Sandra McCulloch, Times ColonistPublished: Thursday, January 18, 2007 UVic researchers are getting the lead, or at least the metal, out of magnets.
The breakthrough is causing a stir in the science community, with details of the discovery published yesterday in the prestigious international science magazine Nature.
A team of researchers, led by chemist Dr. Robin Hicks, has the basis for a new family of magnets based on organic compounds. It’s a lot of fuss over something Hicks describes as “fairly nondescript-looking, dark, almost-black opaque powders.”
It’s the first step in creating a material light as plastic, and even more versatile because of its magnetic properties. It’s good news for the electronics industry, which relies on magnets to create all sorts of devices, from cellphones and laptop computers.
Replacing heavy metal magnets with lightweight plastic ones would lighten the load for all those using portable electronic devices.
The new-recipe magnets “have metal in them but also have a lot of organic material and happen to behave as magnets,” Hicks said.
“The big deal is we don’t have to cool them down to make them magnetic.
“Trying to get organic materials to be magnetic has been quite challenging.”
This is the first time organic magnets have been created at room temperature, said Hicks. Previously, organic magnets “only worked below -200 degrees Celsius.”
Coming up with the right combination of compounds was “a bit of trial and error, a bit of systematic design and a little bit of luck.
“There are magnets in your car, in your computer, in your celphone, in generators. There’s certainly no shortage of uses for them.”
Metal-based magnets tend to be very heavy, dense, strong and brittle.
“For lots of applications, that’s actually great ... better alternatives 1/8would be 3/8 lightweight, flexible and processible.”
The organic ingredient is carbon, said Hicks. Plastics are also made with carbon.
“If you think of plastic that’s magnetic, that’s one of the holy grails of everybody’s work,” Hicks said.
“We’ve made an important first step to show you can at least make room-temperature magnets that are organic. Scientifically, I think it’s a very big deal.”
Real-world applications will require more time in the lab, he added.
“I view these as prototypes. We have quite a bit of tinkering to do to improve the magnetism and make them processible. But when we or somebody else gets there, I think the sky is going to be the limit for applications.
“The reason plastics are so commonplace is they’re easy to make and they’re very easy to process and manufacture. Imagine being able to do that with something that’s also magnetic.”
The concept has been patented through UVic, he said.
“The materials themselves will probably not be merchandisable but the concept is. It’s the recipe that’s important now.”
