An ultrasensitive spintronic strain sensor

TL;DR

This paper introduces a highly sensitive spintronic strain sensor capable of detecting minimal strain changes at room temperature with a linear response, suitable for various fabrication methods.

Contribution

It presents a novel spintronic strain sensor design with ultrahigh sensitivity and linear response, operational at room temperature, and compatible with multiple fabrication techniques.

Findings

Sensitivity of 1E-13/√Hz at room temperature

Linear proportionality between current change and strain

Active sensing area of 1 cm² with 1 watt power dissipation

Abstract

We propose a spintronic strain sensor capable of sensing strain with a sensitivity of 1E-13/sqrt{Hz} at room temperature with an active sensing area of 1 cmE2 and power dissipation of 1 watt. This device measures strain by monitoring the change in the spin-polarized current in a parallel array of free standing nanowire spin valves when the array is subjected to compressive or tensile stress along the wires' length. The change in the current is linearly proportional to the strain, which makes the sensor relatively distortion-free. Such a sensor can be fabricated using a variety of techniques involving nanolithography, self assembly and epitaxial growth.