To study the influence of CoFeB/MgO interface on tunneling magnetoresistance （TMR）, different structures of magnetic tunnel junctions （MTJs） are successfully prepared by the magnetron sputtering technique and char...To study the influence of CoFeB/MgO interface on tunneling magnetoresistance （TMR）, different structures of magnetic tunnel junctions （MTJs） are successfully prepared by the magnetron sputtering technique and characterized by atomic force microscopy, a physical property measurement system, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The experimental results show that TMR of the CoFeB/Mg/MgO/CoFeB structure is evidently improved in comparison with the CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB structure because the inserted Mg layer prevents Fe-oxide formation at the CoFeB/MgO interface, which occurs in CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB MTJs. The inherent properties of the CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB, CoFeB/Fe-oxide/MgO/CoFeB and CoFeB/Mg/MgO/CoFeB MTJs are simulated by using the theories of density functions and non-equilibrium Green functions. The simulated results demonstrate that TMR of CoFeB/Fe-oxide/MgO/CoFeB MTJs is severely decreased and is only half the value of the CoFeB/Mg/MgO/CoFeB MTJs. Based on the experimental results and theoretical analysis, it is believed that in CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB MTJs, the interface oxidation of the CoFeB layer is the main reason to cause a remarkable reduction of TMR, and the inserted Mg layer may play an important role in protecting Fe atoms from oxidation, and then increasing TMR.展开更多
The mechanism of perpendicular magnetic anisotropy（PMA）in a MgO-based magnetic tunnel junction（MTJ）has been studied in this article.By comparing the magnetic properties and elementary composition analysis for diff...The mechanism of perpendicular magnetic anisotropy（PMA）in a MgO-based magnetic tunnel junction（MTJ）has been studied in this article.By comparing the magnetic properties and elementary composition analysis for different CoFeB-based structures,such as Ta/CoFeB/MgO,Ta/CoFeB/Ta and Ru/CoFeB/MgO structures,it is found that a certain amount of Fe-oxide existing at the interface of CoFeB/MgO is helpful to enhance the PMA and the PMA is originated from the interface of CoFeB/MgO.In addition,Ta film plays an important role to enhance the PMA in Ta/CoFeB/MgO structure.展开更多
基金Supported by the National Defense Advance Research Foundation under Grant No 9140A08XXXXXX0DZ106the Basic Research Program of Ministry of Education of China under Grant No JY10000925005+2 种基金the Scientific Research Program Funded by Shaanxi Provincial Education Department under Grant No 11JK0912the Scientific Research Foundation of Xi'an University of Science and Technology under Grant No 2010011the Doctoral Research Startup Fund of Xi'an University of Science and Technology under Grant No 2010QDJ029
文摘To study the influence of CoFeB/MgO interface on tunneling magnetoresistance （TMR）, different structures of magnetic tunnel junctions （MTJs） are successfully prepared by the magnetron sputtering technique and characterized by atomic force microscopy, a physical property measurement system, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and transmission electron microscopy. The experimental results show that TMR of the CoFeB/Mg/MgO/CoFeB structure is evidently improved in comparison with the CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB structure because the inserted Mg layer prevents Fe-oxide formation at the CoFeB/MgO interface, which occurs in CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB MTJs. The inherent properties of the CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB, CoFeB/Fe-oxide/MgO/CoFeB and CoFeB/Mg/MgO/CoFeB MTJs are simulated by using the theories of density functions and non-equilibrium Green functions. The simulated results demonstrate that TMR of CoFeB/Fe-oxide/MgO/CoFeB MTJs is severely decreased and is only half the value of the CoFeB/Mg/MgO/CoFeB MTJs. Based on the experimental results and theoretical analysis, it is believed that in CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB MTJs, the interface oxidation of the CoFeB layer is the main reason to cause a remarkable reduction of TMR, and the inserted Mg layer may play an important role in protecting Fe atoms from oxidation, and then increasing TMR.
基金supported by the National Defense Advance Research Foundation(No.9140A08XXXXXX0DZ106)the Basic Research Program of Ministry of Education,China(No.JY10000925005)+2 种基金the Scientific Research Program Funded by Shaanxi Provincial Education Department(No.11JK0912)the Scientific Research Foundation of Xi’an University of Science and Technology(No.2010011)the Doctoral Research Startup Fund of Xi’an University of Science and Technology(No.2010QDJ029)
文摘The mechanism of perpendicular magnetic anisotropy（PMA）in a MgO-based magnetic tunnel junction（MTJ）has been studied in this article.By comparing the magnetic properties and elementary composition analysis for different CoFeB-based structures,such as Ta/CoFeB/MgO,Ta/CoFeB/Ta and Ru/CoFeB/MgO structures,it is found that a certain amount of Fe-oxide existing at the interface of CoFeB/MgO is helpful to enhance the PMA and the PMA is originated from the interface of CoFeB/MgO.In addition,Ta film plays an important role to enhance the PMA in Ta/CoFeB/MgO structure.
