• DigitalMus
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    Altermagnets are pretty interesting because their most defining feature is not the magnetic order in the materials. They look like ordinary antiferromagnets where the spins of adjacent atoms point in opposite direction and compensate each other, so no large magnetic fields are created. What differentiate altermagnets from antiferromagnets is how the electrons with different spin behave. When pulling current through altermagnets it will consist of purely spin up electrons along one crystal axis and purely spin down along orthogonal crystal axes. Thus the spin currents have a ‘alternating’ pattern, giving the name altermagnet. This is primarily exciting for the field of ‘spintronics’ which is all about creating technologies using spin currents.

    Not all altermagnets are equally interesting, many antiferromagnets can be reclassified to altermagnets but they are generally insulating. (fun fact the first ever measured and textbook antiferromaget MnF2 is actually altermagnetic) So materials discovery of new altermagnets is important to find metallic, semi-metallic or even super conducting altermagnets.

    • dlpkl
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      8 months ago
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      Hmm yes, I understand.

      • Klear
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        8 months ago
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        A four-year-old child could understand this! Run out and find me a four-year-old child. I can’t make head nor tail out of it.

        • theneverfoxEnglish
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          8 months ago
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          Magnet atoms magnet at magnet direction. Altermagnet magnet at 90° magnet direction. Antiferrous magnet magnet at 180° direction

          (That’s my takeaway at least)

    • bfg9k
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      I made it to ‘spins of adjacent atoms’ and went cross-eyed

  • Alivrah
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    8 months ago
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    Altermagnets, how do they work???

  • angrystego
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    So if I understand correctly, both antiferromagnets and altermagnets can be packed together very tightly, unlike ferromagmets, which makes them potentionally better for use in computers. I didn’t really get the advantage altermagnets have compared to antiferromagnets and why they’re more suitable for spintronics. I’d appreciate if anyone could ELI5.

    • DigitalMus
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      Imagine there are two balls, a red and a blue. You want to communicate to your friend rolling the only blue ball to them. In a ferromagnet there are only blue balls, in an antiferromagnet the blue and red balls are glued together and in an altermagnet there are both balls but they go in different directions so you just need to orient yourself correctly.

      The antiferromagnet can’t be used for spintronics, the ferromagnet can but big magnetic field disturb other parts in a circuit.

  • Fat Tony
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    8 months ago
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    ELIBD? (Explain Like I’m Brain Dead)

    • nxdefiant
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      They’re only magnetic on the inside!

  • mods_are_assholes
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    This is a science community covering a world class discovery and every fuckdamn comment is a meme or joke.

    Fuck this community, blocked along with every yahoo in the thread.

    • MadMadBunny
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      8 months ago
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      Stay for the articles, but ignore the comments if you will

    • MechaguanaEnglish
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      We could make a science_serious kind of sublemmy for that kind of discussion, that way the playground stays and a more strict version would exist!

      • mods_are_assholes
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        Or I could just give up lemmy too considering how new redditlike it has become in only 7 months

        • MechaguanaEnglish
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          I feel like you are on some kind of phyrric crusade gl and I hope you’ll find peace with whatever troubles you man

  • RizzRustbolt
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    We barely understand the kind we’ve already got. Now they’re adding more?

  • Zozano
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    Is it the kind that ends when you drop a glass of water on it?

    • Plopp
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      I keep misreading things as anal magnetism.