A team of researchers has demonstrated that a single ferromagnetic layer can be switched perpendicularly using in-plane current injection. The study, published in Nature, shows that a cobalt dot with strong perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and Rashba interaction can be switched by injecting in-plane current at room temperature. The device consists of a thin cobalt layer with asymmetric platinum and AlOx interface layers, which induce strong perpendicular anisotropy and Rashba interaction. The switching field is orthogonal to the magnetization and Rashba field, and the symmetry of the switching field is consistent with the spin accumulation induced by the Rashba interaction and the spin-dependent mobility observed in non-magnetic semiconductors, as well as the torque induced by the spin Hall effect in the platinum layer. The switching efficiency increases with the magnetic anisotropy of the cobalt layer and the oxidation of the aluminium layer, suggesting that the Rashba interaction plays a key role in the reversal mechanism. The researchers also constructed a reprogrammable magnetic switch that can be integrated into non-volatile memory and logic architectures. This device is simple, scalable, and compatible with present-day magnetic recording technology. The study shows that the coupling of spin and orbital angular momenta underlies the magnetic anisotropy properties of ferromagnets. Strong anisotropy allows for permanent, stable storage but also requires stronger magnetic fields to write information to magnetic media. An ideal solution to this problem requires the spin–orbit interaction to be beneficial for both storage and writing purposes. Experiments on non-magnetic semiconductors have revived interest in effective magnetic fields originating in spin–orbit coupling. Such fields relate the spin of an electron to its momentum, converting a charge current into a source of spin polarization even in the absence of magnetism. More recently, spin–orbit fields have been predicted and observed in ferromagnets lacking structural inversion symmetry. The possibility of generating strong spin–orbit fields in ferromagnetic metals (FMMs) is particularly interesting for applications, owing to the robust Curie temperature and perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) afforded by such systems. The study also shows that the ability to switch a single magnetic layer at room temperature using an in-plane current opens the way to a new generation of spintronic devices, combining planar geometry, highly stable perpendicular magnetization, all-electrical write/read out schemes and reconfigurability. The layer structure of the prototype switch is extremely simple, is scalable and is based on materials compatible with present technology. The current density threshold for switching is of the order of 10^8 A cm^-2, and is expected to improve with further interface engineering. The study also has interesting implications for existing technology, such as the integration of a FMM oxide heterostructure as the storage layer of a magnetic tunnel junction in magnetoresistive random-access memory, to decouple the read and write current pathsA team of researchers has demonstrated that a single ferromagnetic layer can be switched perpendicularly using in-plane current injection. The study, published in Nature, shows that a cobalt dot with strong perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and Rashba interaction can be switched by injecting in-plane current at room temperature. The device consists of a thin cobalt layer with asymmetric platinum and AlOx interface layers, which induce strong perpendicular anisotropy and Rashba interaction. The switching field is orthogonal to the magnetization and Rashba field, and the symmetry of the switching field is consistent with the spin accumulation induced by the Rashba interaction and the spin-dependent mobility observed in non-magnetic semiconductors, as well as the torque induced by the spin Hall effect in the platinum layer. The switching efficiency increases with the magnetic anisotropy of the cobalt layer and the oxidation of the aluminium layer, suggesting that the Rashba interaction plays a key role in the reversal mechanism. The researchers also constructed a reprogrammable magnetic switch that can be integrated into non-volatile memory and logic architectures. This device is simple, scalable, and compatible with present-day magnetic recording technology. The study shows that the coupling of spin and orbital angular momenta underlies the magnetic anisotropy properties of ferromagnets. Strong anisotropy allows for permanent, stable storage but also requires stronger magnetic fields to write information to magnetic media. An ideal solution to this problem requires the spin–orbit interaction to be beneficial for both storage and writing purposes. Experiments on non-magnetic semiconductors have revived interest in effective magnetic fields originating in spin–orbit coupling. Such fields relate the spin of an electron to its momentum, converting a charge current into a source of spin polarization even in the absence of magnetism. More recently, spin–orbit fields have been predicted and observed in ferromagnets lacking structural inversion symmetry. The possibility of generating strong spin–orbit fields in ferromagnetic metals (FMMs) is particularly interesting for applications, owing to the robust Curie temperature and perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) afforded by such systems. The study also shows that the ability to switch a single magnetic layer at room temperature using an in-plane current opens the way to a new generation of spintronic devices, combining planar geometry, highly stable perpendicular magnetization, all-electrical write/read out schemes and reconfigurability. The layer structure of the prototype switch is extremely simple, is scalable and is based on materials compatible with present technology. The current density threshold for switching is of the order of 10^8 A cm^-2, and is expected to improve with further interface engineering. The study also has interesting implications for existing technology, such as the integration of a FMM oxide heterostructure as the storage layer of a magnetic tunnel junction in magnetoresistive random-access memory, to decouple the read and write current paths