Low resistance AL2O3 magnetic tunnel junctions optimized through in situ conductance measurements

Abstract

In situ electrical conductance is used to monitor the growth and natural oxidation of aluminum on top of a CoFe electrode. Light oxidation is found to enhance the electron specular scattering of the CoFe/vacuum interface. Aluminum deposited onto CoFe intermixes to a depth of a few atomic layers, however, subsequent natural oxidation tends to reverse this interdiffusion through oxygen-driven A1 segregation. At the right A1 thickness, natural oxidation creates a clean and specular CoFe∕AlOx interface very similar to the best achievable CoFe/vacuum interface. For thicker A1, natural oxidation leaves behind underoxidized AlOx and most importantly an interdiffused CoFe∕Al interface. Using 2Torr×150-s natural oxidation, we have fabricated magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs) with a peak tunnel magnetoresistance (TMR) of 18% for a resistance area product of 7Ωμm2, at the A1 metal thickness of 6 Å. With the same oxidation process TMR drops to only 8% when A1 is increased to 9 Å. Contrary to the accepted view, we do not attribute this TMR drop to A1 underoxidation, but primarily to the interdiffusion at the CoFe∕Al interface. This assertion is strongly supported by a second set of MTJs differing only by the insertion of a nano-oxide layer (NOL) on top of CoFe. In this case when Al is increased from 6 to 9 Å, the TMR does not drop but increases from 16% to 27%. This is significant because NOL is found to effectively prevent Al diffusion into CoFe. NOL is also found to act as a reservoir of oxygen, which is subsequently consumed by Al.