Magnetic logic functionalities and scalability of thermally assisted MRAMs

On paper, MRAMs combine non volatility, high speed, moderate power consumption, infinite endurance and radiation hardness, all at low cost and easy to embed. Since its inception in the late 90's, however, and despite numerous promising announcements from laboratories, large corporations and start-ups, MRAM has failed to live to its expectations. Large volume applications are still to be seen, with only Toggle switching-based standalone products currently available, at 180nm technology node. The recent advent of spin transfer torque, however, has shed a new light on MRAM with the promises of much improved performances and greater scalability to very advanced technology node. As a consequence, MRAM is now viewed again as a credible replacement to existing technologies for applications where the combination of non-volatility, speed, low power and endurance is key.