Controlled Electronic and Magnetic Landscape in Self-Assembled Complex Oxide Heterostructures

Complex oxide heterointerfaces contain a rich playground of novel physical properties and functionalities, which give rise to emerging technologies. Among designing and controlling the functional properties of complex oxide film heterostructures, vertically aligned nanostructure (VAN) films using a self-assembling bottom-up deposition method presents great promise in terms of structural flexibility and property tunability. Here, the bottom-up self-assembly is extended to a new approach using a mixture containing a 2Dlayer-by-layer film growth, followed by a 3D VAN film growth. In this work, the two-phase nanocomposite thin films are based on LaAlO3 :LaBO3 , grown on a lattice-mismatched SrTiO3001 (001) single crystal. The 2D-to-3D transient structural assembly is primarily controlled by the composition ratio, leading to the coexistence of multiple interfacial properties, 2D electron gas, and magnetic anisotropy. This approach provides multidimensional film heterostructures which enrich the emergent phenomena for multifunctional applications.

A Two-Dimensional Superconducting Electron Gas in Freestanding LaAlO3/SrTiO3 Micromembranes

Freestanding oxide membranes constitute an intriguing material platform for new functionalities and allow integration of oxide electronics with technologically important platforms such as silicon. Sambri et al. recently reported a method to fabricate freestanding LaAlO₃/SrTiO₃ (LAO/STO) membranes by spalling of strained heterostructures. Here, we first develop a scheme for the high-yield fabrication of membrane devices on silicon. Second, we show that the membranes exhibit metallic conductivity and a superconducting phase below ∼200 mK. Using anisotropic magnetotransport we extract the superconducting phase coherence length ξ ≈ 36-80 nm and establish an upper bound on the thickness of the superconducting electron gas d ≈ 17-33 nm, thus confirming its two-dimensional character. Finally, we show that the critical current can be modulated using a silicon-based backgate. The ability to form superconducting nanostructures of LAO/STO membranes, with electronic properties similar to those of the bulk counterpart, opens opportunities for integrating oxide nanoelectronics with silicon-based architectures.

Robust Electronic Structure of Manganite-Buffered Oxide Interfaces with Extreme Mobility Enhancement

The electronic structure as well as the mechanism underlying the high-mobility two-dimensional electron gases (2DEGs) at complex oxide interfaces remain elusive. Herein, using soft X-ray angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES), we present the band dispersion of metallic states at buffered LaAlO₃/SrTiO₃ (LAO/STO) heterointerfaces where a single-unit-cell LaMnO₃ (LMO) spacer not only enhances the electron mobility but also renders the electronic structure robust toward X-ray radiation. By tracing the evolution of band dispersion, orbital occupation, and electron-phonon interaction of the interfacial 2DEG, we find unambiguous evidence that the insertion of the LMO buffer strongly suppresses both the formation of oxygen vacancies as well as the electron-phonon interaction on the STO side. The latter effect makes the buffered sample different from any other STO-based interfaces and may explain the maximum mobility enhancement achieved at buffered oxide interfaces.