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Solid-state memory is seeing an increase in demand due to the emergence of portable devices such as tablet computers and smart phones. Spin-transfer torque magnetoresistive random-access memory (STT-MRAM) is a new type of solid-state memory that uses electrical currents to read and write data that are stored on magnetic moment of electrons

Solid-state memory is seeing an increase in demand due to the emergence of portable devices such as tablet computers and smart phones. Spin-transfer torque magnetoresistive random-access memory (STT-MRAM) is a new type of solid-state memory that uses electrical currents to read and write data that are stored on magnetic moment of electrons. Rachid Sbiaa and co-workers at the A*STAR Data Storage Institute have now enhanced the storage density of STT-MRAM by packing multiple bits of information into each of its memory cells.

Spin valves are essential building blocks in the magnetic sensors of read heads in hard disk drives. They consist of two magnetic layers separated by a non-magnetic layer and act as valves for electrons depending on the relative alignment of the magnetization (spin) in the magnetic layers. With the continuous push to boost the storage density of disk drives, it has become increasingly important to shield each individual sensor from the magnetic flux of adjacent bits

In the hard drive industry, the rapid growth of storage density has been propelled in part by developments in the sensors used to read the magnetic "bits" on the disk. Recently, the use of giant magnetoresistance (GMR) in such sensors, with current flowing in the plane of a multilayer film, has given way to the use of tunneling magnetoresistance, where current flows perpendicular to the plane of the multilayer through a tunnel barrier.