Field-free magnetization switching of synthetic antiferromagnets magnetic tunnel junction induced by spatially gradient spin texture
Abstract
Synthetic antiferromagnets (SAFs) offer a promising pathway for the scaling of magnetic random access memory (MRAM) by eliminating stray fields; however, their practical potential is limited by the requirement of an external magnetic field for spin–orbit torque (SOT) switching. Notably, existing field-free magnetization switching approaches are limited to SAFs with weak interlayer exchange coupling (IEC), thereby compromising thermal stability and anti-interference capability. Here, we propose a spatial gradient spin texture (SGST) mechanism that achieves deterministic field-free magnetization switching in strong-IEC SAF systems. The SGST mechanism can generate an out-of-plane SOT torque that enables field-free magnetization switching without overcoming IEC potential barriers, as the antiferromagnetic order is preserved throughout the switching process. Based on this mechanism, we demonstrate field-free magnetization switching in SAF-based magnetic tunnel junction. This work paves the way toward high-density, interference-robust MRAM by overcoming the long-standing challenge of efficient magnetization control in strongly coupled SAF architectures.
Article Details
Journal Info
Applied Physics Letters
American Institute of Physics
Authors (10)
Yanru Li
State Key Laboratory of Advanced Materials for Intelligent Sensing and Key Laboratory of Organic Integrated Circuits, Ministry of Education & Tianjin Key Laboratory of Molecular Optoelectronic Sciences, Institute of Molecular Plus, Department of Chemistry
Bowen Shen
Department of Chemistry & Biochemistry, University of Maryland
Meiyin Yang
Key Laboratory of Fabrication Technologies for Integrated Circuits, Chinese Academy of Sciences 1 , Beijing 100029,
Guoqiang Yu
Baoshan Cui
Key Laboratory for Magnetism and Magnetic Functional Materials of Ministry of Education, School of Physical Science and Technology, Lanzhou University , Lanzhou,
Peiyue Yu
Key Laboratory of Fabrication Technologies for Integrated Circuits, Chinese Academy of Sciences 1 , Beijing 100029,
Shuaiyu Gong
Key Laboratory of Fabrication Technologies for Integrated Circuits, Chinese Academy of Sciences 1 , Beijing 100029,
Jianfeng Gao
Jinbiao Liu
MOE International Joint Laboratory of Materials Microstructure Institute for New Energy Materials and Low Carbon Technologies Analysis and Testing Center School of Materials Science and Engineering Tianjin University of Technology Tianjin 300384 China
Jun Luo