Nanostructured materials with nanometer-scale entities have created a new area of materials research and made possible device applications that depend on the physical dimensions and intricate structures of these materials. In recent years, magnetic nanostructures have provided some of the most exciting areas for the exploration of new physical phenomena and new technologically important devices such as spin-valve giant magnetoresistance read-heads, and magnetic random access memory.

The Materials Research Science and Engineering Center (MRSEC) at the Johns Hopkins University (JHU), one of 26 MRSECs funded by the National Science Foundation, is composed of scientists at JHU, Brown University, Carnegie Mellon University, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST). Research in the Center focuses on the science and engineering of magnetoelectronics. Research areas include:

• Perpendicular spin transport in MgO-based magnetic tunnel junctions and other systems.
• Magnetic nanorings and other novel magnetoelectronic device architectures.
• Organic magnetoelectronic materials.
• Explorations of magnetoelectronic effects in lateral structures.

The research effort encompasses synthesis and processing, characterization of nanostructures, measurements of properties, theoretical modeling, and prototype device fabrication and applications. These five tightly linked components form the research basis of this MRSEC.

The JHU MRSEC also has extensive Education Outreach programs and extensive collaborations with other academic institutions, national labs, and industrial concerns.