Scientists twist tinty crystals to control electricity

Jan 28, 2026 Last reply: 5 months ago 1 Replies

Scientists twist tiny crystals to control electricity Date: January 25, 2026 Source: RIKEN Summary: Researchers have developed a technique that allows them to carve complex three dimensional nanodevices directly from single crystals. To demonstrate its power, they sculpted microscopic helices from a magnetic material and found that the structures behave like switchable diodes. Electric current prefers one direction, but the effect can be flipped by changing the magnetization or the twist of the helix. The findings show that geometry itself can be used as a tool for electronic design.



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This would have interesting if it had worked at room temperature, but between 10 and 190K, it's much less so.

It may still be interesting for the ability to sculpt complex microscopic 3D shapes, we'll see.

Jeroen Belleman

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