Universities achieve first nanometer-scale detection of magnons, advancing understanding of energy-efficient data transfer

International collaboration shows how magnetic spin waves could lead to faster, cooler, and more efficient electronics.

A team of researchers from top universities in the UK, Sweden, and the United States has achieved a breakthrough in physics that could influence the future of computing and communications.

Using cutting-edge electron microscopy, the scientists directly detected and mapped magnons, tiny waves in a material’s magnetic field that can carry information, at the nanometer scale for the first time.

The study, published in Nature, demonstrates a new way to study how data might be transferred inside materials without relying on electrical current. This could lead to electronics that are faster and use less energy, helping address one of the key challenges in designing smaller and more efficient devices.

What are magnons and why do they matter?

In today’s phones and computers, information moves through electrical currents. But as technology gets smaller, those currents produce more heat and use more power. Magnons are different: they’re like ripples in the magnetic structure of a material that can carry information without moving electrons in the usual way.

Being able to detect and study magnons at very small scales gives scientists the ability to see how they behave near defects or surfaces of a material, critical information for designing new kinds of low-energy computing systems known as spintronic devices.

Collaboration across disciplines and institutions

The research was led by the University of York in partnership with the SuperSTEM laboratory in Daresbury, the University of Uppsala in Sweden, Durham University, and the University of Washington. By combining theoretical calculations with advanced microscopy, the team was able to identify the unique spectroscopic “signal” of magnons in a nickel oxide crystal.

Professor Quentin Ramasse, Director of SuperSTEM, where the experiments were performed, says the study marks an important step forward. “This experiment demonstrates unambiguously the nanometer-scale mapping of magnons in an electron microscope,” Ramasse says. “It’s a powerful step toward understanding how these excitations can be harnessed for practical applications.”

While this is still a proof-of-concept experiment, it shows how collaborative university research can create new tools for both fundamental science and future technologies. Insights from this kind of work could eventually inform more energy-efficient ways to process and store data, supporting innovations in computing, telecommunications, and beyond.

The team now plans to expand their research to study magnons in a wider range of materials, aiming to move from fundamental science toward potential device applications.