Magnetic and ferroelectric tunnel junctions: novel types of memristors.
A memristor is a variable non-volatile nanoresistance which value depends on the quantity of charges that have flown through. This device is very promising as a multi-level binary memory but also as an artificial synapse for brain-inspired computing architecture. During this thesis, we have studied two new concepts of memristor based on purely electronic effects. The first concept, the spintronic memristor, is based on a magnetic tunnel junction in which a domain wall is created. The resistance of the junction depends on the position of the domain wall. The resistance variations are obtained by displacement of the domain wall induced by spin transfer effect. The second concept, the ferroelectricmemristor, is based on a tunnel junction with a ferroelectric barrier. The resistance of such a junction depends on the orientation of the polarization. We show that those junctions exhibit good performances as a binary memory element. The memristive behaviour is obtained by a gradual switching of the polarization. The experimental results bring a proof of those concepts. Unlike other memristors based on mechanisms such as electromigration or phase change, our two concepts based on purely electronic effect are faster and expected to be more reliable.