Russian researchers have discovered properties in the mineral cubanite that could help reduce energy loss in electronic devices and increase their efficiency. This conclusion was reached by specialists from the A.N. Zavaritsky Institute of Geology and Geochemistry of the Ural Branch of the Russian Academy of Sciences and the A.F. Ioffe Physical-Technical Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, along with colleagues from several scientific centers in the country.
Cubanite is a triple sulfide of copper and iron. For a long time, it was mainly considered a minor ore for copper production. However, it has now been found that this natural mineral possesses a set of characteristics in demand for creating new generation electronic devices.
Modern electronics lose some energy as heat during information processing. According to the authors of the work, cubanite has low thermal conductivity and also possesses a controllable magnetic structure. It is the combination of these qualities that is considered one of the key requirements for the development of promising spintronic technologies.
Scientists have established that heat within the crystal propagates unevenly: its transfer rate depends on the direction. This feature could potentially allow for more precise control over heat distribution within electronic components and reduce energy losses.
Another important finding was the discovery of magnon excitations in cubanite. Thanks to them, magnetic waves propagate efficiently through the material, which are considered one of the tools for transmitting and processing information in future computing systems.