Twisting the Rules: Magnetic Helices Reveal Nematic Order Inspired by Liquid Crystals

Posted by Quantum Server Networks • August 2025

Magnetic Helices Exhibit Nematic Order

In an exciting crossroad between magnetism and soft matter physics, researchers from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, and the University of California, Santa Cruz have discovered a form of nematic order in magnetic helices—a state of matter typically associated with liquid crystals. This breakthrough, published in Science Advances, opens the door to a new class of exotic magnetic materials with potentially transformative applications in microelectronics and information storage technologies.

From Liquid Crystals to Magnetic Spirals

Nematic phases are known for their role in everyday LCD technology. These materials consist of rod-like molecules that align in a common direction while remaining randomly spaced, giving them both structure and fluidity. The latest research shows that this type of order can also emerge in magnetic systems—specifically in magnetic helices found in specially grown films of iron germanide.

"If we think of these magnetic helices as the objects that are aligning, the magnetism follows expectations for nematic phases," said lead author Zoey Tumbleson, a graduate student at Berkeley Lab and UC Santa Cruz. The realization that magnetic textures can mimic the orientational behavior of liquid crystals expands our understanding of nematicity well beyond its classical realm.

A New Phase in Amorphous Iron Germanide

Unlike crystalline iron germanide, the amorphous thin films produced by the research team lacked long-range order—yet still exhibited coherent nematic behavior in the alignment of magnetic helices. This points to the emergence of an entirely new magnetic phase of matter, one that might be harnessed in spintronic devices or reconfigurable magnetic materials.

"This work is part of our broader research effort into understanding fluctuations in magnetic materials," explained co-author Sujoy Roy. "Such understanding is vital to the development of future memory and logic technologies."

Time-Splitting X-Ray Techniques Unveil Hidden Motion

To detect and characterize these magnetic structures, the team utilized powerful X-ray light sources at both the Advanced Light Source (ALS) and the Linac Coherent Light Source (LCLS). These tools allowed researchers to observe dynamics on vastly different timescales—ranging from nanoseconds at LCLS to hundreds of seconds at ALS—offering a layered view of the motion and evolution of the magnetic helices.

Such dual-timescale imaging revealed surprising complexities in how the magnetic order shifts and fluctuates. "These measurements at very different timescales combine to provide us with this really interesting picture," said co-author Joshua Turner. "It’s mysterious and points to much more occurring here than previously understood."

Potential Applications: Rewritable Magnetism?

If nematic magnetic helices can be controlled or manipulated in devices, they could lead to materials with reconfigurable magnetic properties—a feature highly desirable in future computing systems, sensors, or neuromorphic architectures. Since nematic phases allow for flexibility without breaking order, such materials could be ideal for soft electronics or memory that adapts in real-time.

As researchers explore faster imaging and even more precise tuning of magnetic behaviors, the study of helical nematicity may soon become a frontier area in quantum materials science.

🔗 Read the full article: https://phys.org/news/2025-07-nematic-magnetic-helices-echoing-liquid.html

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#MagneticNematics #Spintronics #QuantumMaterials #MagneticHelices #LiquidCrystalPhysics #IronGermanide #MaterialsScience #XrayImaging #NanoMagnetism #TopologicalMaterials #ScientificDiscovery #QuantumServerNetworks #PWmat

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