The Spatial Resolution Limit for an Individual Domain Wall in Magnetic Nanowires.

Magnetic nanowires are the foundation of several promising nonvolatile computing devices, most notably magnetic racetrack memory and domain wall logic. Here, we determine the analog information capacity in these technologies, analyzing a magnetic nanowire containing a single domain wall. Although wires can be deliberately patterned with notches to define discrete positions for domain walls, the line edge roughness of the wire can also trap domain walls at dimensions below the resolution of the fabrication process, determining the fundamental resolution limit for the placement of a domain wall.

Logic circuit prototypes for three-terminal magnetic tunnel junctions with mobile domain walls.

Spintronic computing promises superior energy efficiency and nonvolatility compared to conventional field-effect transistor logic. But, it has proven difficult to realize spintronic circuits with a versatile, scalable device design that is adaptable to emerging material physics. Here we present prototypes of a logic device that encode information in the position of a magnetic domain wall in a ferromagnetic wire.