UC Davis Research Peers into Next-Gen Memory

Researchers at the University of California, Davis are working to develop next-generation storage memory that will be faster and less costly to produce and that will have higher capacity, greater reliability and reduced power needs than current forms.

That work is being undertaken by the Takamura Research Group, which is part of UC Davis' Department of Chemical Engineering and Material Science. Led by Yayoi Takamura, an associate professor at the university, the research involves using complex oxides to control magnetic domain walls within the wires of semiconductor memory at nanoscale. A material made from complex oxides, which are sensitive to external stimuli, can exhibit multiple characteristics, both ionic and electronic, and therefore may support multiple functions in a single device.

Inspired by the work being done at IBM on "racetrack memory" Takamura said she believes complex oxides "have the potential to provide additional degrees of freedom that may enable more efficient and reliable manipulation of magnetic domain walls." In that IBM work, the magnetic race track is a storage-class memory that has cost and storage capacity equal to magnetic disks but with better performance and reliability.

Semiconductor Research Corp., long a supporter of the work being done in the area of semiconductor research at dozens of universities around the world, is a backer of the UC Davis research.

"While still in the early stages, the innovative research from the UC Davis team is helping the industry gain a better fundamental understanding linking the chemical, structural, magnetic and electronic properties of next-generation memory materials," said Bob Havemann, director of Semiconductor Research's Nanomanufacturing Sciences division.

About the Author

Dian Schaffhauser is a former senior contributing editor for 1105 Media's education publications THE Journal, Campus Technology and Spaces4Learning.

Featured

  • Stock market graphs and candlesticks breaking apart with glass-like cracks

    Chinese Startup DeepSeek Disrupts AI Market

    A new low-cost Chinese artificial intelligence model is wreaking havoc in the technology sector, with tech stocks plummeting globally as concerns grow over the potential disruption it could cause.

  • abstract geometric pattern of glowing interconnected triangles, hexagons, and circles in blue, gold, and white, spread across a dark navy-to-black gradient background

    OpenAI Unveils 'Operator' AI for Performing Web Tasks

    OpenAI has launched "Operator," an AI agent designed to perform web-based tasks autonomously using its own browser. Currently available as a research preview for Pro users in the United States, the tool aims to automate everyday activities such as filling out forms, ordering groceries, and even creating memes.

  • glowing shield with a lock symbol at its center, surrounded by stylized outlines of books, a graduation cap, and a laptop

    Why the Education Sector Needs to Get Better at Cyber Hygiene

    Despite the wealth of publicly available information about cyber attacks and the tactics used by malicious actors, many institutions appear unprepared to protect their students, faculty, and endowments from cyber threats.

  • handshake where one hand is human and the other is composed of glowing circuits

    Western Governors University Joins Open edX as a Mission-Aligned Organization

    Western Governors University is the first organization to join the Open edX project as a "mission-aligned organization" (MAO), a new category of institution-level partnership supporting development of the Open edX open source online learning platform.