Jayasimha Atulasimha
Mechanical and Nuclear Engineering & Electrical and Computer Engineering
Virginia Commonwealth University
Seminar: Voltage control of nanoscale magnetism: Towards energy efficient memory and neuromorphic computing devices
Abstract: While magnetic random-access memory (MRAM) devices are non-volatile, writing information into state-of-art MRAM requires 1000 times more energy than switching today’s CMOS devices. This motivates research on electrical field control of magnetization in nanoscale magnets. Towards this end, this talk will discuss experimental demonstrations of voltage-induced strain and acoustic wave switching of the magnetization of nanomagnets and microscale magnetic tunnel junction as well as potential to scale such non-volatile memory devices to lateral dimensions below 50 nm. Further, our recent work shows that direct voltage control of magnetic anisotropy in conjunction with magnetic skyrmion states offer a robust and energy efficient mechanism for switching nanomagnets.
We will also discuss such voltage control of magnetization of various nanoscale magnetic devices towards implementation of energy efficient, memory, deep neural networks whose synaptic weights can be reprogrammed online and reservoir computing devices that are amenable to online training. This could be a key enabling technology for edge computing in internet of things devices, where energy and hardware resources are at a premium.
About the Speaker: Jayasimha Atulasimha is a Qimonda Professor of mechanical and nuclear engineering with a courtesy appointment in electrical and computer engineering at the Virginia Commonwealth University. He has authored or coauthored over 85 journal publications on magnetostrictive materials, multiferroics, magnetization dynamics, spintronics and nanomagnetic computing. His current research interests include nanomagnetism, spintronics, multiferroics, nanomagnetic memory and neuromorphic computing devices. He is a fellow of the ASME, an IEEE Senior Member and past chair for the TC on Spintronics, IEEE Nanotechnology Council.
Host: Avik Ghosh, professor of electrical and computer engineering with a courtesy appointment in physics.