JP2013115320A - Storage element, storage device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a storage element capable of high speed operation by preventing an inversion current from increasing in a short pulse width region, thereby ensuring thermal stability.SOLUTION: The storage element includes a layer structure having a storage layer the orientation of magnetization of which changes corresponding to the information, a magnetization fixed layer having magnetization perpendicular to a film surface becoming the reference of the information stored in the storage layer, and an intermediate layer of a non-magnetic material provided between the storage layer and the magnetization fixed layer. The storage layer includes a region of an oxide having a granular structure, and when current is fed in the lamination direction of the layer structure, the orientation of magnetization of the storage layer changes thus recording the information in the storage layer.

Description

  The present disclosure relates to a storage element and a storage device that perform recording using spin torque magnetization reversal.

JP 2003-17782 A US Pat. No. 6,256,223 JP 2008-227388 A

Physical Review B, 54, 9353 (1996) Journal of Magnetism and Magnetic Materials, 159, L1 (1996) Nature Materials., 5, 210 (2006)

  Along with the dramatic development of various information devices ranging from mobile terminals to large-capacity servers, even higher performance, such as higher integration, higher speed, and lower power consumption in the elements such as memory and logic. Is being pursued. In particular, the progress of semiconductor non-volatile memories is remarkable, and flash memories as large-capacity file memories are becoming widespread with the momentum to drive out hard disk drives. On the other hand, in order to expand into code storage and working memory, FeRAM (Ferroelectric Random Access Memory), MRAM (Magnetic Random Access Memory), PCRAM (Phase- Development of “Change Random Access Memory” is underway. Some of these are already in practical use.

In particular, MRAM can be rewritten at high speed and almost infinitely (10 ¹⁵ times or more) in order to store data depending on the magnetization direction of the magnetic material, and has already been used in fields such as industrial automation and aircraft. Although MRAM is expected to be expanded to code storage and working memory in the future due to its high-speed operation and reliability, in reality, it has problems in reducing power consumption and increasing capacity. This is an essential problem due to the recording principle of MRAM, that is, the method of reversing the magnetization by the current magnetic field generated from the wiring.

  As one method for solving this problem, recording not using a current magnetic field, that is, a magnetization reversal method has been studied. In particular, research on spin torque magnetization reversal is active (see, for example, Patent Documents 1, 2, and 3, Non-Patent Documents 1 and 2).

The memory element of spin torque magnetization reversal is often composed of MTJ (Magnetic Tunnel Junction) and TMR (Tunneling Magnetoresistive) elements as in MRAM.
In this configuration, when spin-polarized electrons passing through a magnetic layer fixed in a certain direction enter another free (non-fixed direction) magnetic layer, a torque is applied to the magnetic layer (this is spinned). The free magnetic layer is inverted when a current exceeding a certain threshold is passed. The rewriting of 0/1 is performed by changing the polarity of the current.
The absolute value of the current for this inversion is 1 mA or less for an element having a scale of about 0.1 μm. In addition, since this current value decreases in proportion to the element volume, scaling is possible. Further, since the word line for generating a recording current magnetic field required for the MRAM is unnecessary, there is an advantage that the cell structure is simplified.
Hereinafter, the MRAM using spin torque magnetization reversal is referred to as ST-MRAM (Spin Torque-Magnetic Random Access Memory). Spin torque magnetization reversal may also be referred to as spin injection magnetization reversal. High expectations are placed on ST-MRAM as a non-volatile memory that enables low power consumption and large capacity while maintaining the advantages of MRAM, which is high speed and the number of rewrites is almost infinite.

Various materials have been studied as a ferromagnetic material used for the memory element of ST-MRAM. Generally, a material having perpendicular magnetic anisotropy has a lower power and a larger power than those having in-plane magnetic anisotropy. It is said that it is suitable for capacity increase. This is because the perpendicular magnetization has a lower threshold (reversal current) that must be exceeded when the spin torque magnetization is reversed, and the high magnetic anisotropy of the perpendicular magnetization film reduces the thermal stability of the memory element that has been miniaturized by increasing the capacity. This is because it is advantageous for holding.
By the way, from the viewpoint of reducing the write power and high-speed operation of the ST-MRAM, the operation characteristics of the MTJ element with a short pulse width are important.
In this case, in the region of a short pulse with a current pulse width of several nanoseconds, the influence of heat contributing to writing is eliminated, so that the inversion current increases, which is disadvantageous for power saving and high-speed operation.

  Accordingly, an object of the present disclosure is to provide an ST-MRAM element that can prevent an increase in inversion current in a short pulse width region and can operate at high speed.

  The storage element of the present disclosure includes a storage layer in which the direction of magnetization is changed corresponding to information, a magnetization fixed layer having magnetization perpendicular to a film surface serving as a reference of information stored in the storage layer, and the storage A layer structure having a layer and a nonmagnetic intermediate layer provided between the magnetization fixed layer. The storage layer includes an oxide region having a granular structure, and when a current flows in the stacking direction of the layer structure, the magnetization direction of the storage layer changes, and information is recorded on the storage layer. Is done.

  In addition, the storage device of the present disclosure includes a storage element that holds information according to the magnetization state of the magnetic material, and two types of wiring that intersect each other, and the magnetization direction of the storage element is changed according to the information. A storage layer, a magnetization fixed layer having magnetization perpendicular to a film surface serving as a reference for information stored in the storage layer, and a nonmagnetic intermediate layer provided between the storage layer and the magnetization fixed layer, , And the direction of magnetization of the storage layer is changed by flowing a current in the stacking direction of the layer structure so that information is recorded on the storage layer, and the storage layer Includes an oxide region having a granular structure. The memory element is disposed between the two types of wirings, and the current in the stacking direction flows through the memory elements through the two types of wirings.

According to the storage element of the present disclosure, the storage layer that holds information according to the magnetization state of the magnetic material has a magnetization fixed layer via the intermediate layer, and flows in the stacking direction. Since information recording is performed by reversing the magnetization of the storage layer using spin torque magnetization reversal that occurs with current, information can be recorded by flowing current in the stacking direction. At this time, since the storage layer includes a region having a granular structure made of an oxide, a write current value necessary for reversing the magnetization direction of the storage layer can be reduced.
On the other hand, the thermal stability of the memory layer can be sufficiently maintained due to the strong magnetic anisotropy energy of the perpendicular magnetization film.

