Large electric-field-induced magnetization change in Fe3O4 thin film based on resistance switching effect

Abstract Obtaining a large electrical-field-induced magnetic change based on the resistance switching mechanism is greatly desirable due to the properties of low-energy and nonvolatile. Fe3O4 is an ideal material for electric control magnetization owing to its large saturation magnetic moment. However, it is not suitable for resistance switching devices because of its high conductivity at room temperature. In this work, we construct an Au/Fe3O4/CeO2/Pt structure to investigate the effect of electric field on the magnetization of Fe3O4. By adjusting the oxygen vacancies concentration caused by the resistance switching of CeO2, our device obtains a remarkable magnetic variation of 60 emu/cm3 in Fe3O4 under a voltage of 2 V. Non-volatile control of magnetism by electric field and the compatibility with standard CMOS process make our device a promising candidate for the low-energy-consuming memory devices.