light on demand with temperature control, opening the door to technology that protects astronauts in space ...

A new technique allows researchers to characterize nuclear material that was in a location even after the nuclear material has been removed a finding that has significant implications for nuclear nonproliferation and ...

Researchers at the University of Melbourne have demonstrated a way to detect nuclear spins in molecules non-invasively, providing a new tool for biotechnology and materials science.

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Physicists put new spin on computer technology - Phys.Org

Are tablets an asset in the classroom or a distraction? Photograph: Getty Images/Hero Images

From interactive whiteboards that aid language learning to virtual reality headsets that demonstrate Newtons laws of motion, technology has the potential to yield strong results in the classroom. And yet the benefits are far from universal. Some teachers struggle to get the most out of expensive gadgetry, meaning schools risk investing thousands of pounds in hi-tech apparatus that fails to deliver, as reported by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development in 2015.

Meanwhile, school technology budgets are falling. The average ICT budget for 2017-18 is forecast to be 13,800 for a primary school, a 4% decline year on year, and 58,230 for secondaries, a 7% fall, according to the British Educational Suppliers Association (Besa).

So how should schools prioritise to ensure this money is spent on the most useful technology?

To discuss the way ahead, the Guardian held a panel debate, sponsored by technology provider Brother, called Technology: Money Saver or Money Waster? A panel of four experts in the field discussed the issue with an audience of educationists, teachers and technology specialists.

Weve gone through 10 years of device fetishism, said panellist Donald Clark, founder of technology in education company PlanB Learning. He said schools had been investing in tablets for their pupils, despite evidence indicating that they are poor teaching tools.

You have to look from a pedagogic and learning point of view, he added. Research shows that when children write on tablets they have a high error rate. It slows kids down, they resort to a truncated style and it is a disaster in terms of literacy also, you cant code. He said tablets should be seen as a consumer device rather than an aid for learning.

However, a member of the audience, art teacher Gill Jenkins, said she had successfully used tablets for an art project with year 10 pupils and they were really engaged in it.

Success depended on the context in which technology was used, said panel member John Galloway, an advisory teacher who used technology with children with special educational needs. If the iPad was used for the wrong activities such as writing or coding it would give poor results, he said. Used in the right way, however, it could be a powerful teaching tool. One of biggest barriers to technology adoption is teachers being given the time to be trained to use it, he added. Research published by Besa in January revealed that about 60% of teachers had made training in technology one of their key aims for this year.

Galloway added that some technology may not have worked originally but may yet become commonplace. Virtual learning environments (VLEs), for example, failed to take off in the UK when they were introduced 10 years ago but may have been ahead of their time, and Google Classroom has now picked up the baton.

Michael Mann, an educationist at the innovation lab at Nesta (formerly the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts) a charity that promotes innovation believed educational technology was struggling to fulfil its potential. To address this, Nesta was giving grants to companies to measure the impact of classroom technology, and looking at ways to help teachers test out technology in their classrooms.

One of biggest barriers to technology adoption is teachers being given the time to be trained

Mann advocated small-scale trials of technology before making big investments. Do small-scale testing with a teacher passionate about it and they can show other teachers where it is relevant and where it isnt, he said. If they find out it doesnt work which is often the case a costly rollout can be avoided.

Naureen Khalid, a school governor and co-founder of @UkGovChat, a Twitter forum for school governors, said governors are demanding rigorous evidence before splashing out on new technology. Schools are poor and funding isnt going to get any better. We are custodians of public money and as a governor I cant commit to doing a trial and then writing it off.

The panel was split over whether teachers should be the arbiters of technology investment in schools. Clark argued against this, saying schools should rely on in-depth research into the educational effectiveness of the technology. If teachers tested out technology in their lessons, they risked wasting valuable teaching time and using pupils as guinea pigs. But others pointed out that much teaching was risky and experimental, with uncertain results, and technology was no different although more expensive if it failed. Furthermore, research reports may be paid for by the technology companies involved, making them far from independent.

From the audience, technology writer Terry Freedman doubted that research reports into classroom technology were much use for teachers, as they were often long, difficult to read and inconclusive.

Ultimately, anecdotal evidence is really good, he said. Teachers trying something in the classroom should ask what problem they are trying to solve, highlight the good bits and offer a five-minute evaluation.

Mann said Nesta was piloting an online funding platform called Rocket Fund, where teachers could pitch ideas relating to the use of technology in the classroom and connect with corporate and community donors. This was also helping to spread experiences and ideas among schools.

He pointed to online learning initiatives such as Third Space Learning which connected primary school pupils with tutors in India and Sri Lanka to provide lower-cost online tutoring as one scheme that had worked well.

The panel discussed whether a centralised procurement approach whereby an overall body collected evidence on the educational benefits of different devices could help streamline the process. But concerns were expressed that some teachers might struggle to trust technology recommended by another teacher and would insist on trying it out themselves.

Control groups, where the results of a class using specific technology were compared to those of a class without the technology, were also discussed. But Galloway thought this would be a messy approach as much depended on the teacher, their relationship with the class and the engagement levels of the students involved.

And what of virtual reality? Clark pointed out that VR headsets could be effective in teaching Newtons laws of motion and demonstrating weightlessness, while Galloway said VR had huge potential for children with special needs: a child in a wheelchair could experience the top of St Pauls Cathedral or the bottom of a mineshaft; a child with autism could take a virtual trip around the British Museum to prepare them for the real thing.

Galloway also pointed to eye-gaze technology, which helped people control computers through their eye movements, as a technology with useful applications. Meanwhile, artificial intelligence was touted as a powerful technology for transforming the classroom, with applications in marking and exams.

The panel agreed that teachers could benefit from taking part in ResearchED meetings. The body, which was founded by two teachers, brings together teachers, researchers and policymakers to share information on technology teaching tools.

From the audience, Ahrani Logan, co-founder of Peapodicity, an educational technology studio specialising in science, technology, engineering and mathematics subjects, said tech startups could run evaluations of classroom technology, since they excelled in analytics.

Sandra Crapper, education adviser at Onefourseven, an educational advisory service providing professional development to primary schools, said teachers could learn about technology from pupils. Our job is to analyse where it might lead them in a positive and productive way, she said. The panel suggested that teachers could make use of the smartphones most children brought into classrooms, although there were problems of security and behaviour associated with this.

As schools face yet more budget cuts, governors and heads will have to make some stark choices but technology is certain to play a part in the classroom of the future. And while there was much debate on how decisions should be made, it seems that finding ways for teachers to share information about what works will be key.

Kate Hodge (chair) Head of content strategy at Jaywing Content and former Guardian Teacher Network editor

Michael Mann Senior programme manager, education team, innovation lab, Nesta

John Galloway Advisory teacher for ICT/SEN and inclusion

Donald Clark Founder, PlanB Learning

Naureen Khalid School governor and co-founder of @UKGovChat

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Is technology delivering in schools? Our panel debates - The Guardian