Memristors are continuously tunable resistors that emulate synapses. Conceptualized in the 1970s, they traditionally operate by voltage-induced displacements of matter, but the mechanism remains controversial. Purely electronic memristors have recent
ly emerged based on well-established physical phenomena with albeit modest resistance changes. Here we demonstrate that voltage-controlled domain configurations in ferroelectric tunnel barriers yield memristive behaviour with resistance variations exceeding two orders of magnitude and a 10 ns operation speed. Using models of ferroelectric-domain nucleation and growth we explain the quasi-continuous resistance variations and derive a simple analytical expression for the memristive effect. Our results suggest new opportunities for ferroelectrics as the hardware basis of future neuromorphic computational architectures.
We investigate the dynamics of two coupled vortices driven by spin transfer. We are able to independently control with current and perpendicular field, and to detect, the respective chiralities and polarities of the two vortices. For current densitie
s above $J=5.7*10^7 A/cm^2$, a highly coherent signal (linewidth down to 46 kHz) can be observed, with a strong dependence on the relative polarities of the vortices. It demonstrates the interest of using coupled dynamics in order to increase the coherence of the microwave signal. Emissions exhibit a linear frequency evolution with perpendicular field, with coherence conserved even at zero magnetic field.
The spin transfer torque (STT) can lead to steady precession of magnetization without any external applied field in magnetic spin valve where the magnetic layer have very different spin diffusion length. This effect is associated with an unusual angu
lar dependence of the STT, called wavy (WAD-STT), predicted in the frame of diffusive models of spin transfer. In this article, we present a complete experimental characterization of the magnetization dynamics in the presence of a WAD-STT. The results are compared to the prediction of the magnetization dynamics obtained by single domain magnetic simulations (macrospin approximation). The macrospin simulations well reproduced the main static and dynamical experimental features (phase diagram, R(I) curves, dependence of frequency with current and field) and suggest that the dynamical excitations observed experimentally are associated with a large angle out-of-plane precession mode. The present work validates the diffusive models of the spin transfer and underlines the role of the spin accumulation and the spin relaxation effects on the STT.
The generation of oscillations in the microwave frequency range is one of the most important applications expected from spintronics devices exploiting the spin transfer phenomenon. We report transport and microwave power measurements on specially des
igned nanopillars for which a non-standard angular dependence of the spin transfer torque (wavy variation) is predicted by theoretical models. We observe a new kind of current-induced dynamics that is characterized by large angle precessions in the absence of any applied field, as this is also predicted by simulation with such a wavy angular dependence of the torque. This type of non-standard nanopillars can represent an interesting way for the implementation of spin transfer oscillators since they are able to generate microwave oscillations without applied magnetic field. We also emphasize the theoretical implications of our results on the angular dependence of the torque.
