Ashwin Tulapurkar

Large voltage-induced magnetic anisotropy change in a few atomic layers of iron

In the field of spintronics, researchers have manipulated magnetization using spin-polarized currents. Another option is to use a voltage-induced symmetry change in a ferromagnetic material to cause changes in magnetization or in magnetic anisotropy. However, a significant improvement in efficiency is needed before this approach can be used in memory devices with ultralow power consumption. Here, we show that a relatively small electric field (less than 100 mV nm(-1)) can cause a large change (approximately 40%) in the magnetic anisotropy of a bcc Fe(001)/MgO(001) junction. The effect is tentatively attributed to the change in the relative occupation of 3d orbitals of Fe atoms adjacent to the MgO barrier. Simulations confirm that voltage-controlled magnetization switching in magnetic tunnel junctions is possible using the anisotropy change demonstrated here, which could be of use in the development of low-power logic devices and non-volatile memory cells.

Spin-torque diode effect in magnetic tunnel junctions

There is currently much interest in the development of ‘spintronic’ devices, in which harnessing the spins of electrons (rather than just their charges) is anticipated to provide new functionalities that go beyond those possible with conventional electronic devices. One widely studied example of an effect that has its roots in the electrons spin degree of freedom is the torque exerted by a spin-polarized electric current on the spin moment of a nanometre-scale magnet. This torque causes the magnetic moment to rotate at potentially useful frequencies. Here we report a very different phenomenon that is also based on the interplay between spin dynamics and spin-dependent transport, and which arises from unusual diode behaviour. We show that the application of a small radio-frequency alternating current to a nanometre-scale magnetic tunnel junction can generate a measurable direct-current (d.c.) voltage across the device when the frequency is resonant with the spin oscillations that arise from the spin-torque effect: at resonance (which can be tuned by an external magnetic field), the structure exhibits different resistance states depending on the direction of the current. This behaviour is markedly different from that of a conventional semiconductor diode, and could form the basis of a nanometre-scale radio-frequency detector in telecommunication circuits.

Low-current spin-transfer switching and its thermal durability in a low-saturation-magnetization nanomagnet

A spin-transfer magnetization switching technique is a promising candidate as a writing mechanism for a high-density magnetic random access memory because of its scalability. The required switching current Ic, however, is still too large for this technique to be applied to MRAM using tunneling magnetoresistive devices. Here, it is demonstrated that reducing the saturation magnetization Ms of magnet cells is an effective way to decrease Ic. Use of a CoFeB film with μ0Ms of 0.75T as a magnet cell reduced Ic measured with a continuous current by an order of magnitude. We changed the duration of a writing current pulse from 1μs to 5s to investigate thermal effects on the switching process, and predicted that CoFeB magnet cells with low Ic can be compatible with the thermal durability required for MRAM applications.

Subnanosecond magnetization reversal in magnetic nanopillars by spin angular momentum transfer

Sub-ns magnetization switching has been triggered by spin momentum transfer in pulsed current in pillar shaped CoFe∕Cu∕CoFe trilayers. By analyzing the change in magneto-resistance induced after the application of individual short current pulses (100ps–10ns), we measured the probability of magnetization reversal as a function of the current pulse magnitude, polarity and duration, at various temperatures between 150 and 300K. At all studied temperatures, the reversal process can take place within a few 100ps. The energy cost of the reversal scales favorably with the switching speed and decreases in the 1pJ range when using 100ps current pulses at 300K. Significantly higher switching speeds are obtained at lower temperatures, which is opposite to a thermal activation of the reversal.

Rectification of radio frequency current in ferromagnetic nanowire

The authors report the rectification of a constant wave radio frequency (rf) current by using a single-layer magnetic nanowire; a direct-current voltage is resonantly generated when the rf current flows through the nanowire. The mechanism of the rectification is discussed in terms of the spin-torque diode effect reported for magnetic tunnel junction devices, and the rectification is shown to be directly attributable to resonant spin wave excitation by the rf current.

