Field-free spin-orbit torque-induced switching of perpendicular magnetization at room temperature in WTe2/ferromagnet heterostructures

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates room-temperature, field-free perpendicular magnetization switching in WTe2/Pt/Co/Pt multilayers, advancing spintronic device development with 2D materials.

Contribution

It reports the first room-temperature, field-free switching in WTe2-based heterostructures, highlighting the role of in-plane antidamping SOT.

Findings

Successful room-temperature switching in WTe2/Pt/Co/Pt multilayers.

Confirmation of in-plane antidamping SOT as the switching mechanism.

Potential for 2D material-based spintronic devices at room temperature.

Abstract

Spin-orbit torque (SOT) provides an efficient way to achieve charge-to-spin conversion and can switch perpendicular magnetization, which is essential for designing novel energy-efficient spintronic devices. An out-of-plane SOT could directly switch perpendicular magnetization. Encouragingly, field-free perpendicular magnetization switching of a two-dimensional (2D) material WTe2/ferromagnet (FM) bilayer has been reported recently, but the working temperature (200 K) is below room temperature. Here, we report the field-free perpendicular magnetization switching carried out at room temperature on a WTe2/Pt/Co/Pt multilayer film. Controlled experiments confirm that the field-free switching is caused by the in-plane antidamping SOT generated in the Pt/Co/Pt multilayer and the out-of-plane generated in the a-axis WTe2 thin film. This work offers a potential method for using spintronic devices made of two-dimensional materials at room temperature.