For the first time in nearly a century, physicists have identified a brand new type of magnetic material.
Crack open a physics textbook and you may read that scientists classify magnetic materials into two main types: ferromagnets and antiferromagnets. Ferromagnets are what most people think of when magnets come to mind. These materials possess a magnetic field that lets them hold up photos on a refrigerator or cause a magnetic compass to point north. Antiferromagnets have no external magnetic field but have other magnetic quirks.
Now, that classic pair has become a trio. Physicists have reported a new class of magnetic materials called altermagnets, which could lead to new
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