Symmetry-dependent electron-electron interaction in coherent tunnel junctions resolved by zero bias anomaly measurements

TL;DR

This study conclusively links zero bias anomalies in magnetic tunnel junctions to electron-electron interactions, revealing symmetry-dependent effects and clarifying previous ambiguities caused by magnon effects.

Contribution

It provides experimental evidence that zero bias anomalies are due to EEI and demonstrates symmetry-dependent conductance behavior in coherent tunnel junctions.

Findings

Zero bias anomaly is caused by electron-electron interaction.

Symmetry filtering affects the slope of conductance change.

Magnon effects are excluded as the cause of the anomaly.

Abstract

We provide conclusive experimental evidence that zero bias anomaly in the differential resistance of magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs) is due to electron-electron interaction (EEI), clarifying a long standing issue. Magnon effect that caused confusion is now excluded by measuring at low temperatures down to 0.2 K and with reduced AC measurement voltages down to 0.06 mV. The normalized change of conductance is proportional to $\ln{(eV/k_{B}T)}$, consistent with the Altshuler-Aronov theory of tunneling that describes the reduction of density of states due to EEI, but inconsistent with magnetic impurity scattering. The slope of the $\ln{(eV/k_{B}T)}$ dependence is symmetry dependent: the slopes for P and AP states are different for coherent tunnel junctions with symmetry filtering, while nearly the same for those without symmetry filtering (amorphous barriers). This observation may be helpful for verifying symmetry preserved filtering in search of new coherent tunneling junctions, and for probing and separating electron Bloch states of different symmetries in other correlated systems.