Wideband High-Resolution Frequency-to-Resistance Converter Based on Nonhomogeneous Magnetic-State Transitions

By harnessing the rich dynamics associated with nonhomogeneous magnetization configurations in confined nanostructures, the free layer of a magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) can be forced, via a localized magnetic field, to transition between two magnetic states: the quasi-uniform and vortex states. Here, we demonstrate that such transitions can be driven back and forth to a dynamic equilibrium by exciting a MTJ with ac magnetic fields close to the resonant modes of the magnetic vortex. The frequency dependence of the dynamic-state transitions leads to a proposal for an alternative type of broadband analogue frequency-to-resistance converter (FRC). In this report, two quasilinear bands of the FRC are demonstrated: a relatively lower frequency converter operating between 200 and 350 MHz with 250-kHz resolution (similar to 500 channels) and a higher frequency converter operating between 2.5 and 6 GHz with a 2.5-MHz resolution (similar to 800 channels). The fact that a single CMOS-compatible nanoscale device can perform such a complex function over a multitude of frequency bands, with high-frequency resolution relative to that of conventional CMOS circuits, can enable the next generation of wireless communication circuit topologies.