Switching Field Variation in MgO Magnetic Tunnel Junction Nanopillars: Experimental Results and Micromagnetic Simulations

Abstract

The switching field dependence on the size of nanometric magnetic tunnel junctions was studied. CoFe/Ru/CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB nanopillars were fabricated down to 150 × 300 nm <sup xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">2</sup> and characterized, revealing a squared transfer curve with a sharp transition between magnetic states. A micromagnetic finite element tool was then used to simulate the magnetic behavior of the studied nanopillar. The simulations indicated a single-domain like state at remanence, also displaying a sharp transition between parallel/antiparallel free-layer configurations. Overall, the experimentally measured switching fields (H <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">sw</sub> ) were smaller than those obtained from simulations. Such trend was consistent with the presence of a particular free layer profile, signature of the two angle etching step used for pillar definition. Further decrease of experimental H <sub xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">sw</sub> was attributed to local defects and thermal activated processes. This study was able to validate this particular simulation tool for the control of the nanofabrication process.