A structure using a perpendicular magnetization film as a storage layer is attracting attention from the viewpoint of achieving both reduction of reversal current and ensuring of thermal stability. For example, Non-Patent Document 3 suggests that the use of a perpendicular magnetization film such as a Co / Ni multilayer film for the storage layer can achieve both reduction of reversal current and securing of thermal stability.
Magnetic materials having perpendicular magnetic anisotropy include rare earth-transition metal alloys (such as TbCoFe), metal multilayer films (such as Co / Pd multilayer films), ordered alloys (such as FePt), and interface differences between oxides and magnetic metals. There are several types such as utilization of directionality (Co / MgO, etc.).
In the memory element of the present disclosure, the ferromagnetic material of the memory layer is a Co—Fe—B layer.
In addition, considering the use of a tunnel junction structure in order to realize a high magnetoresistance change rate that gives a large read signal in ST-MRAM, and considering heat resistance and ease of manufacturing, the interface magnetic anisotropy is reduced. A promising material is a laminate of a magnetic material containing Co or Fe on MgO, which is a tunnel barrier.

In addition, according to the configuration of the memory device of the present disclosure, current in the stacking direction flows through the memory element through two types of wiring, and spin transfer occurs, so that current flows in the stacking direction of the memory element through the two types of wiring. Thus, information can be recorded by spin torque magnetization reversal.
In addition, since the thermal stability of the storage layer can be sufficiently maintained, the information recorded in the storage element can be stably held, and the storage device can be miniaturized, improved in reliability, and reduced in power consumption. It becomes possible.

According to the present disclosure, an increase in inversion current in a short pulse width region can be prevented. This makes it possible to write information by reversing the magnetization direction of the storage layer within a predetermined time. Therefore, write errors can be reduced and a write operation can be performed in a shorter time. That is, high-speed operation with high reliability is possible.
Further, since the increase of the reverse current is prevented, the power consumption can be reduced.
Thereby, an operation error can be eliminated and a sufficient operation margin of the memory element can be obtained. Therefore, a highly reliable storage device that operates stably can be realized.
In addition, since it is possible to reduce power consumption when writing data to the memory element by reducing write current, power consumption of the entire memory device can be reduced.

3 is a perspective view of a storage device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. FIG. It is sectional drawing of the memory | storage device of embodiment. It is a figure which shows the layer structure of the memory element of embodiment. FIG. 3 is a structural diagram of an experimental sample of the memory element of the embodiment. It is the figure which plotted the relationship between excitation energy and inversion time. It is explanatory drawing of the example of magnetic head application of embodiment.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in the following order.
<1. Configuration of Storage Device of Embodiment>
<2. Outline of Memory Element of Embodiment>
<3. Specific Configuration of Embodiment>
<4. Experiment and Simulation>
<5. Modification>

<1. Configuration of Storage Device of Embodiment>

First, the configuration of the storage device according to the embodiment of the present disclosure will be described.
1 and 2 are schematic diagrams of a storage device according to an embodiment. 1 is a perspective view, and FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view.

As shown in FIG. 1, the storage device according to the embodiment is based on an ST-MRAM that can hold information in a magnetized state in the vicinity of an intersection of two types of address lines (for example, a word line and a bit line) orthogonal to each other. For example, the memory element 3 is arranged.
That is, a drain region 8, a source region 7, and a gate electrode 1 that constitute a selection transistor for selecting each storage device in a portion separated by an element isolation layer 2 of a semiconductor substrate 10 such as a silicon substrate, Each is formed. Of these, the gate electrode 1 also serves as one address wiring (word line) extending in the front-rear direction in the figure.

The drain region 8 is formed in common to the left and right selection transistors in FIG. 1, and a wiring 9 is connected to the drain region 8.
And, for example, the storage element 3 is disposed between the source region 7 and the bit line 6 that is disposed above and extends in the left-right direction in FIG. 1 and whose magnetization direction is reversed by spin torque magnetization reversal. Has been. The storage element 3 is constituted by, for example, a magnetic tunnel junction element (MTJ element).

As shown in FIG. 2, the memory element 3 has two magnetic layers 15 and 17. Of these two magnetic layers 15, 17, one magnetic layer is a magnetization fixed layer 15 in which the direction of the magnetization M 15 is fixed, and the other magnetic layer is a magnetization free layer, that is, a storage layer 17 in which the direction of the magnetization M 17 changes. And
The storage element 3 is connected to the bit line 6 and the source region 7 via the upper and lower contact layers 4, respectively.
As a result, a current in the vertical direction can be passed through the storage element 3 through the two types of address wirings 1 and 6, and the direction of the magnetization M17 of the storage layer 17 can be reversed by spin torque magnetization reversal.

  In such a memory device, it is necessary to perform writing at a current equal to or lower than the saturation current of the selection transistor, and it is known that the saturation current of the transistor decreases with miniaturization. For this, it is preferable to improve the efficiency of the spin transfer and reduce the current flowing through the memory element 3.

Further, in order to increase the read signal, it is necessary to secure a large magnetoresistance change rate. For that purpose, the above-described MTJ structure is adopted, that is, between the two magnetic layers 15 and 17. It is effective to adopt a configuration of the memory element 3 in which the layer is a tunnel insulating layer (tunnel barrier layer).
When the tunnel insulating layer is used as the intermediate layer in this way, the amount of current flowing through the memory element 3 is limited in order to prevent the tunnel insulating layer from being broken down. That is, it is preferable to suppress the current necessary for the spin torque magnetization reversal from the viewpoint of ensuring the reliability of the memory element 3 against repeated writing. Note that the current required for spin torque magnetization reversal may be referred to as reversal current or storage current.

Further, since the storage device is a nonvolatile memory device, it is necessary to stably store information written by current. That is, it is necessary to ensure the stability (thermal stability) against the thermal fluctuation of the magnetization of the storage layer.
If the thermal stability of the storage layer is not ensured, the reversed magnetization direction may be reversed again by heat (temperature in the operating environment), resulting in a write error.
The storage element 3 (ST-MRAM) in the present storage device is advantageous in scaling as compared with the conventional MRAM, that is, it is possible to reduce the volume, but the decrease in the volume has the same other characteristics. If it is, it exists in the direction which reduces thermal stability.
When the capacity of the ST-MRAM is increased, the volume of the memory element 3 is further reduced, so ensuring thermal stability becomes an important issue.
Therefore, in the storage element 3 in the ST-MRAM, thermal stability is a very important characteristic, and it is necessary to design the thermal stability to be ensured even if the volume is reduced.

<2. Outline of Memory Element of Embodiment>

Next, an outline of a memory element according to an embodiment of the present disclosure will be described.
In the embodiment of the present disclosure, information is recorded by reversing the magnetization direction of the storage layer of the storage element by the spin torque magnetization reversal described above.
The storage layer is made of a magnetic material including a ferromagnetic layer, and holds information by the magnetization state (magnetization direction) of the magnetic material.
FIG. 3 shows an example of the layer structure of the memory element.
The storage element 3 has a layer structure as shown in FIG. 3A, for example, and includes at least two storage layers 17 as a ferromagnetic layer and a magnetization fixed layer 15, and an intermediate layer 16 between the two magnetic layers. Prepare.

