Magnetic Nanomaterials

At present, the constant search for innovative magnetic materials is increasingly leading to the creation of highly engineered systems, built in different forms (films, dot arrays, nanoparticles, nanocrystalline alloys, etc.), structured on a nanometric scale in at least one spatial direction and often characterized by the coexistence of two or more phases, which are magnetically and/or structurally different. The possible coincidence, at the nanoscale, of the typical size of the system with critical magnetic lengths ruling specific magnetic phenomena (for instance, the exchange length, below which a ferromagnetic element becomes single-domain, or the exchange correlation length, corresponding to the domain wall thickness) may cause the appearance of novel and amazing magnetic effects. Moreover, the magnetic behavior of nanomaterials can depend crucially on the structure and morphology of the constituent elements and on the type and strength of the magnetic interactions between them. Indeed, the study of the magnetic behavior of nanomaterials has not stopped attracting increasing interest because of their intriguing fundamental properties and prospective applications. In this last respect, magnetic nanomaterials are already successfully employed or have the potential to play a key role in an extremely wide range of technologically advanced sectors: Energy, electric power technology, communications, spintronics, data storage, sensors, refrigeration, biotechnology, pharmacology, nanomedicine, and environmental protection. This Special Issue is open to articles (reviews or original manuscripts) dealing with every aspect related to the creation and study, both experimental and theoretical, of magnetic nanomaterials. Particularly welcome are research works on innovative magnetic nanomaterials studied through an interdisciplinary approach and/or intended to be used in an interdisciplinary context.