We demonstrate in this study a fabrication process that enables the realization of a top transparent conductive electrode of magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs), building blocks of magnetic random access memories (MRAMs). This work opens up the realization of future and faster nonvolatile memories based on hybrid spintronic photonic circuits. This new process has been electrically […]

Magnetic skyrmions are topologically protected spin textures of great interest for nanoscale information storage and processing. However, stabilizing small skyrmions without applying an external magnetic field remains challenging. This study employs a thin ferromagnetic layer exchange-biased by an antiferromagnetic film to stabilize ferromagnetic skyrmions down to 30 nm in diameter, at zero magnetic field. In […]

Layered magnetic topological insulators are candidate to unveil novel electronic phases controlled by the magnetization. In MnBi4Te7, we evidenced a transition from an antiferromagnetic to a ferromagnetic-like metamagnetic state, possibly realizing the quantum anomalous Hall regime in ultra-thin films above 1K. 3D topological insulators ideally have an insulating bulk and 2D gapless topological surface states […]

Topological insulators (TI) represent a new class of insulating materials hosting metallic surface states. Moreover, those surface states exhibit a Dirac cone energy dispersion where the strong spin-orbit coupling leads to a helical spin texture at the Fermi level. This property can be exploited to detect spin currents in conventional semiconductors like silicon or germanium. […]

We are pleased to announce the arrival on June 2, 2020 of Kevin Garello at SPINTEC. Kevin comes from IMEC Belgium, where he was in charge of exploratory magnetic memory activities, being in addition the leader of spintronic work package for Graphene Flagship. Within the MRAM team, Kevin will bring his vision and know-how of […]

We are pleased to announce the arrival on June 1st, 2020 at SPINTEC, within the Spintronics IC design team of Lorena ANGHEL, professor at Grenoble INP / PHELMA, currently deputy director in charge of Research at Grenoble INP, in the fields of microelectronics, electronics and embedded systems. After a 23-year career in the TIMA laboratory, […]

We present experimental evidence for coherent long-distance transport of angular momentum inside a non-magnetic dielectric via the coupling to circularly polarized sound waves that exceeds previous benchmarks set by magnon diffusion by orders of magnitude. The vision of spintronics is to use the spin of an electron rather than its charge to allow computers and […]

This work reports the development of perpendicular magnetic tunnel junctions incorporating a stack of Tb/Co nanolayers whose magnetization can be all-optically controlled via helicity-independent single-shot switching. Toggling of the magnetization of the Tb/Co electrode was achieved using either 60 femtosecond-long or 5 picosecond-long laser pulses, with incident fluences down to 3.5 mJ/cm2. Ever since the […]

MRAM is a type of nonvolatile memory that stores the binary information through the magnetic configuration of its main building block: the Magnetic Tunnel Junction (MTJ). In the last decade, the use of perpendicular anisotropy existing at the tunnel barrier interface, allowed to improve MRAM manufacturability. However, the thermal sensitivity of the interfacial anisotropy is […]

Spin accumulation phenomena frequently occur in spintronic devices due to the difference of electrical resistivities of spin-up and spin-down electrons in magnetic materials. They are balanced by spin relaxation phenomena. These phenomena take place in a diffusive regime which involves numerous individual scattering events. Consequently, although the time scale of elastic electron scattering in metals […]