The storage layer 17 has magnetization perpendicular to the film surface, and the magnetization direction is changed in accordance with information.
The magnetization fixed layer 15 has a magnetization perpendicular to the film surface serving as a reference for information stored in the storage layer 17.
The intermediate layer 16 is a nonmagnetic material and is provided between the storage layer 17 and the magnetization fixed layer 15.
Then, by injecting spin-polarized electrons in the stacking direction of the layer structure including the storage layer 17, the intermediate layer 16, and the magnetization fixed layer 15, the magnetization direction of the storage layer 17 changes, and the storage layer 17 Information is recorded.

Here, the spin torque magnetization reversal will be briefly described.
Electrons have two types of spin angular momentum. This is defined as upward and downward. The number of both is the same inside the non-magnetic material, and the number of both is different inside the ferromagnetic material. In the magnetization fixed layer 15 and the storage layer 17, which are the two layers of ferromagnetic material constituting the ST-MRAM, electrons are transferred from the magnetization fixed layer 15 to the storage layer 17 when the directions of the magnetic moments are opposite to each other. Consider the case of moving.

The magnetization fixed layer 15 is a fixed magnetic layer in which the direction of the magnetic moment is fixed for high coercive force.
The electrons that have passed through the magnetization pinned layer 15 have a difference in spin polarization, that is, the upward and downward numbers. If the thickness of the intermediate layer 16 that is a nonmagnetic layer is sufficiently thin, spin polarization due to passage through the magnetization fixed layer 15 is relaxed, and nonpolarization in a normal nonmagnetic material (the same number of upwards and downwards). ) Electrons reach the other magnetic body, that is, the memory layer 17 before the state becomes.

In the memory layer 17, since the signs of the spin polarization are reversed, some electrons are inverted, that is, the direction of the spin angular momentum is changed in order to lower the energy of the system. At this time, since the total angular momentum of the system must be preserved, a reaction equivalent to the sum of changes in angular momentum due to the electrons whose direction is changed is also given to the magnetic moment of the storage layer 17.
When the current, that is, the number of electrons passing through the unit time is small, the total number of electrons changing the direction is small, and therefore the change in the angular momentum generated in the magnetic moment of the storage layer 17 is small. Changes can be given within a unit time.

The time change of the angular momentum is torque, and when the torque exceeds a certain threshold value, the magnetic moment of the storage layer 17 starts precession and becomes stable when rotated 180 degrees due to its uniaxial anisotropy. That is, inversion from the opposite direction state to the same direction state occurs.
When the magnetization is in the same direction state, if a current is flowed in the opposite direction to send electrons from the storage layer 17 to the magnetization fixed layer 15, the electrons that have been spin-reversed when reflected by the magnetization fixed layer 15 are now stored in the storage layer 17. Torque is applied when entering, and the magnetic moment can be reversed to the opposite direction. However, at this time, the amount of current required to cause the reversal is larger than when reversing from the opposite direction state to the same direction state.

  Although it is difficult to intuitively understand the reversal of the magnetic moment from the same direction to the opposite direction, the magnetic moment cannot be reversed because the magnetization fixed layer 15 is fixed, and the angular momentum of the entire system is preserved. Therefore, it may be considered that the memory layer 17 is inverted. As described above, recording of 0/1 is performed by flowing a current of a certain threshold value or more corresponding to each polarity in the direction from the fixed magnetization layer 15 to the storage layer 17 or vice versa.

  Information is read out by using the magnetoresistive effect as in the conventional MRAM. That is, a current is passed in the direction perpendicular to the film surface as in the case of the above recording. Then, a phenomenon is used in which the electric resistance of the element changes depending on whether the magnetic moment of the storage layer 17 is in the same direction or in the opposite direction to the magnetic moment of the magnetization fixed layer 15.

  The material used for the intermediate layer 16 between the magnetization fixed layer 15 and the storage layer 17 may be a metal or an insulator, but a higher read signal (resistance change rate) can be obtained and recording can be performed with a lower current. This is the case when an insulator is used as the intermediate layer. The element at this time is called a ferromagnetic tunnel junction (Magnetic Tunnel Junction: MTJ).

When the magnetization direction of the magnetic layer is reversed by spin torque magnetization reversal, the required current threshold Ic differs depending on whether the easy axis of magnetization of the magnetic layer is in the in-plane direction or in the vertical direction.
Although the memory element of this embodiment is a perpendicular magnetization type, the reversal current that reverses the magnetization direction of the magnetic layer in the case of a conventional in-plane magnetization type memory element is Ic_para.
When reversing from the same direction to the opposite direction,
Ic_para = (A · α · Ms · V / g (0) / P) (Hk + 2πMs)
And when reversing from the opposite direction to the same direction,
Ic_para = − (A · α · Ms · V / g (π) / P) (Hk + 2πMs)
It becomes.
The same direction and the opposite direction are the magnetization directions of the storage layer with reference to the magnetization direction of the magnetization fixed layer. Also called parallel or antiparallel.

On the other hand, when the reversal current of the perpendicular magnetization type storage element as in this example is Ic_perp, when reversing from the same direction to the reverse direction,
Ic_perp = (A · α · Ms · V / g (0) / P) (Hk−4πMs)
And when reversing from the opposite direction to the same direction,
Ic_perp = − (A · α · Ms · V / g (π) / P) (Hk−4πMs)
It becomes.

  Where A is a constant, α is a damping constant, Ms is saturation magnetization, V is element volume, P is spin polarizability, g (0) and g (π) are in the same direction and spin torque in the opposite direction. A coefficient Hk corresponding to the efficiency transmitted to the magnetic layer is magnetic anisotropy.

  In each of the above formulas, comparing (Hk−4πMs) in the perpendicular magnetization type and (Hk + 2πMs) in the in-plane magnetization type, it can be understood that the perpendicular magnetization type is more suitable for reducing the storage current.

但しｅは電子の電荷、ηはスピン注入効率、バー付きのｈは換算プランク定数、αはダンピング定数、ｋ_Bはボルツマン定数、Ｔは温度である。 Here, the inversion current Ic0 is expressed by the following (Equation 1) in terms of the relationship with the thermal stability index Δ.

Where e is the charge of the electron, η is the spin injection efficiency, h with a bar is the converted Planck constant, α is the damping constant, k _B is the Boltzmann constant, and T is the temperature.

ここで、Ｈｋは実効的な異方性磁界、ｋ_Bはボルツマン定数、Ｔは温度、Ｍｓは飽和磁化量、Ｖは記憶層の体積、Ｋは異方性エネルギである。 In the present embodiment, a storage element including a magnetic layer (storage layer 17) capable of holding information depending on the magnetization state and a magnetization fixed layer 15 in which the magnetization direction is fixed is configured.
In order to be able to exist as a memory, it must be able to hold the written information. As an index of the ability to hold information, it is determined by the value of the thermal stability index Δ (= KV / kBT). This Δ is expressed by (Equation 2).

Here, Hk represents an effective anisotropy field, k _B is the Boltzmann constant, T is the temperature, Ms is the saturation magnetization, V is the volume of the storage layer, K is an anisotropic energy.

  The effect of shape magnetic anisotropy, induced magnetic anisotropy, crystal magnetic anisotropy, etc. is incorporated into the effective anisotropy magnetic field Hk. Equivalent to coercive force.

The thermal stability index Δ and the current threshold value Ic often have a trade-off relationship. Therefore, in order to maintain the memory characteristics, it is often a problem to achieve both.
The threshold value of the current for changing the magnetization state of the storage layer is actually about one hundred to several hundred μA in a TMR element in which the thickness of the storage layer 17 is 2 nm and the planar pattern is 100 nm in diameter, for example.
On the other hand, in a normal MRAM that performs magnetization reversal by a current magnetic field, a write current of several mA or more is required.
Therefore, in the case of the ST-MRAM, it can be understood that the write current threshold is sufficiently small as described above, which is effective in reducing the power consumption of the integrated circuit.
In addition, since a wiring for generating a current magnetic field, which is required in a normal MRAM, is not necessary, the degree of integration is advantageous as compared with a normal MRAM.

When spin torque magnetization reversal is performed, current is directly supplied to the storage element to write (record) information. Therefore, in order to select a memory cell to be written, the storage element is connected to a selection transistor. To constitute a memory cell.
In this case, the current flowing through the memory element is limited by the magnitude of the current that can be passed through the selection transistor (the saturation current of the selection transistor).

  In order to reduce the recording current, it is desirable to adopt the perpendicular magnetization type as described above. Further, since the perpendicular magnetization film can generally have a higher magnetic anisotropy than the in-plane magnetization film, it is preferable in that the above Δ is kept large.

Magnetic materials having perpendicular anisotropy include rare earth-transition metal alloys (such as TbCoFe), metal multilayer films (such as Co / Pd multilayer films), ordered alloys (such as FePt), and interface anisotropy between oxides and magnetic metals. However, rare earth-transition metal alloys lose their perpendicular magnetic anisotropy when they are diffused and crystallized by heating, and thus are not preferable as materials for ST-MRAM.
In addition, it is known that metal multilayer film diffuses by heating and the perpendicular magnetic anisotropy deteriorates. Further, the perpendicular magnetic anisotropy is manifested in the case of a face-centered cubic (111) orientation. Therefore, it is difficult to realize the (001) orientation required for high polarizability layers such as MgO and Fe, CoFe, CoFeB arranged adjacent to MgO. The L10 ordered alloy is stable even at high temperatures and exhibits perpendicular magnetic anisotropy during (001) orientation, so that the above-mentioned problems do not occur, but it is heated at a sufficiently high temperature of 500 ° C. or higher during production. Alternatively, it is necessary to arrange the atoms regularly by performing a heat treatment at a high temperature of 500 ° C. or higher after manufacture, which may cause undesired diffusion or increase in interface roughness in other portions of the laminated film such as a tunnel barrier.

On the other hand, there is a Co—Fe—B alloy as a magnetic material having perpendicular anisotropy utilizing interfacial magnetic anisotropy, and realizes a high magnetoresistance change rate that gives a large read signal in ST-MRAM. Therefore, it is considered promising in that it can be combined with MgO as a tunnel barrier.
However, like other materials, there is a concern about an increase in write current in a write operation in a short pulse region.

As an answer to this, the present inventors have devised a structure in which the oxide 21 of the granular structure 22 is formed in the memory layer 17 as shown in FIG. 3B. The granular structure is a state in which minute nano-scale particles are dispersed in a material.
For example, the storage layer 17 uses Co—Fe—B as a magnetic material, and in this Co—Fe—B crystal, fine particles of oxide 21 (for example, silicon oxide) are contained in the Co—Fe—B crystal. It is assumed that it is dispersed in a certain area. The dispersed state here refers to a state in which the oxide particles 21 do not form a uniform continuous film. Thereby, the reversal current is reduced, and the memory element 20 that ensures thermal stability can be realized.

Further, in consideration of the saturation current value of the selection transistor, a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) element using a tunnel insulating layer made of an insulator as the nonmagnetic intermediate layer 16 between the storage layer 17 and the magnetization fixed layer 15. Configure.
By constructing a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) element using a tunnel insulating layer, a magnetoresistance change rate (MR ratio) is compared with a case where a giant magnetoresistive effect (GMR) element is constructed using a nonmagnetic conductive layer. This is because the read signal intensity can be increased.

In particular, by using magnesium oxide (MgO) as the material of the intermediate layer 16 as the tunnel insulating layer, the magnetoresistance change rate (MR ratio) can be increased.
In general, the efficiency of the spin transfer depends on the MR ratio, and as the MR ratio increases, the efficiency of the spin transfer improves and the magnetization reversal current density can be reduced.
Therefore, by using magnesium oxide as the material of the tunnel insulating layer and simultaneously using the memory layer 17 described above, the write threshold current due to the spin torque magnetization reversal can be reduced, and information is written (recorded) with a small current. be able to. In addition, the read signal intensity can be increased.
Thereby, the MR ratio (TMR ratio) can be secured, the write threshold current due to the spin torque magnetization reversal can be reduced, and information can be written (recorded) with a small current. In addition, the read signal intensity can be increased.

Thus, when the tunnel insulating layer is formed of a magnesium oxide (MgO) film, it is more desirable that the MgO film is crystallized and the crystal orientation is maintained in the 001 direction.
In the present embodiment, the intermediate layer 16 (tunnel insulating layer) between the storage layer 17 and the magnetization fixed layer 15 is made of magnesium oxide, for example, aluminum oxide, aluminum nitride, SiO ₂ , Bi ₂ O ₃ , MgF ₂ , CaF, SrTiO ₂ , AlLaO ₃ , Al—N—O, and other various insulators, dielectrics, and semiconductors can also be used.

The area resistance value of the tunnel insulating layer needs to be controlled to about several tens of Ωμm ² or less from the viewpoint of obtaining a current density necessary for reversing the magnetization direction of the memory layer 17 by spin torque magnetization reversal.
In the tunnel insulating layer made of the MgO film, the film thickness of the MgO film needs to be set to 1.5 nm or less in order to make the sheet resistance value in the above range.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, a cap layer 18 is disposed adjacent to the storage layer 17, and the cap layer includes an oxide layer.
As the oxide of the cap layer 18, for example, MgO, aluminum oxide, TiO ₂ , SiO ₂ , Bi ₂ O ₃ , SrTiO ₂ , AlLaO ₃ , Al—N—O, or the like is used.

In addition, it is desirable to make the memory element small so that the magnetization direction of the memory layer 17 can be easily reversed with a small current.
Therefore, preferably, the area of the memory element is 0.01 μm ² or less.

