Program Highlights

Nanotube Magnetism

We have introduced a novel nanomagnetic system, magnetic nanotubes. Magnetic FePt and Fe₃O₄ nanotubes have been prepared by hydrogen reduction in nanochannels of porous alumina templates, and investigated by electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction analysis, and magnetic measurements. The versatility of the method means that alloy nanotubes with a wide range of parameters can be produced. The figure below shows a bundle of Fe₃O₄ nanotubes with magnetic properties that are explained in terms of a tubular random-anisotropy model. The figures below show possible types of spin structures that may be created in nanotubes, some with significant applications in information or other nanotechnologies.

D.J. Sellmyer and R. Skomski