For decades, scientists recognized only two major types of magnets.
One is the familiar ferromagnet, the kind found in refrigerator magnets and countless everyday devices. The other is the antiferromagnet, whose magnetic properties are hidden at the atomic level but have attracted growing interest because of their potential use in advanced technologies.
More recently, researchers identified a third category known as altermagnets. First proposed within the last decade, these materials may combine some of the most useful characteristics of both ferromagnets and antiferromagnets, potentially opening the door to faster, more energy-efficient electronics.
Now, physicists at the University at Buffalo have proposed a new quantum sensing approach that could make altermagnets much easier to identify.
The proposed method, described in Physical Review Letters, would detect how a suspected altermagnet affects a tiny magnetic defect inside a nearby diamond. By monitoring how the defect's magnetic signal relaxes over time, researchers may be able to identify telltale signs of altermagnetism.
