Field-free Deterministic Magnetization Switching Induced by Interlaced Spin-Orbit Torques

TL;DR

This paper introduces a novel method for field-free deterministic magnetization switching in magnetic tunnel junctions using interlaced spin-orbit torques, validated through simulations, with potential applications in digital logic and memory.

Contribution

It presents a new switching scheme that requires no external magnetic field, using sequential currents in interlaced paths, simplifying fabrication and enhancing robustness.

Findings

Switching is bipolar and depends on current path combination.

The scheme is validated by macrospin and micromagnetic simulations.

Influences of field-like torque and DMI are analyzed.

Abstract

Spin-orbit torque (SOT) based magnetic random access memory (MRAM) is envisioned as an emerging non-volatile memory due to its ultra-high speed and low power consumption. The field-free switching schema in SOT devices is of great interest to both academia and industry. Here we propose a novel field-free deterministic magnetization switching in a regular magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) by using two currents sequentially passing interlaced paths, with less requirements of manufacturing process or additional physical effects. The switching is bipolar since the final magnetization state depends on the combination of current paths. The functionality and robustness of the proposed schema is validated through both macrospin and micromagnetic simulation. The influences of field-like torque and Dzyaloshinskii-Moriya interaction (DMI) effect are further researched. Our proposed schema shows good scalability and is expected to realize novel digital logic and even computing-in-memory platform.