Voltage-controlled magnetic anisotropy effect through a LiF/MgO hybrid tunneling barrier

Autor: Takayuki Nozaki, Tomohiro Nozaki, Tatsuya Yamamoto, Makoto Konoto, Atsushi Sugihara, Kay Yakushiji, Shinji Yuasa
Rok vydání: 2022
Předmět:
Zdroj: Applied Physics Letters. 121:172401
ISSN: 1077-3118
0003-6951
DOI: 10.1063/5.0122192
Popis: Improving the perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA) and voltage-controlled magnetic anisotropy (VCMA) properties are fundamentally important for the development of voltage-controlled magnetoresistive random access memories (VC-MRAM). Recently, we reported on a large increase in PMA at an Fe/MgO interface brought about by inserting an ultrathin LiF layer at the interface. In this paper, we investigate the PMA, VCMA, and TMR properties in MTJs with an Ir-doped ultrathin ferromagnetic layer and a LiF/MgO hybrid tunneling barrier. We observed a clear increase in the interfacial PMA by a factor of 2.5 when an ultrathin 0.25 nm LiF layer was inserted. A large VCMA coefficient, exceeding −300 fJ/Vm, was also achieved while maintaining the high TMR ratio and high interfacial PMA. These results demonstrate the high potential of interface engineering using ultrathin LiF layers for spintronic devices.
Databáze: OpenAIRE