Correlation between write endurance and electrical low frequency noise in MgO based magnetic tunnel junctions

S. Amara-Dababi 1 H. Béa 1 R. C. Sousa 1 C. Baraduc 1 B. Dieny 1
1 SPINTEC - SPINtronique et TEchnologie des Composants
Abstract : The write endurance and the 1/f noise of electrical origin were characterized in CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJ) for spin transfer torque or thermally assisted magnetic random access memories. A statistical study carried out on a set of 60 nominally identical patterned junctions of 200 nm diameter revealed a correlation trend between the electrical 1/f noise power in the unexercised MTJs and the number of write cycles that these MTJs can withstand before electrical breakdown. The junctions showing the largest 1/f noise power before the write endurance test (successive 30 ns pulses of 1.73 V) have the lowest endurance. In contrast, MTJs initially exhibiting lower 1/f noise tend to have a better electrical reliability, i.e., much longer write endurance. This correlation is explained by the presence of electron trapping sites in the MgO barrier and the role of electron trapping/detrapping phenomena in both MTJ reliability and its 1/f electrical noise power. These results suggest that 1/f noise could be used as a predictive characterization of the MTJ endurance.
Document type :
Journal articles
Complete list of metadatas
https://hal-cea.archives-ouvertes.fr/cea-00852046
Contributor : Bruno Savelli <>
Submitted on : Monday, August 19, 2013 - 4:12:06 PM
Last modification on : Thursday, April 4, 2019 - 9:44:02 AM

Identifiers

Collections

INAC-SPINTEC | CEA | DSM-INAC | UGA | CEA-DRF | IRIG | CEA-GRE

Citation

S. Amara-Dababi, H. Béa, R. C. Sousa, C. Baraduc, B. Dieny. Correlation between write endurance and electrical low frequency noise in MgO based magnetic tunnel junctions. Applied Physics Letters, American Institute of Physics, 2013, 102, pp.52404. ⟨10.1063/1.4788816⟩. ⟨cea-00852046⟩

Export

BibTeX TEI DC DCterms EndNote

Share

Metrics

Record views

105

Contact

support.ccsd.cnrs.fr
hal.support@ccsd.cnrs.fr
Logo CCSD