• Journal of the Korean Institute of Electrical and Electronic Material Engineers
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• v.14 no.11
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• pp.934-940
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• 2001

Magnetic properties were investigated for Si/SiO$_2$/NiFe(300 )/A1$_2$O$_3$(t)/Co(200 ) junction related with the parameters of $Al_2$O$_3$. Insulating $Al_2$O$_3$ layer was formed by depositing a 5~40 thick Al layer, followed by a 90~120s RF plasma oxidation in an $O_2$ atmosphere. Magnetoresistance was not observed for tunnel junction with 5~10 thick Al layer, but magnetoresistance was observed large for tunnel junction with 15~40 thick Al layer. Oxidation time did not largely influence magnetoresistance. Tunnel magnetoresistance effect depended on magnetization behavior of two ferromagnetic layers. Tunneling junction was confirmed through nonlinear I-V curve. In this work, tunneling magnetoresistance(TMR) up to 30 % was observed. This apparent TMR is an artifact of the nonuniform current flow over the junction in the cross geometry of the electrodes.

• Journal of Magnetics
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• v.7 no.3
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• pp.98-100
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• 2002

Tunnel magnetoresistive devices using an individual multi-walled carbon nanotube were fabricated and their low-temperature electrical transport propertiers were investigated. With the ferromagnetic Co electrodes, the multi-walled carbon nanotube exhibited hysteretic magnetoresistance curve at low temperatures. Depending on the temperature and the bias current, the magnetoresistance ratio can be as high as 16% at the temperature of 2.2 K. Such high magnetoresistance ratio indicates a long diffusion length of the multi-walled carbon nanotube.

• Journal of Magnetics
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• v.7 no.2
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• pp.59-62
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• 2002

Magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs) were fabricated with high bias for plasma oxidation and the effects of annealing on the temperature dependence of tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR) were investigated experimentally. As-grown, TMR increases, peaks around 160 K, and decreases with increasing temperature from 80 K to 300 K. When MTJs are annealed, $T_{max}$, the temperature at which maximum TMR is obtained, decreases as annealing temperature increases to the optimal point. In order to explain this abnormal temperature dependence of TMR, the difference of conductance between parallel and antiparallel alignments of magnetizations as a function of temperature is also analyzed. The shifts of $T_{max}$ due to annealing process are described phenomenologically with spin-dependent transfer rates of electrons tunnel through the barrier.

• Journal of Magnetics
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• v.6 no.4
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• pp.126-128
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• 2001

The effect of rapid thermal anneal (RTA) has been investigated on the properties of an FeMn exchange-biased magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) using magnetoresistance and I-V measurements and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR) in an as-grown MTJ is found to be ∼27%, while the TMR in MTJs annealed by RTA increases with annealing temperature up to 300$\^{C}$, reaching ∼46%. A TEM image reveals a structural change in the interface of A1$_2$O$_3$layer for the MTJ annealed by RTA at 300$\^{C}$. The oxide barrier parameters are found to vary abruptly with annealing time within a few ten seconds. Our results demonstrate that the present RTA enhances the magnetoresistive properties of MTJs.

• Journal of the Korean Magnetics Society
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• v.15 no.6
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• pp.311-314
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• 2005

We investigated the composition dependence of the tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR) behavior and the stability of the magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs) with TiAlOx barrier and the microstructural evolution of TiAl alloy films. The TMR ratio increased up to $49\%$ at $5.33\;at\%$ Ti. In addition, a significant tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR) value of $20\%$ was maintained after annealing at $450^{\circ}C$, and the breakdown voltage ($V_B$) of and 1.35 V were obtained in the MTJ with $5.33\;at\%$ Ti-alloyed AlOx barrier. These results were closely related to the enhanced quality of the barrier material microstructure in the pre-oxidation state. Ti alloying enhanced the barrier/electrode interface uniformity and reduced microstructural defects. These structural improvements enhanced not only the TMR effect but also the thermal and electrical stability of the MTJs.

• Journal of Magnetics
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• v.11 no.4
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• pp.170-181
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• 2006

Spin dependent tunneling has enormously activated the field of magnetism in general, and in particular spin transport studies, in the past ten years. Thousands of articles related to the subject have appeared with many fundamental results. Importantly, there is great interest in their potential for application. There was another surge of activity in this field since the past five years - created by the theoretical prediction of a large tunnel magnetoresistance that arises due to band symmetry matched coherent tunneling in epitaxial magnetic tunnel junctions with (001) MgO barrier and experimentally well demonstrated. This further development in the field has boosted the excitement in both fundamental science as well as the possibility of application in such as magnetic random access memory, ultra sensitive read heads, biosensors and spin torque diodes. This review is a brief coverage of the field highlighting the literature that deals with magnetic tunnel junctions having epitaxial MgO tunnel barriers.

• Proceedings of the Korean Magnestics Society Conference
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• 1999.04a
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• pp.136-137
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• 1999

• Journal of Magnetics
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• v.16 no.2
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• pp.169-172
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• 2011

This study reports an alternative method for measuring the magnetoresistance of unpatterned magnetic tunnel junctions similar to the current-in-plane tunneling (CIPT) method. Instead of using microprobes, a series of point contacts with different spacings are coated on the top surface of the junctions and R-H loops at various spacings are then measured by the usual four-point probe method. The values of magnetoresistance and resistance-area products can be obtained by fitting the measured data to the CIPT theoretical model. The test results of two types of junctions were highly similar to those obtained from standard CIPT tools. The proposed method may help to accelerate the process for evaluating the quality of magnetic tunnel junctions when commercial CIPT tools are not accessible.

• Proceedings of the Korean Magnestics Society Conference
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• 2002.12a
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• pp.152-153
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• 2002

The report on large tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR) at room temperature in magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJ), composed of two ferromagnetic electrodes separated by a thin insulating barrier, has ignite the intensive research both from scientific and technological points of view. A simple model proposed by Juliere has explained the observed TMR surprisingly well, where the TMR is expressed in terms of the spin polarization P of the ferromagnetic electrodes. (omitted)

• Journal of the Korean Magnetics Society
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• v.11 no.3
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• pp.97-103
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• 2001

Polycrystalline thin films of La$_{2}$3/Sr$_{1}$3/MnO$_3$(LSMO) were prepared by water-based sol-gel processing on thermally oxidized Si(100) substrate. The thickness dependence of the low-field tunnel-type magnetoresistance properties at room temperature was studied. Tunnel-type magnetoresistance at low-field is found to be strongly dependent on film thickness. Maximum value of tunnel-type magnetoresistance of LSMO thin films was appeared at the film thickness of ~1500 $\AA$. This behavior can be explained in terms of dead layer between LSMO thin film and Si(100) substrate and thermal lattice strain effect in the LSMO thin films.