Proposal and demonstration of a new spin-orbit torque induced switching device

A new structure of spin-orbit torque switching device is proposed and demonstrated in this study. The structure is composed of a stack of Ta/CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB/Co/Ru/Co deposited by dc/rf magnetron sputtering, electron beam lithography, and Ar ion milling. The magnetic tunnel junction with in-plane easy axis in the proposed device makes it easy to obtain large tunnel magnetoresistance ratio and small offset fields acting on the ferromagnetic recording layer. The magnetization switching induced by spin current whose polarization is orthogonal to the easy axis under a static field along another orthogonal direction is favorable for ultrafast magnetization switching.