A magnetic tunneling junction (MTJ) memory device including a free and fixed (reference) magnet between first and second electrodes, and a synthetic antiferromagnet structure (SAF) structure between the fixed magnet and one of the electrodes. The SAF structure includes a magnetic skyrmion. Two magnetic skyrmions within a SAF structure may have opposing polarity. A SAF structure may further include a coupling layer between two magnetic layers, as well as interface layers separated from the coupling layer by one of the magnetic layers. The coupling layer may have a spin-orbit coupling effect on the magnetic layers that is of a sign opposite that of the interface layers, for example to promote formation of the magnetic skyrmions.

An embodiment includes a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) including a free magnetic layer, a fixed magnetic layer, and a tunnel barrier between the free and fixed layers; the tunnel barrier directly contacting a first side of the free layer; and an oxide layer directly contacting a second side of the free layer; wherein the tunnel barrier includes an oxide and has a first resistance-area (RA) product and the oxide layer has a second RA product that is lower than the first RA product. The MTJ may be included in a perpendicular spin torque transfer memory. The tunnel barrier and oxide layer form a memory having high stability with an RA product not substantively higher than a less table memory having a MTJ with only a single oxide layer. Other embodiments are described herein.

A magnetoresistive memory device includes a first electrode, a second electrode that is spaced from the first electrode, and a perpendicular magnetic tunnel junction layer stack located between the first electrode and the second electrode. The perpendicular magnetic tunnel junction layer stack includes, from one side to another: a reference layer having a fixed reference magnetization direction, a first spinel layer located including a first polycrystalline spinel material having (001) texture along an axial direction that is perpendicular to an interface with the reference layer, a magnesium oxide layer including a polycrystalline magnesium oxide material having (001) texture along the axial direction, a second spinel layer including a second polycrystalline spinel material having (001) texture along the axial direction, and a ferromagnetic free layer.

Provided is a magnetic memory device. The magnetic memory device may include a magnetic tunnel junction. The magnetic tunnel junction may include a fixed layer, a tunnel barrier layer on the fixed layer, a free layer on the tunnel barrier layer, a protection layer above the free layer, the protection layer comprising an amorphous metal boride, and a capping layer on the protection layer, the capping layer comprising a metal or a metal nitride.

A Magnetic Tunnel Junction (MTJ) device can include a reference magnetic layer having one or more trenches disposed therein. One or more sections of a tunnel barrier layer can be disposed on the walls of the one or more trenches. One or more sections of a free magnetic layer can be disposed on the one or more sections of the tunnel barrier layer in the one or more trenches. One or more sections of a conductive layer can be disposed on the one or more sections of the free magnetic layer in the one or more trenches. One or more insulator blocks can be disposed between corresponding sections of the tunnel barrier layer, corresponding sections of the free magnetic layer and corresponding sections of the conductive layer in the one or more trenches.

A magnetoresistive random-access memory (MRAM) device is disclosed. The device described herein has a thermal stability enhancement layer over the free layer of a magnetic tunnel junction. The thermal stability enhancement layer improves the thermal stability of the free layer, increases the magnetic moment of the free layer, while also not causing the magnetic direction of the free layer to become in plan. The thermal stability enhancement layer can be comprised of a layer of CoFeB ferromagnetic material.

According to one embodiment, there is provided a spin torque oscillator including an oscillation layer formed of a magnetic material, a spin injection layer formed of a magnetic material and configured to inject a spin into the oscillation layer, and a current confinement layer including an insulating portion formed of an oxide or a nitride and a conductive portion formed of a nonmagnetic metal and penetrating the insulating portion in a direction of stacking. The conductive portion of the current confinement layer is positioned near a central portion of a plane of a device region including the oscillation layer and the spin injection layer.

Memory stacks, memory devices and method of forming the same are provided. A memory stack includes a spin-orbit torque layer, a magnetic bias layer and a free layer. The magnetic bias layer is in physical contact with the spin-orbit torque layer and has a first magnetic anisotropy. The free layer is disposed adjacent to the spin-orbit torque layer and has a second magnetic anisotropy perpendicular to the first magnetic anisotropy.

A magnetic device includes a pinned polarizing magnetic layer having a magnetic vector parallel to a plane of the pinned polarizing magnetic layer. The magnetic device also includes a free layer, separated from the polarizing magnetic layer by a first non-magnetic layer, having a magnetization vector with a changeable magnetization direction. The changeable magnetization vector is configured to change to a first state upon application of a first current of a first polarity and to change to a second state upon application of a second current of a second, opposite polarity. The magnetic device also has a reference layer having a magnetic vector perpendicular to the plane of the reference layer and separated from the free layer by a second non-magnetic layer.

A self-referenced MRAM cell comprises a first portion of a magnetic tunnel junction including a storage layer; a second portion of the magnetic tunnel junction portion including a tunnel barrier layer, a sense layer and a seed layer; the seed layer comprising a material having high spin-orbit coupling such that passing a sense current along the plane of the sense layer and/or seed layer exerts a spin-orbit torque adapted for switching a sense magnetization of the sense layer. A memory device comprising a plurality of the MRAM cells and a method for operating the memory device are also disclosed.