Patent ID: 8036025

Claim:
A magnetoresistive element comprising: a first magnetic material layer which has a first magnetization directed in a direction perpendicular to a film surface; a second magnetic material layer which has a second magnetization directed in the direction perpendicular to the film surface, the direction of the second magnetization reversing by spin-polarized electrons; a first nonmagnetic layer which is provided between the first and second magnetic material layers, and has a first surface facing the first magnetic material layer and a second surface facing the second magnetic material layer; a first magnetic metal layer which is provided between the first magnetic material layer and the first surface of the first nonmagnetic layer, and includes at least one element selected from Fe, Co and Ni; and a second magnetic metal layer which is provided between the second magnetic material layer and the second surface of the first nonmagnetic layer, and includes at least one element selected from Fe, Co and Ni, wherein the first nonmagnetic layer comprises (001)-oriented MgO, at least one of the first and second magnetic metal layers comprises (001)-oriented magnetic material with a bcc-structure, at least one of the first and second magnetic material layers is an alloy including Co and at least one of Cr, Ta, Nb, V, W, Hf, Ti, Zr, Pt, Pd, Fe and Ni, the second magnetic material layer and the second magnetic metal layer are exchange-coupled to each other, and a damping constant of the second magnetic metal layer is smaller than that of the second magnetic material layer.