Multiple-stable anisotropic magnetoresistance memory in antiferromagnetic MnTe.
Commercial magnetic memories rely on the bistability of ordered spins in ferromagnetic materials. Recently, experimental bistable memories have been realized using fully compensated antiferromagnetic metals. Here we demonstrate a multiple-stable memory device in epitaxial MnTe, an antiferromagnetic counterpart of common II-VI semiconductors. Favourable micromagnetic characteristics of MnTe allow us to demonstrate a smoothly varying zero-field antiferromagnetic anisotropic magnetoresistance (AMR) with a harmonic angular dependence on the writing magnetic field angle, analogous to ferromagnets. The continuously varying AMR provides means for the electrical read-out of multiple-stable antiferromagnetic memory states, which we set by heat-assisted magneto-recording and by changing the writing field direction. The multiple stability in our memory is ascribed to different distributions of domains with the Néel vector aligned along one of the three magnetic easy axes. The robustness against strong magnetic field perturbations combined with the multiple stability of the magnetic memory states are unique properties of antiferromagnets.
Charles University in Prague, Ke Karlovu 3, Praha 2 121 16, Czech Republic.
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0000-0001-6961-6581
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Kriegner
Institute of Physics, Academy of Science of the Czech Republic, Cukrovarnická 10, Praha 6 162 00, Czech Republic.
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Výborný
Institute of Physics, Academy of Science of the Czech Republic, Cukrovarnická 10, Praha 6 162 00, Czech Republic.
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Olejník
Institute of Physics, Academy of Science of the Czech Republic, Cukrovarnická 10, Praha 6 162 00, Czech Republic.
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Reichlová
Institute of Physics, Academy of Science of the Czech Republic, Cukrovarnická 10, Praha 6 162 00, Czech Republic.
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Novák
Institute of Physics, Academy of Science of the Czech Republic, Cukrovarnická 10, Praha 6 162 00, Czech Republic.
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Marti
Institut de Ciència de Materials de Barcelona ICMAB, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas CSIC, Campus UAB, Bellaterra, Catalonia 08193, Spain.
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Gazquez
Charles University in Prague, Ke Karlovu 3, Praha 2 121 16, Czech Republic.
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Saidl
Charles University in Prague, Ke Karlovu 3, Praha 2 121 16, Czech Republic.
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Němec
Institute of Semiconductor and Solid State Physics, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Altenbergerstraβe. 69, Linz 4040, Austria.|National Technical University, 'Kharkiv Polytechnic Institute', Frunze Str. 21, Kharkiv 61002, Ukraine.
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Volobuev
Institute of Semiconductor and Solid State Physics, Johannes Kepler University Linz, Altenbergerstraβe. 69, Linz 4040, Austria.
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Springholz
Charles University in Prague, Ke Karlovu 3, Praha 2 121 16, Czech Republic.
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Holý
Institute of Physics, Academy of Science of the Czech Republic, Cukrovarnická 10, Praha 6 162 00, Czech Republic.|School of Physics and Astronomy, University of Nottingham, Nottingham NG7 2RD, UK.
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Jungwirth