The film thicknesses of the magnetization fixed layer 15 and the storage layer 17 are preferably 0.5 nm to 30 nm.
The other configuration of the storage element can be the same as the conventionally known configuration of the storage element that records information by spin torque magnetization reversal.

The magnetization pinned layer 15 can be configured to have its magnetization direction fixed by using only the ferromagnetic layer or by using the antiferromagnetic coupling between the antiferromagnetic layer and the ferromagnetic layer.
In addition, the magnetization fixed layer 15 can be configured by a single ferromagnetic layer or a laminated ferripin structure in which a plurality of ferromagnetic layers are laminated via a nonmagnetic layer.

Co, CoFe, CoFeB, or the like can be used as the material of the ferromagnetic layer constituting the magnetization fixed layer 15 having the laminated ferripin structure. Moreover, Ru, Re, Ir, Os etc. can be used as a material of a nonmagnetic layer.
Examples of the material of the antiferromagnetic layer include magnetic materials such as FeMn alloy, PtMn alloy, PtCrMn alloy, NiMn alloy, IrMn alloy, NiO, and Fe ₂ O ₃ .
In addition, nonmagnetic elements such as Ag, Cu, Au, Al, Si, Bi, Ta, B, C, O, N, Pd, Pt, Zr, Hf, Ir, W, Mo, and Nb are included in these magnetic materials. Can be added to adjust the magnetic properties and other physical properties such as crystal structure, crystallinity and material stability.

In addition, the film configuration of the storage element may be a configuration in which the storage layer 17 is disposed below the magnetization fixed layer 15. In this case, the role of the conductive oxide cap layer is played by the conductive oxide underlayer.

<3. Specific Configuration of Embodiment>

Next, a specific configuration of the embodiment will be described.
As described above with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2, the configuration of the memory device can hold information in a magnetized state near the intersection of two kinds of orthogonal address lines 1 and 6 (for example, a word line and a bit line). The storage element 3 is arranged.
The direction of magnetization of the memory layer 17 can be reversed by spin torque magnetization reversal by passing a current in the vertical direction through the memory element 3 through the two types of address lines 1 and 6.

  FIG. 3 illustrates an example of a layer structure of the memory element (ST-MRAM) according to the embodiment.

As already described, as shown in FIG. 3A, the storage element 3 has the base layer 14, the magnetization fixed layer 15, the intermediate layer 16, the storage layer 17, and the cap layer 18 stacked in order from the lower layer side.
In this case, the magnetization fixed layer 15 is provided in the lower layer with respect to the memory layer 17 in which the direction of the magnetization M17 is reversed by spin injection.
In the spin injection memory, information “0” and “1” are defined by the relative angle between the magnetization M17 of the storage layer 17 and the magnetization M15 of the magnetization fixed layer 15.

An intermediate layer 16 serving as a tunnel barrier layer (tunnel insulating layer) is provided between the storage layer 17 and the magnetization fixed layer 15, and the storage layer 17 and the magnetization fixed layer 15 constitute an MTJ element. An underlayer 14 is provided under the magnetization fixed layer 15.
The storage layer 17 and the magnetization fixed layer 15 are, for example, Co—Fe—B layers.

The memory layer 17 is made of a ferromagnetic material having a magnetic moment in which the direction of the magnetization M17 freely changes in the direction perpendicular to the layer surface. The magnetization fixed layer 15 is made of a ferromagnetic material having a magnetic moment in which the magnetization M15 is fixed in the direction perpendicular to the film surface.
Information is stored according to the direction of magnetization of the storage layer 15 having uniaxial anisotropy. Writing is performed by applying a current in the direction perpendicular to the film surface to cause spin torque magnetization reversal. In this manner, the magnetization fixed layer 15 is provided in the lower layer with respect to the storage layer 15 whose magnetization direction is reversed by spin injection, and is used as a reference for storage information (magnetization direction) of the storage layer 17.

  Since the magnetization fixed layer 15 is a reference of information, the direction of magnetization should not be changed by recording or reading, but it is not necessarily fixed in a specific direction, and the coercive force is larger than that of the storage layer 17. Alternatively, the film thickness may be increased or the magnetic damping constant may be increased to make it harder to move than the storage layer 17.

The intermediate layer 16 is, for example, a magnesium oxide (MgO) layer. In this case, the magnetoresistance change rate (MR ratio) can be increased.
By increasing the MR ratio in this way, the efficiency of spin injection can be improved and the current density required to reverse the direction of the magnetization M17 of the storage layer 17 can be reduced.
In addition to the structure made of magnesium oxide, the intermediate layer 16 is made of aluminum oxide, aluminum nitride, SiO ₂ , Bi ₂ O ₃ , MgF ₂ , CaF, SrTiO ₂ , AlLaO ₃ , Al—N—O, or the like. Various insulators, dielectrics, and semiconductors can be used.

  As the underlayer 14 and the cap layer 18, various metals such as Ta, Ti, W, and Ru and conductive nitrides such as TiN can be used. The underlayer 14 and the cap layer 18 may be used as a single layer, or a plurality of different materials may be stacked.

The structure of the memory element 20 shown in FIG. 3B is different from the structure of the memory element 3 in the structure of the memory layer 17. The memory layer 17 of the memory element 20 has a structure in which an oxide 21 is formed with a granular structure 22.
As described above, the granular structure is a state in which minute nanoscale particles are dispersed in a material.
The storage layer 17 uses Co—Fe—B as a magnetic material, and in this Co—Fe—B crystal, fine particles of oxide (for example, silicon oxide) 21 are constant in the Co—Fe—B crystal. The region is dispersed as shown in FIG. 3B. The dispersed state here refers to a state in which the oxide particles 21 do not form a uniform continuous film.

Such a granular structure 22 made of the oxide 21 is not limited to one as shown in FIG. 3B and may be formed in two or more.
The oxide 21 can be selected from at least one of silicon oxide, magnesium oxide, tantalum oxide, aluminum oxide, cobalt oxide, zirconium oxide, titanium oxide and chromium oxide.

In the embodiment of FIGS. 3A and 3B, the storage layer 17 of the storage element 3 is configured so that the effective demagnetizing field received by the storage layer 17 is smaller than the saturation magnetization Ms of the storage layer 17 in particular. The composition is adjusted.
That is, the composition of the ferromagnetic material Co—Fe—B is selected for the storage layer 17, but the magnitude of the effective demagnetizing field received by the storage layer 17 is reduced to be smaller than the saturation magnetization Ms of the storage layer 17. To be.

  In the memory elements 3 and 20 of these embodiments, the base layer 14 to the cap layer 18 are continuously formed in a vacuum apparatus, and then the pattern of the memory element 3 is formed by processing such as etching. Can be manufactured.

