Study on ion transport mechanism in ultrathin electrolyte membrane for low temperature operation of solid oxide fuel cell

At the Centre for Innovative Integrated Electronic Systems (CIES) at Tohoku University, Japan, Professor Masaaki Niwa is exploring the science and technology of CoFeB/MgO/CoFeB based p-MTJ stack for STT-MRAM. 'My research is focusing on elucidation of interface structure of ultra-thin MgO barrier including failure analysis by means of advanced physical analyses such as transmission electron microscope, electron tomography as well as Synchrotron radiation experiments,' outlines Niwa. He explains that the MgO barrier used for p-MTJ is a tunnel barrier, and also points out that the gate dielectric film of a MOSFET is also a well-known typical tunnel barrier. 'I have been engaged in R&D of the gate stack of advanced CMOSFETs for many years while working at Panasonic,' he highlights. This involved the development of surface/interface control and reliability physics of the ultra-thin gate dielectric. 'This is unique because a person with the background of the MRAM and CMOS tries to elucidate the charge transfer mechanism in the ionic bonding ultrathin electrolyte film used for SOFC, which is the typical electrochemical phenomenon,' he explains. 'An important element of our work involves exploring the potential of SOFCs, which are energy conversion devices that produce electricity by electrochemically combining a fuel and an oxidant across an ionic conducting oxide electrolyte.' Niwa believes that SOFCs could hold the key to helping overcome serious energy and environmental problems as they boast high efficiency and are environmentally friendly.