We've reported before on Spintronics and its potential applications in information technology. But what exactly is Spintronics? Okay, the term sounds like a name for an audio sound system group for a rave, but Spintronics, otherwise known as spin electronics, is an emerging technology that looks to develop devices that exploit the atomic level world of quantum physics.

Bottom line: conventional electronics use the charge of the electron (+ or -), but Spintronic devices also use the "spin" of the electron (a unique characteristic of the subatomic particles) and the charge achieving new functionality. Scientists claim that Spintronics can bring us steps closer to quantum computing.

One of the current problems with Spintronics is that you need huge superconducting magnets. This won't work in today's age of handheld gadgets. But there is some good news though.

Roland Winkler of Regensburg University, Germany, had this to say: "We believe we've discovered a much simpler way for inducing spin polarization. We don't need a big magnet. The only requirement in our case is an electrical current in the sample, which is much easier to achieve than putting the sample in a magnetic coil."

One step closer to Star Trek speed processing?