Tunneling Studies of Ferromagnetic Junctions and Interfaces

9730908 Moodera这个实验研究项目涉及电子隧道与磁性金属电极的连接，其构思方式是通过施加磁场以灵敏的方式控制隧道电流。将在清洁和超高真空条件下制备表征良好的铁磁隧道结和界面，以实现准确和可重复的隧道测量，特别是在具有3d和4f铁磁性金属的结构上。构成隧道结的相同薄膜的自旋极化也将通过超导隧道光谱进行测量。主要目的是了解造成观测到的磁场敏感性的物理机制。预计这项研究还将带来凝聚态物理的新成果和新技术，以及磁技术的新应用。这项研究计划是跨学科的，通常有几个本科生和高中生参与其活动。这些参与有助于学生为进一步学习和在工业、政府实验室或学术界的职业生涯做好准备。这个实验研究项目是关于PI在他以前的支持工作中发现的一种对磁场高度敏感的新型电子设备。这种装置的电阻被称为隧道结，当装置置于磁场中时，它的电阻会发生变化，并被称为磁阻。这一发现引起了全世界的兴趣，因为技术有改进的潜力。主要的技术应用可能是用于计算机硬盘驱动器的磁性传感器，可能用于磁性计算机存储器或逻辑元件，以及用于其他应用，如S测量转速的传感器，例如转速计。基本的隧道结是一个类似电容器的器件，在两块金属板之间有一层薄的绝缘氧化物。在这种情况下，氧化层是如此之薄，以至于电子可以通过量子力学隧道过程从一个平板转移到另一个平板。这一过程是由基础物理研究人员S在20世纪60年代末建立并详细理解的，他们意识到，如果隧道结器件能够制造出足够薄和均匀的氧化层，将有助于理解超导的本质。伊瓦尔·吉弗因其超导实验而获得1973年诺贝尔物理学奖，这些实验是基于他对改进的制造技术的发展和对隧道结物理行为的更全面的理解。目前的PI是在这些早期的基础研究成果的基础上，发现了在计算机和其他技术中非常有希望应用的磁效应。与先前的情况一样，这里的PI完善了新的和更仔细的实验方法，以清楚地揭示理论上预期的物理效应，在这种情况下，本质上是磁性的。为了更好地了解和最大限度地提高对磁场的敏感性，本项目重点对具有不同铁磁成分的金属电极的结结构进行仔细和系统的测量。这个研究项目本质上是跨学科的，通常有几个本科生和高中生参与其活动。这些参与有助于学生为进一步学习和在工业、政府实验室或学术界的职业生涯做好准备。***

9730908 Moodera This experimental research project is concerned with electron tunnel junctions with electrodes of magnetic metals conceived in such a way that the tunneling current is controlled in a sensitive fashion by an applied magnetic field. Well characterized ferromagnetic tunnel junctions and interfaces will be prepared under clean and ultra high vacuum conditions to allow accurate and reproducible tunneling measurements, particularly on structures with 3d and 4f ferromagnetic metals. Spin polarization of the same films that make up the tunnel junction will also be measured by superconducting tunneling spectroscopy. The main thrust is to understand the physical mechanisms responsible for the observed magnetic field sensitivity. It is expected that this research will additionally lead to new results and techniques in condensed matter physics and new applications for magnetic technology.This research program is interdisciplinary in nature and has typically involved several undergraduate and high school students in its activities. These involvements are beneficial in the preparation of students for further study and for careers in industry, government laboratories or academia. %%% This experimental research project is concerned with a new class of electronic devices that the PI has discovered in his previously supported work, which are highly sensitive to magnetic field. The electrical resistance of the device, which is called a tunnel junction, changes when the device is placed in a magnetic field, and is said to exhibit magnetoresistance. This discovery has created interest worldwide because of the potential for improvements in technology. The main technological applications may be in magnetic sensors for computer hard drives, possibly for magnetic computer memory or logic elements, and for miscellaneous applications s uch as sensors to measure rotational speeds, eg, a tachometer. The basic tunnel junction is a capacitor-like device with a thin insulating oxide between two metal plates. In this case the oxide layer is so thin that electrons can transfer from one plate to the other by the quantum mechanical tunneling process. This process was firmly established and understood in detail in the late 1960's by basic physics researchers who realized that a tunnel junction device, if it could be fabricated with a sufficiently thin and homogeneous oxide layer, could be instrumental to understanding the nature of superconductivity. Ivar Giaever won the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1973 for his experiments on superconductivity which were based on his development of improved fabrication techniques and a more complete understanding of the physical behavior of tunnel junctions. The present PI has gone on from these earlier basic research results to find the magnetic effects which are very promising for applications in computers and other technologies. As in the earlier case, the PI here has perfected new and more careful experimental methods to clearly reveal the theoretically expected physical effects, in this case magnetic in nature. This project focuses on careful and systematic measurements on junction structures with metal electrodes of different ferromagnetic compositions, in order to better understand and maximize the sensitivity to magnetic field. This research program is interdisciplinary in nature and has typically involved several undergraduate and high school students in its activities. These involvements are beneficial in the preparation of students for further study and for careers in industry, government laboratories or academia. ***