Resonant TMR inversion in LiF/EuS based spin-filter tunnel junctions

TL;DR

This study demonstrates how resonant tunneling through impurity levels in LiF/EuS-based spin-filter tunnel junctions causes bias-dependent inversion of tunnel magnetoresistance, revealing the influence of barrier thickness on this phenomenon.

Contribution

It introduces a hybrid magnetic tunnel junction with an epitaxial LiF barrier and polycrystalline EuS, showing bias-dependent TMR inversion linked to impurity-mediated resonant tunneling.

Findings

Positive TMR up to 16% at low bias

TMR inversion occurs at higher bias voltages

Inversion depends on LiF thickness

Abstract

Resonant tunneling can lead to inverse tunnel magnetoresistance when impurity levels rather than direct tunneling dominate the transport process. We fabricated hybrid magnetic tunnel junctions of CoFe/LiF/EuS/Ti, with an epitaxial LiF energy barrier joined with a polycrystalline EuS spin-filter bar-rier. Due to the water solubility of LiF, the devices were fully packaged in situ. The devices showed sizeable positive TMR up to 16% at low bias voltages but clearly inverted TMR at higher bias voltages. The TMR inversion depends sensitively on the thickness of LiF, and the tendency of inversion disap-pears when LiF gets thick enough and recovers its intrinsic properties.