International Business Machines Corporation

Other

Infineon Technologies Ag

Stephen L Brown

Guohan Hu

Daniel Christopher Worledge

Alexander Reznicek

Bruce Bennett Doris

Wolfgang Raberg

Jonathan Zanhong Sun

Mark C Reuter

Matthias Georg Gottwald

Chanro Park

David William Abraham

Michael C Gaidis

Arunava Gupta

Frank Findeis

Vijay Narayanan

Christian Lavoie

Michael Patrick Chudzik

Eugene John O'Sullivan

Vamsi Krishna Paruchuri

Markus Brink

Rainer Leuschner

Alessandro Cesare Callegari

Stuart Stephen Papworth Parkin

Ulrich Karl Klostermann

Mahesh Govind Samant

Gregory Costrini

Walter Glashauser

Joachim Nuetzel

Stuart P Parkin

Benjamin B Wymore

Russell D Allen

Michael Vieth

Sivanandha K Kanakasabapathy

A memory device including a pedestal structure containing a cobalt aluminum layer and a magnesium-aluminum-oxide containing base layer both of which have a (001) crystal orientation is provided. The memory device further includes a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) pillar containing an ordered alloy forming an interface with the cobalt aluminum alloy layer. The use of the structural and textural engineered pedestal structure provides improved control of resistance, as well as improved magnetic properties such as higher tunnel magnetoresistance (TMR) and higher perpendicular magnetic anisotropy (PMA), and closer distribution of the ordered alloy.

Textured cobalt aluminum/magnesium-aluminum-oxide pedestal for memory devices

A semiconductor device that includes a substrate, a crystalline bottom electrode layer on an upper side of the semiconductor substrate, a conductive crystalline metal layer above the crystalline bottom electrode layer, and a conductive oxide layer above the conductive crystalline metal layer. The conductive oxide layer has a low resistance. The semiconductor device also includes a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) above the conductive crystalline metal layer, the MTJ including a tunnel barrier layer, a free layer on a first side of the tunnel barrier layer and a reference layer on a second side of the tunnel barrier layer opposite the first side.

Reactive serial resistance reduction for magnetoresistive random-access memory devices

A deposition tool includes a vacuum chamber and a physical vapor deposition module including a target source in the vacuum chamber. The target source includes a target material for depositing on a workpiece. An evaporator module is independent of the physical vapor deposition module and is mounted within an enclosure in the vacuum chamber. A gate is configured to selectively open the enclosure to permit evaporation of a coating element to coat the target source in the physical vapor deposition module.

PVD tool to deposit highly reactive materials

A top pinned SAF-containing magnetic tunnel junction structure is provided that contains a coupling spacer composed of a paramagnetic hexagonal metal phase material that has a stoichiometric ratio of MeX or MeX, wherein Me is a magnetic metal having a magnetic moment and X is a metal that alloys with Me in a hexagonal phase and dilutes the magnetic moment of Me. In embodiments in which a MeX coupling spacer is present, Me is cobalt, and X is vanadium, niobium, tantalum, molybdenum or tungsten. In embodiments in which a MeX coupling spacer is present, Me is iron and X is tantalum or tungsten. The coupling spacer is formed by providing a material stack including at least a precursor paramagnetic hexagonal metal phase material forming multilayered structure that includes alternating layers of magnetic metal, Me, and metal, X, and then thermally soaking the material stack.

Paramagnetic hexagonal metal phase coupling spacer

Techniques facilitating formation of amorphous superconducting alloys for superconducting circuits are provided. A device can comprise one or more superconducting components that comprise an amorphous superconducting alloy comprising two or more elements. At least one element of the two or more elements is a superconducting element.

Amorphous superconducting alloys for superconducting circuits

A method for forming a memory device that includes providing a free layer of an alloy of cobalt (Co), iron (Fe) and boron (B) overlying a reference layer; and forming metal layer comprising a boron (B) sink composition atop the free layer. Boron (B) may be diffused from the free layer to the metal layer comprising the boron sink composition. At least a portion of the metal layer including the boron (B) sink composition is removed. A metal oxide is formed atop the free layer. The free layer may be a crystalline cobalt and iron alloy. An interface between the metal oxide and free layer can provide perpendicular magnetic anisotropy character.

In-situ annealing and etch back steps to improve exchange stiffness in cobalt iron boride based perpendicular magnetic anisotropy free layers

A physical vapor deposition (PVD) target that includes a body composed of material that is reactive with an oxygen containing atmosphere; and a non-reactive cap layer encapsulating at least a sputter surface of the body. The non-reactive cap layer is a barrier obstructing the diffusion of oxygen containing species to the body of the PVD target.

Structure and method to fabricate highly reactive physical vapor deposition target

Measurement of the extinction coefficient k is employed for effective and prompt in-line monitoring and/or controlling of the metal film composition. The dependency of the extinction coefficient on the composition of a metal compound is characterized by measuring the extinction coefficients of a series of the metal compound with different compositions. A monitor metal film is then deposited on a wafer. The extinction coefficient k of the film on the wafer is measured and a film compositional parameter is extracted. The wafer processing may continue if k is in specification or the needed compositional change in the film may be extracted from the measured value of the k and the established dependence of k on the composition of the film for out-of-spec k values.

Method for composition control of a metal compound film

A semiconductor device formed between a wordline and a bitline comprises a growth layer, an antiferromagnetic layer formed on the growth layer, a pinned layer formed on the antiferromagnetic layer, a tunnel barrier layer formed on the pinned layer, and a free layer formed on the tunnel barrier. The wordline and bitline are arranged substantially orthogonal to one another. The growth layer, in turn, comprises tantalum and has a thickness greater than about 75 Angstroms. Moreover, the pinned layer comprises one or more pinned ferromagnetic sublayers. The tunnel barrier comprises magnesium oxide. Finally, the free layer comprises two or more free ferromagnetic sublayers, each free ferromagnetic sublayer having a magnetic anisotropy axis that is oriented about 45 degrees from the wordline and bitline. The semiconductor device may comprise, for example, a magnetic tunnel junction for use in magnetoresistive random access memory (MRAM) circuitry.

Magnetic tunnel junction with enhanced magnetic switching characteristics

Methods of forming ferromagnetic liners on the top surface and sidewalls of conductive lines of magnetic memory devices. The ferromagnetic liners increase the flux concentration of current run through the conductive lines, reducing the amount of write current needed to switch magnetic memory cells. In one embodiment, an in-bound pole is formed at the bottom edge of conductive lines, further concentrating the flux.

Ferromagnetic liner for conductive lines of magnetic memory cells and methods of manufacturing thereof

A method of patterning a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) stack is provided. According to such method, an MTJ stack is formed having a free layer, a pinned layer and a tunnel barrier layer disposed between the free layer and the pinned layer. A first area of the MTJ stack is masked while the free layer of the MTJ is exposed in a second area. The free layer is then rendered electrically and magnetically inactive in the second area.

Method of patterning a magnetic tunnel junction stack for a magneto-resistive random access memory

Methods of manufacturing MTJ memory cells and structures thereof. A diffusion barrier is disposed between an anti-ferromagnetic layer and a pinned layer of an MTJ memory cell to improve thermal stability of the MTJ memory cell. The diffusion barrier may comprise an amorphous material or a NiFe alloy. An amorphous material may be disposed adjacent a bottom surface of a tunnel junction, within a free layer, or both. An MTJ memory cell with improved thermal stability and decreased Neel coupling is achieved.

Magnetic tunnel junctions for MRAM devices

Growing community of inventors

Carmel, NY, United States of America

Stephen L Brown