Dynamic interface rearrangement in LaFeO3/n-SrTiO3 heterojunctions

Spurgeon, Steven R.; Sushko, Peter V.; Chambers, Scott A.; Comes, Ryan B.

doi:10.1103/PhysRevMaterials.1.063401

Dynamic interface rearrangement in ${LaFeO}_{3} / n - {SrTiO}_{3}$ heterojunctions

Journal Article · Mon Nov 06 00:00:00 EST 2017 · Physical Review Materials

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevMaterials.1.063401· OSTI ID:1430717

Spurgeon, Steven R. ^[1]; Sushko, Peter V. ^[1]; Chambers, Scott A. ^[1]; Comes, Ryan B. ^[2]

Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States). Physical and Computational Sciences Directorate
Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States). Physical and Computational Sciences Directorate; Auburn Univ., AL (United States). Dept. of Physics

Thin-film synthesis methods that have developed over the past decades have unlocked emergent interface properties ranging from conductivity to ferroelectricity. However, our attempts to exercise precise control over interfaces are constrained by a limited understanding of growth pathways and kinetics. In this paper, we demonstrate that shuttered molecular beam epitaxy induces rearrangements of atomic planes at a polar/nonpolar junction of LaFeO₃ (LFO)/n-SrTiO₃ (STO) depending on the substrate termination. Surface characterization confirms that substrates with two different (TiO₂ and SrO) terminations were prepared prior to LFO deposition; however, local electron-energy-loss spectroscopy measurements of the final heterojunctions show a predominantly LaO/TiO₂ interfacial junction in both cases. Ab initio simulations suggest that the interfaces can be stabilized by trapping extra oxygen (in LaO/TiO₂) and forming oxygen vacancies (in FeO₂/SrO), which points to different growth kinetics in each case and may explain the apparent disappearance of the FeO₂/SrO interface. Finally, we conclude that judicious control of deposition time scales can be used to modify growth pathways, opening new avenues to control the structure and properties of interfacial systems.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Research Organization:: Pacific Northwest National Lab. (PNNL), Richland, WA (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: PNNL Laboratory Directed Research and Development (LDRD) Program; USDOE; USDOE Office of Science (SC), Basic Energy Sciences (BES) (SC-22); USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER) (SC-23)

Grant/Contract Number:: AC05-76RL01830

OSTI ID:: 1430717

Alternate ID(s):: OSTI ID: 1407448

Report Number(s):: PNNL-SA--127972

Journal Information:: Physical Review Materials, Journal Name: Physical Review Materials Journal Issue: 6 Vol. 1; ISSN 2475-9953

Publisher:: American Physical Society (APS)Copyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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Cited By (4)

Electronic Structure and Band Alignment of LaMnO ₃ /SrTiO ₃ Polar/Nonpolar Heterojunctions Kaspar, Tiffany C.; Sushko, Peter V.; Spurgeon, Steven R. Advanced Materials Interfaces, Vol. 6, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1002/admi.201801428	journal	November 2018
Interface-based tuning of Rashba spin-orbit interaction in asymmetric oxide heterostructures with 3d electrons Lin, Weinan; Li, Lei; Doğan, Fatih Nature Communications, Vol. 10, Issue 1 https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-019-10961-z	journal	July 2019
Atomic-scale mapping of interface reconstructions in multiferroic heterostructures Huang, Weichuan; Yin, Yuewei; Li, Xiaoguang Applied Physics Reviews, Vol. 5, Issue 4 https://doi.org/10.1063/1.5053426	journal	December 2018
Interface properties and built-in potential profile of a LaCr O 3 / SrTi O 3 superlattice determined by standing-wave excited photoemission spectroscopy Lin, S. -C.; Kuo, C. -T.; Comes, R. B. Physical Review B, Vol. 98, Issue 16 https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevb.98.165124	journal	October 2018

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Related Subjects

36 MATERIALS SCIENCE
composition
crystal phenomena
defects
density functional theory
electron energy loss spectroscopy
growth
molecular beam epitaxy
scanning transmission electron microscopy
surface & interfacial phenomena
thin films