Patent ID: 7715224

Claim:
A method to increase an operating margin of a magnetic random access memory, having a wide programming range, comprising: providing a magnetically pinned layer, a magnetically free layer, and a transition layer between said magnetically pinned layer and said magnetically free layer; patterning said magnetically free layer into a memory element shape that includes a first area, whose magnetization is along said magnetically pinned layer in a first magnetization direction, and a second area comprising two opposing tip regions having a second magnetization direction that is at an angle relative to said first magnetization direction, said second magnetization direction having a component that is perpendicular to said first magnetization direction with said first magnetization direction and said second magnetization direction differing by between about 5 and 90 degrees, and with said first area occupying between about 10 and 95% of an area occupied by said second area; providing a circuit architecture that organizes write word lines and bit lines into a plurality of segmented write line groups, each of said segmented write line groups including a plurality of memory cells operatively coupled to a corresponding segmented write word line conductor, memory cells a segmented write word line being simultaneously programmed by a plurality of bit lines operatively coupled to said memory cells for selectively writing information into the memory cells; and thereby, in combination with said shaped memory elements, widening said programming range by enabling said magnetic random access memory to operate in a region where any MRAM cell programming variation is reduced and where there is a reduced possibility of any of said memory cells being subjected to a half-select error.