Magneto-Optics Effects: New Trends and Future Prospects for Technological Developments

Abstract

Magneto-optics (MO) is an effervescent research field, with a wide range of potential industrial applications including sensing, theranostics, pharmaceutics, magnetometry, and spectroscopy, among others. This review discusses the historical development, from the discovery of MO effects up to the most recent application trends. In addition to the consolidated fields of magnetoplasmonic sensing and modulation of optical signals, we describe novel MO materials, phenomena, and applications. We also identified the emerging field of all-dielectric magnetophotonics, which hold promise to overcome dissipation from metallic inclusions in plasmonic nanostructures. Moreover, we identified some challenges, such as the need to merge magneto-chiroptical effects with microfluidics technology, for chiral sensing and enantioseparation of drugs in the pharmaceutical industry. Other potential industrial applications are discussed in light of recent research achievements in the available literature.

Magnetoplasmonic Nanoantennas for On-Chip Reconfigurable Optical Wireless Communications

“…This is known as magnetoplasmonics. 29,30 It is significant that the dipolar plasmonic radiation from a single horn-like magnetoplasmonic nanoaperture can be dynamically steered using applied magnetic fields. 31 In the latter work, the direction and magnitude of the tilt of the beam radiated from a single magnetoplasmonic nanoantenna to air could be controlled by the direction and magnitude of the magnetic field.…”

“…Many of these achievements have been made possible by integrating plasmonic effects, i.e., the resonant coupling of free density charge oscillations with the electric field component of light, with magneto-optical effects at the nanoscale. This is known as magnetoplasmonics. , It is significant that the dipolar plasmonic radiation from a single horn-like magnetoplasmonic nanoaperture can be dynamically steered using applied magnetic fields . In the latter work, the direction and magnitude of the tilt of the beam radiated from a single magnetoplasmonic nanoantenna to air could be controlled by the direction and magnitude of the magnetic field.…”

Magnetic Semiconductors as Materials for Spintronics

“…), it is possible to easily change the magnetic properties of SCs [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][15][16][17][18][19][20]. On the contrary, their electrical and optical properties can be controlled by an external magnetic field, which in relation to the intense development of electronics and magnetophotonics is of high practical interest [21][22][23][24][25]. For example, the presence of a large magnetocaloric effect in manganites makes magnetic SCs promising materials for creating refrigerators [26].…”

“…Magnetochemistry 2022, 8, x FOR PEER REVIEW 2 of 27 can be controlled by an external magnetic field, which in relation to the intense development of electronics and magnetophotonics is of high practical interest [21][22][23][24][25]. For example, the presence of a large magnetocaloric effect in manganites makes magnetic SCs promising materials for creating refrigerators [26].…”

“…Spintronics (spin electronics) studies spin current transfer (spin-polarized transport) in condensed media, including contact structures, heterostructures, superlattices and multilayers. In all these cases, the source of spin-polarized electrons (spin injector) is a ferromagnet (metal or semiconductor), which in the magnetized state has the spontaneous spin ordering of the current carriers [15][16][17][18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25]. In ferromagnetic SCs, the levels of spin polarization can reach higher values (up to almost 100%) than in metals (up to 10%) [41].…”