NVE Achieves Record Tunnel
Junction Magnetoresistance
New design could improve MRAM
manufacturability and speed
EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn.--November 13, 2003--NVE Corporation (NasdaqSC:
NVEC) today announced today that it has achieved record spin-dependent
tunneling (SDT) junction magnetoresistance. Using unique materials,
the company reported more that a 70% change in tunneling magnetoresistance
(TMR) between two stable states at room temperature, which is the
highest value ever reported.
Tunnel junctions, also known as magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs)
or tunneling magnetic junctions (TMJs), allow the esoteric property
of electron spin to be sensed as electrical resistance for interface
to conventional electronics.
Tunnel junctions are used in a revolutionary new type of memory
called magnetic random access memory or MRAM. MRAMs use electron
spin to encode data, and are fabricated using nanotechnology. MRAM
has been called the "holy grail" of memory because it
has the potential to combine the speed of SRAM, the density of DRAM,
and the non-volatility of flash memory. It could therefore replace
all three types of conventional semiconductor memory.
"This accomplishment is a credit to the ingenuity of our development
team," commented NVE President and Chief Executive Officer
Daniel A. Baker, Ph.D. "It strengthens our intellectual property
portfolio and could improve MRAM manufacturability and speed."
NVE is scheduled to present details of this unique design at the
Joint IEEE Magnetism and Magnetic Materials / INTERMAG Conference
on January 6, 2004. Proceedings will be published in the Journal
of Applied Physics and the IEEE Transactions on Magnetics.
NVE has a number of U. S. and foreign patents on spintronics, tunnel
junctions, and MRAM. The company has licensed its MRAM intellectual
property to several companies, including Motorola, Inc., Cypress
Semiconductor Corporation, Honeywell International, and Union Semiconductor
Technology Corporation.
NVE's licensees are leading the race to commercialize MRAM. Motorola
recently announced it has delivered samples of the world's first
four-megabit MRAM chips, and Cypress reported achieving economic
yields and demonstrated MRAM prototypes. NVE has an agreement for
Motorola to pay NVE royalties, and a contract for Cypress to manufacture
MRAMs for NVE.
NVE's development in this area was funded by contracts from the
National Science Foundation, the Missile Defense Agency, and the
U. S. Army Research Laboratory.
NVE is a leader in the practical commercialization of spintronics,
which many experts believe represents the next generation of microelectronics.
NVE licenses its MRAM intellectual property and sells spintronic
products including sensors and couplers to revolutionize data acquisition
and transfer.
Statements used in this press release that relate to future
plans, events, financial results or performance are forward-looking
statements that are subject to certain risks and uncertainties including,
among others, such factors as industry economic trends and risks
relating to making commercially viable MRAMs, as well as the risk
factors listed from time to time in the company's SEC filings.
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