Stuart S.P. Parkin, "Unconventional Superconductivity and Spintronics"
Oskar Klein Auditorium (FR4)
AlbaNova Main Building
Title: Unconventional Superconductivity and Spintronics
Abstract: The search for triplet superconductors in which the supercurrents carry finite spin angular momentum has been of great interest for a number of years. Although the vast majority of superconducting materials are conventional with condensates formed from Cooper pairs that have zero spin angular momentum, it has been recognized for some time that interfaces between conventional superconductors and ferromagnets can give rise to proximity induced superconductivity in the magnetic layer that has a triplet component. We discuss studies in which we have explored proximity induced superconductivity in magnetic multilayers, chiral antiferromagnets and platinum layers which themselves are made magnetic by proximity to an insulating ferrimagnet. We also discuss intrinsic superconducting diode effects in lateral and vertical Josephson junctions formed between conventional superconducting electrodes and various spacer layers. Our primary goal is to develop cryogenic spintronic memory devices formed from magnetic racetracks in which triplet supercurrents can manipulate nanoscopic magnetic textures which are detected via the Josephson diode effect.
Speaker: Stuart S. P. Parkin is a Director at the Max Planck Institute of Microstructure Physics in Halle (Saale), and one of the leading figures in modern spintronics. He is internationally recognized for his pioneering contributions to magnetic nanostructures and data storage technologies, in particular the development of giant magnetoresistance (GMR) multilayers that underpin today’s hard disk drive industry.
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Time: Tuesday, March 24, 2026 at 15:15 (Fika starting at 14:45 outside the auditorium)
Comment: The colloquium is given in connection with the Nordic-German Wilhelm and Else Heraeus-Seminar 2026: Quantum Condensates and Quantum Geometry (QCQG) hosted by Nordita.