"Researchers Use Tiny Magnetic Swirls to Generate True Random Numbers"

A group of physicists at Brown University developed a technique that could generate millions of random digits per second by leveraging the behavior of skyrmions, which are tiny magnetic anomalies present in certain two-dimensional materials. True random numbers play an essential role in cybersecurity, gaming, scientific simulation, and more, but generating them is a challenge. Most random numbers produced by computers are not truly random as the computers use an algorithm to generate them based on an initial value for generation, and therefore, can produce the same sequence of random numbers. Someone can find patterns in the numbers produced by the algorithm if they have enough information about the algorithm or its output. Although pseudorandom numbers are adequate in many settings, applications such as data security require truly random numbers. True random number generation methods are often pulled from the natural world. For example, random fluctuations in the electrical current flowing through a resistor can be used to generate random numbers. This new research adds skyrmions to the list of true random number generators. Discovered around a half-decade ago, skyrmions have raised interest among physicists as a way toward the development of next-generation computing devices that use magnetic properties of particles. Skyrmions are generally about 1 micrometer (a millionth of a meter) or smaller in diameter and behave like a type of particle. Once they are formed, it is difficult to get rid of them. Due to their robustness, researchers are interested in using their movement to perform computations and store data. This article continues to discuss the importance of random numbers, known methods of random number generation, and the potential use of skyrmions to generate true random numbers for cryptography and other applications. 

Brown University reports "Researchers Use Tiny Magnetic Swirls to Generate True Random Numbers"