Inspection of intrinsic critical currents for spin-transfer magnetization switching

We examined the relationships between critical current, I/sub c/, and switching time, /spl tau//sub p/, for spin-transfer switching in two regions: (region I) /spl tau//sub p//spl Gt//spl tau//sub 0/, where thermal switching is accompanied and (region II) /spl tau//sub p/< several tens times /spl tau//sub 0/, where /spl tau//sub 0/ is the attempt time for thermal switching (/spl ap/1 ns). We estimated I/sub c0/, defined as the intrinsic I/sub c/ at 0 K, for both regions and confirmed experimentally that those I/sub c0/ coincided with each other at room temperature (RT). The value of I/sub c/ at /spl tau//sub p/=1 ns, measured with microwaves, was approximately 1.6 times the I/sub c0/. This suggested that we use at least two times I/sub c0/ as the writing currents of magnetic memory devices for nsec spin-transfer switching at RT. Although I/sub c0/ for both regions were defined as I/sub c/ at 0 K (I/sub c//sup 0K/) in theory, they showed temperature dependence at low temperatures; |I/sub c0/| for region I increased with decreasing temperature, and the estimated I/sub c//sup 0K/ was approximately three times I/sub c0/ for RT. This temperature dependence was quite different from that for region II.

Precharging strategy to accelerate spin-transfer switching below the nanosecond

We compared different ways of inducing magnetization switching by spin momentum transfer in pillar shaped CoFe∕Cu∕CoFe trilayers using sub-ns-current pulses. In comparison with switching induced by a single sub-ns pulse, precharging the device with a bias current prior to the application of the pulse proved to lower the required peak current. Precharging is efficient for pulses ranging from 2ns down to at least 200ps. Simulations indicate that the bias current prepares the magnetization in a precession state that provides an enhanced susceptibility to the spin torque of the pulsed current. The precession settling time is typically 2ns, hence the precharging strategy loses its efficiency for longer pulses, in agreement with experiments.

Peltier Effect in Sub-micron-Size Metallic Junctions

Resistance (R)–current (I) curves in trilayer CPP-GMR (current perpendicular to plane-giant magnetoresistance) elements show a parabolic baseline because of Joule heating, and abrupt jumps due to magnetization reversals. The bottom of the parabolic baseline shifts in one current direction for reasons that were previously unclear. Our study of the R–I characteristics of CPP elements with various structures showed (i) the shift in the R–I curve originates from Peltier cooling in the CPP elements; (ii) the cooling power per unit area of the CPP elements (~105 W/cm2) is much greater than that of conventional thermoelectric materials (~5 W/cm2).

Temperature study of the spin-transfer switching speed from dc to 100ps

We study the speed of the magnetization switching resulting from spin transfer in pillar-shaped CoFe∕Cu∕CoFe spin valves and the temperature dependence thereof. The switching speed was investigated with current pulses of durations from 100ps to dc while the temperature was varied from 50to300K. Quasistatic loops indicate that the reversal events imply transition states with reduced remanences. Their interval of occurrence shrinks gradually to almost null when the temperature is raised to 300K. The curvature of resistance versus current hysteresis loops is different in the antiparallel and parallel branches, which evidences the influence of the Ampere field on the quasistatic micromagnetic configuration. In the dynamical regime, the pulse-induced parallel to antiparallel transition speed is not much temperature dependent from 50to300K. In contrast, the pulse-induced antiparallel to parallel transition is thermally disfavored and much faster at 150K than at 300K. We model the experimental behavior by a comp...

Enhancement of Spin-transfer torque switching via resonant tunneling

We propose the use of resonant tunneling as a route to enhance the spin-transfer torque switching characteristics of magnetic tunnel junctions. The proposed device structure is a resonant tunneling magnetic tunnel junction based on a MgO-semiconductor heterostructure sandwiched between a fixed magnet and a free magnet. Using the non-equilibrium Greens function formalism coupled self consistently with the Landau-Lifshitz-Gilbert-Slonczewski equation, we demonstrate enhanced tunnel magneto-resistance characteristics as well as lower switching voltages in comparison with traditional trilayer devices. Two device designs based on MgO based heterostructures are presented, where the physics of resonant tunneling leads to an enhanced spin transfer torque thereby reducing the critical switching voltage by up to 44%. It is envisioned that the proof-of-concept presented here may lead to practical device designs via rigorous materials and interface studies.