New research into computer memory has led to some interesting discoveries relating to platinum nanoparticles.

Research carried out at the Pittsburgh Supercomputing Center (PSC) has seen the capability of its 10-teraflop Cray XT3 system, BigBen, more than doubled, but offshoots of the project have found some interesting properties of iron-platinum nanoparticles.

A study into a 14,400 atom iron-platinum nanoparticle has discovered a design which could be used for nanostructured magnetic storage.

The PSC reports that researchers carried out the first quantum simulations of a single iron-platinum magnetic nanoparticle, which found that a boundary region of nanoparticle atoms isolates the particle interior from quantum disturbances.

This discovery means that there is the potential for using iron-platinum nanoparticles in memory storage, which could revolutionise the way data is stored and the capacity to store it.

BigBen is a supercomputer which is being developed by the PSC to deliver greater memory storage capabilities.

Ÿ Adfero Ltd