Most of the modern gadgets are processing and storing data with the help of electric charges. The alternative is to use the approach based managing the electrons’ spin (magnetic moment). Thus, electrons in the atoms of magnetically sensitive materials can line-up their spins in one direction. This allows for controlling the magnetization of such materials and thus for storing data with their help.
A group of Russian scientists created one of the magnetically sensitive materials on the basis of cadmium arsenide – a chemical mixture of cadmium with arsenic, in which electrons (charge carriers) are very agile: this feature allows for creation of spin-polarized structures. The authors inserted atoms of chrome in various concentrations (from 1% to 6%) into the matrix of the material, making an alloy of the initial substances under 740°C temperature.
Having analyzed the chemical composition and structure of the received materials, the scientists concluded that chrome becomes integrated into the crystal lattice of cadmium arsenide. This leads to generation of three separate phases: initial cadmium arsenide, chrome arsenide (when cadmium partially substitutes for the chrome atoms in the molecules) and pure cadmium.
Analyzing the samples under microscope showed that cadmium arsenide account for the biggest portion of the alloy (about 96.4%), chrome arsenide (1.6%) looks like small darker inclusions, and cadmium (2%) — lighter inclusions. The fact that cadmium is not equally distributed in the alloy and remains as separate inclusions tells us that it has a rather low solubility limit (not higher than 0.1%).
“Magnetically sensitive materials have high potential for creating various IT appliances, as well as magnetic storage, means of communication, sensors of different types and other applications. Studying how the main components of such materials interact and what phases are created when alloying them is very important for selecting the optimal compositions of these materials. The availability of data on phase equilibriums allows for a synthesis specialist or for a process engineer to work with specific composites based on the confirmed information about the forecasted or confirmed properties of the synthesized compound”, Russian Science Foundation is citing Alexey Ril, the research fellow of the Institute of General and Inorganic Chemistry with RAS.
