National research programme Spintronics (PEPR SPIN)

The SPINtronics national research programme (PEPR SPIN) is an exploration program designed to support innovative research, with the objective of developing a more frugal, agile, and sustainable digital world. By pushing the boundaries of traditional electronics, this research program aims to prepare a new cycle of innovation in spintronics and support major societal and industrial renewal in various fields, including data storage, cybersecurity, automotive, artificial intelligence, aeronautics, robotics, biotechnology, and biomedicine.

The SPIN research program is dedicated to addressing specific scientific challenges, particularly those related to the growing environmental impact of the "digital world," an issue of increasing urgency and scope that can no longer be ignored. Projections indicate that by 2030, the "digital world" could account for 20 to 30% of global electricity consumption. It is imperative to reassess priorities by positioning frugality as an essential performance criterion.

One of the solutions advocated by the program is spintronics. A contraction of "Spin Transport Electronics," spintronics is a branch of physics and electronics that exploits the quantum property of electron spin. Unlike conventional electronics, which primarily focuses on manipulating electric charge, spintronics also uses the intrinsic orientation of electron spin. With greater potential, it offers new perspectives, providing opportunities for the development of innovative, high-performance, energy-efficient, and reconfigurable devices.

The program's missions are as follows:

• Support innovative fundamental research in spintronics
• Maintain the leadership of the French community in Europe and internationally
• Strengthen or create synergies with other communities and with national industrial actors
• Sustainably integrate spintronics into the national electronics strategy for information and communication, artificial intelligence, security, and health.

To achieve its objectives, the PEPR SPIN program has defined a precise work program within five MoonshotProjects, all supported by Transversal Projects, also programmed:

• 5 Moonshot Project (MP) aimed at an integrated approach to fundamental research on materials and devices. These 5 MPs have already been selected based on their identified potential, both to generate new knowledge and to demonstrate breakthrough functionalities for new generations of spintronic devices.
• 3 Transversal Project (TP) aiming to strengthen existing technological means and support MPs: the development of innovative materials; advanced characterization; multi-scale modeling. Another objective is to structure them to provide France with a unique, integrated, and world-class spintronics research infrastructure.

PEPR SPIN website

PEPR SPIN LinkedIn page