title: Ru Catalyst-Induced Perpendicular Magnetic Anisotropy in MgO/CoFeB/Ta/MgO Multilayered Films.
abstract: The high oxygen storage/release capability of the catalyst Ru is used to manipulate the interfacial electronic structure in spintronic materials to obtain perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA). Insertion of an ultrathin Ru layer between the CoFeB and Ta layers in MgO/CoFeB/Ta/MgO films effectively induces PMA without annealing. Ru plays a catalytic role in Fe-O-Ta bonding and isolation at the metal-oxide interface to achieve moderate interface oxidation. In contrast, PMA cannot be obtained in the sample with a Mg insertion layer or without an insertion layer because of the lack of a catalyst. Our work would provide a new approach toward catalyst-induced PMA for future CoFeB-based spintronic device applications.
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Physics and Chemistry, University of Science and Technology Beijing , Beijing 100083, China.
authors.forename: Yiwei
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Physics and Chemistry, University of Science and Technology Beijing , Beijing 100083, China.
authors.forename: Jingyan
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Physics and Chemistry, University of Science and Technology Beijing , Beijing 100083, China.
authors.forename: Shouguo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Physics and Chemistry, University of Science and Technology Beijing , Beijing 100083, China.
authors.forename: Shaolong
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Jiang
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Physics and Chemistry, University of Science and Technology Beijing , Beijing 100083, China.
authors.forename: Qianqian
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Physics and Chemistry, University of Science and Technology Beijing , Beijing 100083, China.
authors.forename: Xujing
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Li
authors.affiliation: Analytical and Testing Center, Beijing Normal University , Beijing 100875, China.
authors.forename: Zhenglong
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.affiliation: Department of Materials Physics and Chemistry, University of Science and Technology Beijing , Beijing 100083, China.
authors.forename: Guanghua
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Yu
keywords: CoFeB; Ru insertion; X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS); catalysis; perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA)