Nanoscale Spintronics with Magnons, Phonons, and Photons

Spintronics is a leading contender for future nano-scale, "beyond Moore", data storage, processing, and transmission technologies. In particular, magnetism-based spintronics has enormous largely unexplored potential given its two particular features: (i) the extreme robustness of the magnetic order parameter against elevated temperatures and nanoscale confinement, and, (ii) the power-efficient spin-torque manipulation of the magnetic order by electric currents. As researchers are probing deeper into the spin dynamics of nanostructures, new physics and associated functionalities are being discovered at a dazzling pace. The 2nd Gordon Research Conference and 1st Gordon Research Seminar on "Spin Dynamics in Nanostructures" will provide an important stage for the main players in the field (and those who want to joint them) to present and discuss new results and future plans, in theory, computation, simulation, and experiments.

The conference will touch many issues of modern spintronics and magnetism that challenge conventional wisdom. Magnetism occurs in metals and insulators, in the form of ferro-, ferri- and antiferromagnetic ground states, all with specific dynamical properties. Elementary spin wave excitations (magnons) can be excited and controlled by external stimuli such as magnetic fields, heating, electric currents, light (photons) and sound (phonons). The magnetization field may contain topological defects such as domain walls, vortices, and skyrmions that are especially susceptible to perturbations. The spin-orbit interaction is an essential ingredient to access, excite and stabilize magnetic textures and their dynamics. As structures approach the nanometer scale, new challenges arise due to the increased role of internal interfaces and contacts to the outside world and novel emerging quantum effects. Moreover, studies on the femtosecond to picosecond time-scales provide insights into regimes which defy established wisdom.

We invite starting and expert researchers from academia and industry with backgrounds in experiment, theory, and computation of magnetism, optics, mechanics, electronics and thermoelectrics to participate in these meetings. The goal of these meetings is to exchange ideas and to discuss the most recent progress and most challenging problems. Of special welcome are junior scientists working on or interested in the field. At the preceding 1st Gordon Research Seminar in magnetism they will receive briefings from leading researchers as well as present and extensively discuss their work among themselves in order to maximally profit from the subsequent conference.