Press Release November 13, 2003
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.