According to this embodiment described above, it is possible to realize a memory element that reduces the reversal current and ensures thermal stability.
That is, the amount of write current required to reverse the direction of the magnetization M17 of the storage layer 17 can be reduced.
In addition, since the thermal stability that is the information holding capability can be sufficiently ensured, the memory elements 3 and 20 having excellent characteristic balance can be configured.
As a result, an operation error can be eliminated, a sufficient operation margin can be obtained, and a stable operation can be achieved.

Therefore, a highly reliable storage device that operates stably can be realized.
In addition, it is possible to reduce power consumption when writing by reducing a write current.
Furthermore, the power consumption of the entire storage device in which the storage device is configured by the storage element of this embodiment can be reduced.
Further, the memory device having the memory elements 3 and 20 described in FIG. 3 and having the configuration shown in FIG. 1 has an advantage that a general semiconductor MOS formation process can be applied when manufacturing the memory device. . Therefore, the storage device of this embodiment can be applied as a general-purpose memory.

<4. Experiments and Simulations Regarding Embodiments>

Here, in the configuration of the memory elements 3 and 20 of the present embodiment shown in FIGS. 3A and 3B, the sample shown in FIG. 4 was prepared, and the experiment for examining the characteristics and the simulation on the relationship with the excitation energy were performed. .
The experiment seeks the reversal current value and thermal stability index. A current having a pulse width of 10 ns to 100 ms was passed through the memory elements 3 and 20, and the resistance value of the memory elements thereafter was measured.
Further, the amount of current flowing through the storage elements 3 and 20 was changed, and the current value at which the magnetization direction of the storage layer 17 of the storage elements 3 and 20 was reversed was obtained.
Further, the dispersion of the coercive force obtained by measuring the magnetoresistance curves of the storage elements 3 and 20 a plurality of times corresponds to the above-described index (Δ) of the retention characteristic (thermal stability) of the storage element. The smaller the dispersion of the measured coercive force, the higher the Δ value. Then, in order to take into account the variation between the memory elements, about 20 memory elements having the same configuration were manufactured, and the above-described measurement was performed to obtain the average value of the inversion current value and the thermal stability index Δ.

  As shown in FIG. 1, an actual memory device includes a semiconductor circuit for switching in addition to the memory elements 3 and 20. Here, the magnetization reversal characteristics of the memory layer 17 adjacent to the cap layer 18 are present. For the purpose of investigating, a wafer with only memory elements formed was examined.

As a memory element sample for experiment, as shown in FIG.
Underlayer 14: A laminated film of a Ta film with a thickness of 10 nm and a Ru film with a thickness of 10 nm.
Magnetization fixed layer 15: CoPt: 2 nm / Ru: 0.7 nm / [Co20Fe80] 70B30: a laminated film of 2 nm.
Intermediate layer (tunnel insulating layer) 16: MgO film having a thickness of 1.0 nm.
Cap layer 18: / Ta: 5 nm film /
With the above layers in common, the following granular structure 22 was formed in the memory layer 17 to prepare five types of samples.
As shown in FIGS.
Sample 1 (FIG. 4A) storage layer 17: no granular structure 22 Sample 2 (FIG. 4B) storage layer 17: Ta: 0.05 nm granular structure 22 is formed Sample 3 (FIG. 4C) storage layer 17: MgO: Formation of 0.1 nm granular structure 22 Sample 4 (FIG. 4D) storage layer 17: MgO: 0.2 nm granular structure 22 formation Sample 5 (FIG. 4E) storage layer 17: AlOx: 0.1 nm granular structure Form 22

In each sample, a 300 nm thick thermal oxide film was formed on a 0.725 mm thick silicon substrate, and a memory element having the above-described structure was formed thereon. Further, a 100 nm thick Cu film (to be a word line) (not shown) was provided between the base layer and the silicon substrate.
Each layer other than the insulating layer was formed using a DC magnetron sputtering method. The insulating layer using the oxide was oxidized in an oxidation chamber after a metal layer was formed by RF magnetron sputtering or DC magnetron sputtering. After each layer of the memory element was formed, heat treatment was performed at 300 ° C. for 1 hour in a heat treatment furnace in a magnetic field.

Next, after masking the word line portion by photolithography, the word line (lower electrode) was formed by performing selective etching with Ar plasma on the laminated film other than the word line. At this time, the portion other than the word line portion was etched to a depth of 5 nm of the substrate.
Thereafter, a mask of a memory element pattern was formed by an electron beam drawing apparatus, and selective etching was performed on the laminated film to form a memory element. Except for the memory element portion, the etching was performed up to the Cu layer of the word line.

In addition, in order to generate the spin torque necessary for the magnetization reversal, it is necessary to flow a sufficient current through the storage element for the characteristic evaluation storage element, and thus it is necessary to suppress the resistance value of the tunnel insulating layer. Therefore, the memory element pattern is a circle having a minor axis of 0.09 μm and a major axis of 0.09 μm, and the area resistance value (Ωμm ² ) of the memory element is 20 Ωμm ² .
Next, the portions other than the memory element portion were insulated by sputtering of Al ₂ O ₃ having a thickness of about 100 nm. Thereafter, a bit line to be an upper electrode and a measurement pad were formed using photolithography. In this way, a sample of the memory element was manufactured.

  As described above, the characteristics of each of the manufactured memory element samples were evaluated. Prior to the measurement, in order to control the positive and negative values of the reversal current to be symmetrical, a magnetic field can be applied to the storage element from the outside. Further, the voltage applied to the memory element was set to 1 V within a range where the insulating layer was not broken.

[Experiment]
In this experiment, an inversion current value and an index of thermal stability are obtained. A current having a pulse width of 10 ns to 100 ms was passed through the memory elements 3 and 20, and the resistance value of the memory elements thereafter was measured.
Further, the amount of current flowing through the storage elements 3 and 20 was changed, and the current value at which the magnetization direction of the storage layer 17 of the storage elements 3 and 20 was reversed was obtained.
Further, the dispersion of the coercive force obtained by measuring the magnetoresistance curves of the storage elements 3 and 20 a plurality of times corresponds to the above-described index (Δ) of the retention characteristic (thermal stability) of the storage element. The smaller the dispersion of the measured coercive force, the higher the Δ value. Then, in order to take into account the variation between the memory elements, about 20 memory elements having the same configuration were manufactured, and the above-described measurement was performed to obtain the average value of the inversion current value and the thermal stability index Δ.

Table 1 summarizes the ratio of the reversal current value at a pulse width of 100 ns and the reversal current value at a pulse width of 10 ns with respect to the magnetization reversal characteristics of the samples 1 to 5 by writing with current. The pulse width of 100 ns is a region where the influence of heat remains on the magnetization reversal. On the contrary, the pulse width of 10 ns becomes an adiabatic region and is hardly affected by heat.
Therefore, it is possible to evaluate the degree of current increase in the short pulse region by comparing the inversion current at the 100 ns pulse width and the 10 ns pulse width.
It is known that the inversion current increases as the short pulse region is reached, and rapidly increases in the region of several tens of ns or less.

