In some crystals, atoms line up, creating an electric order — all microscopic charges point in one direction, like compass needles. Heating one end of the crystal sets these arrows moving along it. A magnetic field, like a crosswind, presses them to the edge, accumulating a charge of up to 16 microcoulombs per square meter — this is detected by spectroscopy and polarimetry.

The prediction was made not in an experiment, but through numerical simulation on a supercomputer. The discovery leads to switches without current and losses — for efficient sensors and memory. The foundation was laid by Lev Landau, and nonequilibrium physics traces back to Albert Einstein's ideas on Brownian motion. The most unexpected: the arrows themselves are quasiparticles called ferrons, capable of carrying an electric dipole without current; a field called "ferronics" has already emerged, seeking applications in ultra-efficient electronics.