Electrical-field and spin-transfer torque effects in CoFeB/MgO-based perpendicular magnetic tunnel junction

Abstract

The electric-field (E) dependence of the magnetoresistance (RH) loops for top-pinned perpendicular CoFeB/MgO-based magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs) in the presence of a spin-transfer torque (STT)-current was measured. The E effects were distinguished from the STT-current effects using a micromagnetic simulation. The coercive field (Hc) decreased and the RH loop shifted as both the positive and negative bias E increased owing to the STT current. Furthermore, E-assisted switching for an MTJ with a diameter of 20 nm, which exhibited a nearly coherent magnetization reversal, was demonstrated using micromagnetic simulation.