In contrast to Samples 3 to 5 in which the granular structure 22 made of the oxide 21 is formed in the memory layer 17, the increase in the inversion current value at a pulse width of 10 ns is larger in the sample 1 without the granular structure 22 and the sample 2 made of the nonmagnetic material.
Furthermore, a difference also occurs in the granular structure 22 made of the same oxide 21 as in the samples 3 and 4, and in the experiment, the reversal current in the short pulse region is strongly suppressed in the sample 3 having the strong granular structure 22 property. .
In addition, like the sample 5, in the present disclosure, the oxide 21 can provide an effect regardless of the material.

The reason why the above effect is obtained can be considered as follows.
When a granular structure 22 that is dispersed in a granular form instead of a uniform continuous film is introduced into the magnetic body of the storage layer 17, the interface anisotropy between the oxide 21 and the magnetic body inside the storage layer 17 is modulated. This particularly strongly affects the material system of the Co—Fe—B alloy and the oxide 21, and the interface anisotropy in the in-plane direction of the film is caused by the granulated oxide 21 and the magnetic material joining in the in-plane direction. Occur.

  That is, magnetic anisotropy occurs in the in-plane direction. As a result, when viewed in the entire memory layer 17, the magnetization component in the in-film direction is mixed with the magnetization in the direction perpendicular to the film surface, and the oblique magnetic anisotropy having the perpendicular magnetic anisotropy and the in-plane magnetic anisotropy at the same time. It becomes a state of magnetization (a state in which the direction of magnetization is inclined from the direction perpendicular to the film surface). In this experiment, an effect was exerted on the granular structure 22 of the oxide 21, which may easily form the granular structure 22, but the origin of the interface anisotropy is the oxide 21. Therefore, it is considered that stronger in-plane magnetic anisotropy was obtained.

  This model is also reflected in Samples 3 and 4, and has a particularly strong in-plane magnetic anisotropy with a highly granular structure (Sample 3).

[simulation]
A simulation was performed to suppress the reversal current in the short pulse region due to the formation of oblique magnetization, that is, to improve the high-speed reversal characteristics of the magnetization. FIG. 5 shows the result.
FIG. 5 shows the relationship between the excitation energy E and the inversion time ts at a certain current. The excitation energy E on the horizontal axis is plotted on a logarithmic scale. Here, the excitation energy E uses a value calculated from the magnetization direction at the time when the current is applied. The magnetization direction deviates from the equilibrium state due to thermal fluctuation, but the greater the excitation energy E (the more toward the right in FIG. 5), the greater the deviation from the equilibrium state.

斜め磁化がなく、完全に磁化が平衡状態であれば、無限の反転時間が必要であるが、実際には熱揺らぎによって励起エネルギは０以上の値となるために、有限の時間で反転が可能である。
その傾向が図５中の破線で示されている。横軸の励起エネルギＥを対数スケールにした場合、破線はほぼ直線となる。そして、励起エネルギＥが大きいほど、短い時間で反転することが分かる。 The relationship between the excitation energy E and the inversion time ts is expressed by the following (Equation 3).

If there is no oblique magnetization and the magnetization is completely balanced, an infinite reversal time is required. However, since the excitation energy actually becomes 0 or more due to thermal fluctuation, reversal is possible in a finite time. It is.
This tendency is indicated by a broken line in FIG. When the excitation energy E on the horizontal axis is a logarithmic scale, the broken line is almost a straight line. And it turns out that it reverses in a short time, so that the excitation energy E is large.

On the other hand, the relationship between the excitation energy E and the reversal time ts when oblique magnetization is used is shown by a solid line in FIG. Unlike the case without oblique magnetization, the reversal time ts does not increase when the excitation energy E decreases. This is because even when the excitation energy E is 0 (negative infinity in the case of the logarithmic scale shown in FIG. 5), the direction of a part of the magnetization is inclined from the vertical axis. To work.
Therefore, for example, when a specific current pulse width is set to 20 ns in FIG. 5, in the oblique magnetization state, reversal occurs with a probability of 100% because the reversal time saturation region is reached. In the absence, the applied current value must be further increased to increase the inversion probability. For this reason, the embodiment using oblique magnetization is suitable for reducing the reversal current in the short pulse region.

  As a result of various studies, if the material forming the granular structure 22 is the oxide 21, the effect of the present disclosure that imparts the effect of oblique magnetization can be obtained. In this case, the oxide 21 is silicon oxide, magnesium oxide. , Tantalum oxide, aluminum oxide, cobalt oxide, zirconium oxide, titanium oxide, and chromium oxide. In the experiment, the B composition of the Co—Fe—B alloy was set to 30%, but the B composition may be changed to about 20 to 40% from the viewpoint of TMR value and heat resistance.

The underlayer 14 and the cap layer 18 may be a single material or a laminated structure of a plurality of materials.
In addition, the magnetization fixed layer 15 may be a single layer or a laminated ferripin structure including two ferromagnetic layers and a nonmagnetic layer. Moreover, the structure which provided the antiferromagnetic film | membrane to the laminated ferripin structure film may be sufficient.

<5. Modification>

The structure of the memory element 3 or the memory element 20 according to the present disclosure is a configuration of a magnetoresistive effect element such as a TMR element. The magnetoresistive effect element as the TMR element includes not only the above-described memory device but also a magnetic head and The present invention can be applied to a hard disk drive equipped with this magnetic head, an integrated circuit chip, and various electronic devices such as personal computers, portable terminals, mobile phones, and magnetic sensor devices, and electric devices.

As an example, FIGS. 6A and 6B show an example in which the magnetoresistive effect element 101 having the structure of the storage elements 3 and 20 is applied to the composite magnetic head 100. 6A is a perspective view of the composite magnetic head 100 with a part cut away so that the internal structure can be seen. FIG. 6B is a cross-sectional view of the composite magnetic head 100. FIG.
The composite magnetic head 100 is a magnetic head used in a hard disk device or the like. A magnetic resistance effect type magnetic head to which the technology of the present disclosure is applied is formed on a substrate 122, and the magnetoresistive effect type magnetic head. An inductive magnetic head is laminated on the top. Here, the magnetoresistive head is operated as a reproducing head, and the inductive magnetic head is operated as a recording head. That is, the composite magnetic head 100 is configured by combining a reproducing head and a recording head.

