Opportunities and challenges for spintronics in the microelectronic industry

TL;DR

This paper reviews recent advances in spintronics, highlighting opportunities and challenges for integrating spin-based devices into mainstream microelectronics across various applications.

Contribution

It provides a comprehensive overview of recent progress and identifies key challenges for adopting spintronics in the microelectronic industry.

Findings

Advances in nonvolatile memories and magnetic sensors

Potential for spintronics to impact beyond-CMOS logic

Identification of integration challenges at device and system levels

Abstract

Spin-based electronics has evolved into a major field of research that broadly encompasses different classes of materials, magnetic systems, and devices. This review describes recent advances in spintronics that have the potential to impact key areas of information technology and microelectronics. We identify four main axes of research: nonvolatile memories, magnetic sensors, microwave devices, and beyond-CMOS logic. We discuss state-of-the-art developments in these areas as well as opportunities and challenges that will have to be met, both at the device and system level, in order to integrate novel spintronic functionalities and materials in mainstream microelectronic platforms.