Author(s): Zhan, GH (Zhan, Guohui); Yang, ZL (Yang, Zhilong); Luo, K (Luo, Kun); Zhang, D (Zhang, Dong); Lou, WK (Lou, Wenkai); Liu, JT (Liu, Jiangtao); Wu, ZH (Wu, Zhenhua); Chang, K (Chang, Kai)

Source: MRS BULLETIN DOI: 10.1557/s43577-022-00381-8 Early Access Date: AUG 2022

Abstract: Magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs) with ferromagnetic (FM) and/or antiferromagnetic (AFM) materials have attracted wide interest for their promising application in spintronic devices. Recently, many discovered two-dimensional (2D) magnetic materials offer a flexible platform to design switchable layered FM/AFM MTJs. By using the first-principles quantum transport simulations, we designed the MTJs based on 2D van der Waals layered MnBi2Te4 and studied the spin-dependent electronic and transport properties of the MTJs with the different thickness MnBi2 Te-4 as well as their FM and AFM configurations. As the increment of MnBi2Te4 layers, our results show that there is a higher spin polarization and the tunnel magnetoresistance (TMR) ratio at the Fermi level correspondingly increases: 100% and 500%. In particular, when the spin-orbit coupling (SOC) is accounted, the TMR ratio can be enhanced to 500% and 4000%, indicating the SOC effect can lead to the performance improvement of MnBi2Te4-based MTJs.

Accession Number: WOS:000847635100005

ISSN: 0883-7694

eISSN: 1938-1425

Full Text: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1557/s43577-022-00381-8