The magnetoresistance effect type magnetic head mounted on the composite type magnetic head 100 is a so-called shield type MR head, and includes a first magnetic shield 125 formed on a substrate 122 via an insulating layer 123, and a first magnetic shield 125. The magnetoresistive effect element 101 formed on the magnetic shield 125 via the insulating layer 123 and the second magnetic shield 127 formed on the magnetoresistive effect element 101 via the insulating layer 123 are provided. The insulating layer 123 is made of an insulating material such as Al ₂ O ₃ or SiO ₂ .
The first magnetic shield 125 is for magnetically shielding the lower layer side of the magnetoresistive effect element 101, and is made of a soft magnetic material such as Ni—Fe. A magnetoresistive effect element 101 is formed on the first magnetic shield 125 with an insulating layer 123 interposed therebetween.

In this magnetoresistive effect type magnetic head, the magnetoresistive effect element 101 functions as a magnetosensitive element that detects a magnetic signal from the magnetic recording medium. The magnetoresistive effect element 101 has a film configuration similar to that of the memory element 3 or the memory element 20 described above.
The magnetoresistive effect element 101 is formed in a substantially rectangular shape, and one side surface thereof is exposed to the magnetic recording medium facing surface. Bias layers 128 and 129 are disposed at both ends of the magnetoresistive effect element 101. Further, connection terminals 130 and 131 connected to the bias layers 128 and 129 are formed. A sense current is supplied to the magnetoresistive effect element 101 via the connection terminals 130 and 131.
Further, a second magnetic shield layer 127 is provided on the bias layers 128 and 129 via an insulating layer 123.

The inductive magnetic head laminated on the magnetoresistive effect magnetic head as described above has a magnetic core constituted by the second magnetic shield 127 and the upper core 132, and is wound around the magnetic core. And a formed thin film coil 133.
The upper layer core 132 forms a closed magnetic path together with the second magnetic shield 122 and becomes a magnetic core of the inductive magnetic head, and is made of a soft magnetic material such as Ni-Fe. Here, the front end of the second magnetic shield 127 and the upper core 132 are exposed to the surface facing the magnetic recording medium, and the second magnetic shield 127 and the upper core 132 are in contact with each other at their rear ends. It is formed as follows. Here, the front end portions of the second magnetic shield 127 and the upper core 132 are formed so that the second magnetic shield 127 and the upper core 132 are separated from each other with a predetermined gap g on the surface facing the magnetic recording medium.
That is, in this composite magnetic head 100, the second magnetic shield 127 not only magnetically shields the upper layer side of the magnetoresistive effect element 126 but also serves as the magnetic core of the inductive magnetic head. The magnetic shield 127 and the upper core 132 constitute the magnetic core of the inductive magnetic head. The gap g becomes a recording magnetic gap of the inductive magnetic head.

  A thin film coil 133 embedded in the insulating layer 123 is formed on the second magnetic shield 127. Here, the thin film coil 133 is formed so as to wind a magnetic core composed of the second magnetic shield 127 and the upper core 132. Although not shown, both ends of the thin film coil 133 are exposed to the outside, and terminals formed at both ends of the thin film coil 133 are external connection terminals of the inductive magnetic head. That is, when a magnetic signal is recorded on the magnetic recording medium, a recording current is supplied to the thin film coil 132 from these external connection terminals.

  The composite magnetic head 121 as described above is equipped with a magnetoresistive effect type magnetic head as a reproducing head, and the magnetoresistive effect type magnetic head detects a magnetic signal from a magnetic recording medium. As shown, a magnetoresistive effect element 101 to which the technique of the present disclosure is applied is provided. Since the magnetoresistive effect element 101 to which the technology of the present disclosure is applied exhibits very excellent characteristics as described above, this magnetoresistive effect type magnetic head can cope with higher recording density of magnetic recording. be able to.

In addition, this technique can also take the following structures.
(1) a storage layer whose magnetization direction is changed in response to information;
A magnetization fixed layer having magnetization perpendicular to a film surface serving as a reference of information stored in the storage layer;
A nonmagnetic intermediate layer provided between the storage layer and the magnetization fixed layer;
A layer structure having
The storage layer includes an oxide region having a granular structure,
A storage element in which information is recorded on the storage layer by changing the magnetization direction of the storage layer by passing a current in the stacking direction of the layer structure.
(2) The memory element according to (1), wherein the oxide includes at least one of silicon oxide, magnesium oxide, tantalum oxide, aluminum oxide, cobalt oxide, zirconium oxide, titanium oxide, and chromium oxide.
(3) The memory element according to (1) or (2), wherein the magnetization direction of the memory layer is inclined from a direction perpendicular to the film surface.
(4) The memory element according to any one of (1) to (3), wherein two or more regions where the oxide having the granular structure is present are formed in the memory layer.
(5) The memory element according to any one of (1) to (3), wherein the ferromagnetic material constituting the memory layer is Co—Fe—B.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Gate electrode, 2 Element separation layer, 3 20 Memory element, 4 Contact layer, 6 Bit line, 7 Source region, 8 Drain region, 9 Wiring, 10 Semiconductor base | substrate, 14 Underlayer, 15 Magnetization fixed layer, 16 Intermediate layer, 17 memory layer, 18 cap layer, 21 oxide, 22 granular structure, 100 composite magnetic head, 122 substrate, 123 insulating layer, 125 first magnetic shield, 127 second magnetic shield, 128 129 bias layer, 130 131 Connection terminal, 132 upper layer core, 133 thin film coil

Claims (6)

A storage layer whose magnetization direction is changed in response to information;
A magnetization fixed layer having magnetization perpendicular to a film surface serving as a reference of information stored in the storage layer;
A nonmagnetic intermediate layer provided between the storage layer and the magnetization fixed layer;
A layer structure having
The storage layer includes an oxide region having a granular structure,
A storage element in which information is recorded on the storage layer by changing the magnetization direction of the storage layer by passing a current in the stacking direction of the layer structure.   The memory element according to claim 1, wherein the oxide comprises at least one of silicon oxide, magnesium oxide, tantalum oxide, aluminum oxide, cobalt oxide, zirconium oxide, titanium oxide, and chromium oxide.   The memory element according to claim 2, wherein the magnetization direction of the memory layer is inclined from a direction perpendicular to the film surface.   The memory element according to claim 1, wherein two or more regions in which the oxide having the granular structure exists are formed in the memory layer.   The memory element according to claim 1, wherein the ferromagnetic material constituting the memory layer is Co—Fe—B. A storage element that holds information according to the magnetization state of the magnetic material;
Two types of wiring intersecting each other,
The memory element is
A storage layer whose magnetization direction is changed in response to information;
A magnetization fixed layer having magnetization perpendicular to a film surface serving as a reference of information stored in the storage layer;
A nonmagnetic intermediate layer provided between the storage layer and the magnetization fixed layer;
A layer structure having
By passing a current in the stacking direction of the layer structure, the magnetization direction of the storage layer changes, and information is recorded on the storage layer.
The storage layer includes an oxide region having a granular structure,
The memory element is disposed between the two types of wirings,
A storage device in which a current in the stacking direction flows in the storage element through the two types of wirings.

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