Room-temperature orbit-transfer torque enabling van der Waals magnetoresistive memories

The non-volatile magnetoresistive random access memory (MRAM) is believed to facilitate emerging applications, such as in-memory computing, neuromorphic computing and stochastic computing. Two-dimensional (2D) materials and their van der Waals heterostructures promote the development of MRAM technology, due to their atomically smooth interfaces and tunable physical properties. Here we report the all-2D magnetoresistive memories featuring all-electrical data reading and writing at room temperature based on WTe₂/Fe₃GaTe₂/BN/Fe₃GaTe₂ heterostructures. The data reading process relies on the tunnel magnetoresistance of Fe₃GaTe₂/BN/Fe₃GaTe₂. The data writing is achieved through current induced polarization of orbital magnetic moments in WTe₂, which exert torques on Fe₃GaTe₂, known as the orbit-transfer torque (OTT) effect. In contrast to the conventional reliance on spin moments in spin-transfer torque and spin-orbit torque, the OTT effect leverages the natural out-of-plane orbital moments, facilitating field-free perpendicular magnetization switching through interface currents. Our results indicate that the emerging OTT-MRAM is promising for low-power, high-performance memory applications.