Spin-polarized transport in magnetic tunnel junctions with ZnTe barriers

W. G. Wang, C. Ni, A. Ozbay, L. R. Shah, X. Fan, X. M. Kou, E. R. Nowak, J. Q. Xiao

Published 2022-10-30Version 1

Magnetic tunnel junctions with wide band gap semiconductor ZnTe barrier were fabricated. A very low barrier height and sizable magnetoresistance were observed in the Fe/ZnTe/Fe junctions at room temperature. The nonlinear I-V characteristic curve confirmed the observed magnetoresistance is due to spin-dependent tunneling effect. Temperature dependent study indicated that the total conductance of the junction is dominated by direct tunneling, with only a small portion from the hopping conduction through the defect states inside the barrier.