Sankaran, K., Swerts, J., Carpenter, R. et al. (9 more authors) (2019) Evidence of Magnetostrictive Effects on STT-MRAM Performance by Atomistic and Spin Modeling. In: 2018 IEEE International Electron Devices Meeting, IEDM 2018. 64th Annual IEEE International Electron Devices Meeting, IEDM 2018, 01-05 Dec 2018 IEEE , USA , 40.5.1-40.5.4.
Abstract
For the first time, we demonstrate, using an atomistic description of a 30nm diameter spin-transfer-torque magnetic random access memories (STT-MRAM), that the difference in mechanical properties of its sub-nanometer layers induces a high compressive strain in the magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) and leads to a detrimental magnetostrictive effect. Our model explains the issues met in engineering the electrical and magnetic performances in scaled STT-MRAM devices. The resulting high compressive strain built in the stack, particularly in the MgO tunnel barrier (t-MgO), and its associated non-uniform atomic displacements, impacts on the quality of the MTJ interface and leads to strain relieve mechanisms such as surface roughness and adhesion issues. We illustrate that the strain gradient induced by the different materials and their thicknesses in the stacks has a negative impact on the tunnel magneto-resistance (TMR), on the magnetic nucleation process and on the STT-MRAM performance.
Metadata
Item Type: | Proceedings Paper |
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Authors/Creators: |
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Copyright, Publisher and Additional Information: | This is an author-produced version of the published paper. Uploaded in accordance with the publisher’s self-archiving policy. Further copying may not be permitted; contact the publisher for details. |
Dates: |
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Institution: | The University of York |
Academic Units: | The University of York > Faculty of Sciences (York) > Physics (York) |
Depositing User: | Pure (York) |
Date Deposited: | 26 Nov 2019 12:40 |
Last Modified: | 05 Nov 2024 01:30 |
Published Version: | https://doi.org/10.1109/IEDM.2018.8614627 |
Status: | Published |
Publisher: | IEEE |
Identification Number: | 10.1109/IEDM.2018.8614627 |
Related URLs: | |
Open Archives Initiative ID (OAI ID): | oai:eprints.whiterose.ac.uk:153851 |