Tunneling magnetoresistance in magnetic tunnel junctions with a single ferromagnetic electrode

Abstract

Magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs) are key components of spintronic devices, such as magnetic random-access memories. Normally, MTJs consist of two ferromagnetic (FM) electrodes separated by an insulating barrier layer. Their key functional property is tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR) that is a change in MTJ's resistance when magnetization of the two electrodes alters from parallel to antiparallel. Here, we demonstrate that TMR can occur in MTJs with a single FM electrode, provided that the counter electrode is an antiferromagnetic (AFM) metal that supports a spin-split band structure and/or a Néel spin current. Using RuO${}_2$ as a representative example of such antiferromagnet and CrO${}_2$ as a FM metal, we design all-rutile RuO${}_2$/TiO${}_2$/CrO${}_2$ MTJs to reveal a non-vanishing TMR. Our first-principles calculations predict that magnetization reversal in CrO${}_2$ significantly changes conductance of the MTJs stacked in the (110) or (001) planes. The predicted giant TMR effect of about 1000% in the (110) oriented MTJs stems from spin-dependent conduction channels in CrO${}_2$ (110) and RuO${}_2$ (110), whose matching alters with CrO${}_2$ magnetization orientation, while TMR in the (001) oriented MTJs originates from the Néel spin currents and different effective TiO${}_2$ barrier thickness for the two magnetic sublattices that can be engineered by the alternating deposition of TiO${}_2$ and CrO${}_2$ monolayers. Our results demonstrate a possibility of a sizable TMR in MTJs with a single FM electrode and offer a practical test for using the altermagnet RuO${}_2$ in functional spintronic devices.

arXiv comment7 pages, 5 Figures

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