Quick links
Welcome
The York Institute for Materials Research has been developed to pursue world leading research into the manufacture, structure, properties and performance of a variety of modern 21st century functional materials with exciting new electronic, magnetic, optical biological and other properties. The Institute is interdisciplinary and involves the departments of Chemistry, Physics and Electronics. In addition York now has a world-leading facility (the York-Jeol Nanocentre) which can investigate materials and their behaviour at the atomic-scale.
More than 40 interdisciplinary researchers are engaged in materials research.
Spintronics
York has a very strong spintronics research programme which involves interdisciplinary activity across three departments, and experimental and theoretical activity. It includes work on the growth, fabrication and characterisation of spintronic materials and devices, magnetic/semiconductor hybrid materials and patterned nanostructures. Theoretical activities span from the study of spin-diffusion and injection
to micromagnetic modeling and spin dynamics. Other device research includes magnetic nanocontacts for studying spin-torque effects and spin-transport.
Further information about spintronics.
Magnetic Materials
The Magnetic Materials Research Group specialises in the study of magnetisation reversal in advanced magnetic materials and particularly those materials that have applications or potential applications in the field of magnetic information storage.
The group maintains the premier magnetic measurement capability in Europe and possibly in the world. The facility has recently been enhanced by the purchase of an ADE Model 10 vibrating sample magnetometer which is one of only three of its kind in Western Europe and the only one in the UK. The group collaborates widely with industry and academia on a worldwide basis with current support from various divisions of the Seagate Corporation, Hitachi GST, Western Digital Inc (CA) and Dowa Electronics Ltd. of Japan.
Liquid Crystal
In the Liquid Crystal Group there are two exciting areas of research development; one is in the area of biomedical materials and the other in the area of nanostructured materials and controlled self-assembly and self-organisation.
Nanotechnology
The Nanotechnology Research Group focuses on molecular and nanotechnology, in particular, the surface science of novel nonmaterial for clean chemical processes, energy, environment, sensors and molecular electronics.
Further information about nanotechnology.