Large Tunneling Magnetoresistance in Perpendicularly Magnetized Magnetic Tunnel Junctions Using Co75Mn25/Mo/Co20Fe60B20 Multilayers

We study the magnetic and electrical transport properties of magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs) consisting of a Co3Mn/Mo/CoFeB multilayer prepared using a mass-production-compatible magnetron sputtering system. The Co3Mn/Mo/CoFeB multilayer sandwiched between two MgO layers exhibits remarkable perpendicular magnetic anisotropy, and a uniaxial magnetic anisotropy constant as large as 0.2 MJ/m3 is achieved by optimizing the Co3Mn layer thickness as well as the annealing temperature. The current-in-plane tunneling measurement reveals a large tunneling magnetoresistance of over 100% in perpendicularly magnetized MTJs. These experimental results indicate the applicability of Co3Mn alloy for magnetic random access memory devices.