April 1995 Physics Today Contents


Articles:

Special Issue: Magnetoelectronics

Guest editors: Gary Prinz and Kristl Hathaway

Magnetoelectronics Today and Tomorrow

Magnetics remains the leading technology base of the giant recording industry, while novel magnetic device technologies may enable other large market applications -- John L. Simonds

Micromagnetic Microscopy and Modeling

The development of new imaging techniques and increasingly powerful computer simulations is rapidly advancing our understanding of magnetization at submicron scales---a regime of great interest to developers of magnetic technologies such as magneto-optical storage media -- E. Dan Dahlberg and Jian-Gang Zhu

Complex Dynamics of Mesoscopic Magnets

The study of ever smaller magnets is pushing us to the limits of our understanding of magnetism, providing new headaches for the technologist and new opportunities for the researcher investigating magnetism at the atomic level -- David D. Awschalom and David P. DiVincenzo

Electronic Structure Calculations for Magnetically Ordered Systems

Density functional theory calculated on fast computers is a powerful tool for describing magnetic phenomena in solids. It can even handle magnetic anisotropy in layered systems -- Henri J. F. Jansen

Spin-Polarized Transport

Electrons have spin as well as charge, and this may make all the difference in future electronics -- Gary A. Prinz


Departments:

Reference Frame

A new high school science curriculum -- Leon M. Lederman

Search and Discovery

Measured steps advance the understanding of molecular motors. The origin of motion within our bodies has been traced to certain molecules that function as tiny motors. Recent experiments have been able to study individual motor molecules and to measure the size of the discrete, unidirectional steps they take and the force they exert.

Chromium surrogate Sun confirms that solar neutrinos really are missing. As we hear early reports of neutrino oscillation in an accelerator beam, an experiment with a surrogate Sun lends credence and clarity to the solar neutrino puzzle, the oldest of the anomalies that point to exotic neutrino metamorphosis.

Horseradish can clean industrial wastewater

Washington Reports

Clinton's R&D budget defers pain to unkindest cuts by Republicans

Physics Community

Physicists find challenges in building better cars. Because of a Clinton Administration initiative, attention again focuses on designing more efficient automobiles. Opportunities for physicists also lie in longer-term research, beyond any particular program.

New AIP education head will crank up SPS to help physics departments. Dwight E. Neuenschwander, the new manager of AIP's education division, plans to work with AIP member societies while focusing his initial efforts on the Society of Physics Students.

Physics enrollments drop for 2nd straight year

Don't miss Physics Day (Link to the National Science and Technology Week page.)

Opinion

A case for strategic research -- Peter Eisenberger and James S. Langer

Books

Neutrinos in Physics and Astrophysics, C. W. Kim and A. Pevsner (reviewed by F. Sciulli)

Modern Cosmology and the Dark Matter Problem, D. W. Sciama (reviewed by D. N. Schramm)

Life in Moving Fluids, S. Vogel (reviewed by J. Gollub)

Electro-optic Effects in Liquid Crystal Materials, L. M. Blinov and V. G. Chigrinov (reviewed by J. S. Patel)

Wolfgang Pauli: Scientific Correspondence with Bohr, Einstein, Heisenberg a.o.; Vol. III: 1940--1949, edited by K. von Meyenn (reviewed by L. M. Brown)

Introduction to the Physics of Rocks, Y. Guegen and V. Palciauskas (reviewed by R. Jeanloz)

Atmospheric Convection, K. A. Emanuel (reviewed by R. Hide)

The Knot Book: An Elementary Introduction to the Mathematical Theory of Knots, C. C. Adams (reviewed by T. R. Govindarajan)

Plus...

Our regular sections: Physics Update, Letters, New Products, We Hear That, and Information Exchange.


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