Electric-field-assisted switching in magnetic tunnel junctions
Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 27, 2026

Electric-field Control of Electronic States in WS2 Nanodevices by Electrolyte Gating
Published on: April 12, 2018
Wei-Gang Wang1, Mingen Li, Stephen Hageman
1Department of Physics and Astronomy, The Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, Maryland 21218, USA. wgwang@pha.jhu.edu
Abstract:
The advent of spin transfer torque effect accommodates site-specific switching of magnetic nanostructures by current alone without magnetic field. However, the critical current density required for usual spin torque switching remains stubbornly high around 10(6)-10(7) A cm(-2). It would be fundamentally transformative if an electric field through a voltage could assist or accomplish the switching of ferromagnets. Here we report electric-field-assisted reversible switching in CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB magnetic tunnel junctions with interfacial perpendicular magnetic anisotropy, where the coercivity, the magnetic configuration and the tunnelling magnetoresistance can be manipulated by voltage pulses associated with much smaller current densities. These results represent a crucial step towards ultralow energy switching in magnetic tunnel junctions, and open a new avenue for exploring other voltage-controlled spintronic devices.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Field Effect Transistor
Magnetic Fields
A magnetic field is defined by the force that a charged particle experiences...
MOSFET: Enhancement Mode
In their basic form, enhancement-mode MOSFETs are typically non-conductive when the gate-source voltage (Vgs) is zero. This default 'off' state means no current...
Induced Electric Fields: Applications
Biasing of FET
In an N-channel JFET, the structure consists of N-type material forming the channel on a P-type substrate, with the gate...
Metal-Semiconductor Junctions
Schottky Barriers
Schottky barriers arise when a metal with a work function (Φm) contacts a semiconductor with a different work function (Φs). Initially, electrons transfer until the Fermi levels of the metal and semiconductor align at equilibrium. For instance, if Φm > Φs, the semiconductor Fermi level is higher than the metal's before contact. The semiconductor's...

