Spintronics technology and device development

Spintronics is an emerging field of research that has made great advances in the last two decades. During this period, various new outstanding spintronics-related phenomena and devices using these phenomena have been proposed. In recent years, the period from the discovery of new spintronics-related materials and phenomena to the development and commercialization of devices using such materials and phenomena has markedly shortened. The importance of understanding the fundamental principles of spintronics has been increasing. In this review, I will first overview the features of spintronics technologies. Then, I will summarize the key technologies applied in the development of spintronic devices and describe their future prospects. (author)