Heteroepitaxial growth of transition metal oxides using UHV laser molecular beam epitaxy

We have grown heteroepitaxial thin film structures composed of various transition metal oxides such as the colossal magnetoresistance manganites, superconducting cuprates, ruthenates as well as insulating titanates on SrTiO3, NdGaO3 and LaAlO3 substrates using a UHV laser molecular beam epitaxy (laser-MBE) system. The film growth was controlled in-situ using high pressure RHEED as well as scanning probe techniques (AFM/STM). The fabricated films were analyzed by x-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy and the measurement of the transport properties. The manganite, ruthenate and titanate thin film structures show good epitaxy with small mosaic spread. The observation of RHEED oscillations during the film deposition indicates a layer by layer growth mode. This is further supported by the observed small surface roughness of typically less than 3 nm rms for a 100 nm thick film. We also could find a clear correlation between the observed RHEED pattern and the surface morphology measured by AFM/STM. Our analysis shows that UHV laser MBE is well suited for the fabrication of complicated heteroepitaxial thin film structures required for oxide electronics.

[1]  Jean-Pierre Locquet,et al.  Block‐by‐block deposition: A new growth method for complex oxide thin films , 1994 .

[2]  S. Thienhaus,et al.  Role of ion beam etching in the fabrication of ramp-type junctions , 2001 .

[3]  F. Lichtenberg,et al.  Superconductivity in a layered perovskite without copper , 1994, Nature.

[4]  J. M. D. Coey,et al.  Mixed-valence manganites , 1999 .

[5]  Andrew G. Glen,et al.  APPL , 2001 .

[6]  Hwang,et al.  Spin-Polarized Intergrain Tunneling in La2/3Sr1/3MnO3. , 1996, Physical review letters.

[7]  F. Guinea.  SPIN-FLIP SCATTERING IN MAGNETIC JUNCTIONS , 1998 .

[8]  Gang Xiao,et al.  Low-field magnetoresistive properties of polycrystalline and epitaxial perovskite manganite films , 1997 .

[9]  Halbritter.  Pair weakening and tunnel channels at cuprate interfaces. , 1992, Physical review. B, Condensed matter.

[10]  J. Coey,et al.  Magnetoresistance of chromium dioxide powder compacts , 1998 .

[11]  H. Koinuma,et al.  Laser MBE of ceramic thin films for future electronics , 1997 .

[12]  S. Uhlenbruck,et al.  Physics of grain boundaries in the colossal magnetoresistance manganites , 2000 .

[13]  M. F. Chisholm,et al.  Structural origin of reduced critical currents at YBa2Cu3O7–δ grain boundaries , 1991, Nature.

[14]  Gong,et al.  Grain-boundary effects on the magnetoresistance properties of perovskite manganite films. , 1996, Physical review. B, Condensed matter.

[15]  R. Gross.  Grain-Boundary Josephson Junctions in the High-Temperature Superconductors , 1994 .

[16]  U. Korte,et al.  ROLE OF THE STEP DENSITY IN REFLECTION HIGH-ENERGY ELECTRON DIFFRACTION : QUESTIONING THE STEP DENSITY MODEL , 1997 .

[17]  Horst Rogalla,et al.  Quasi-ideal strontium titanate crystal surfaces through formation of strontium hydroxide , 1998 .

[18]  M. Julliere.  Tunneling between ferromagnetic films , 1975 .

[19]  M. Kawasaki,et al.  Crystal Growth and Atomic-Level Characterization of YBa_2Cu_3O_7-δ Epitaxial Films , 1994 .

[20]  James S. Harris,et al.  Molecular beam epitaxy: a path to novel high Tc superconductors? , 1990, Other Conferences.

[21]  G. Virshup,et al.  Atomic Layer-by-Layer Engineering of High T_c Materials and Heterostructure Devices , 1994 .

[22]  D. Dimos,et al.  Thermally activated phase slippage in high-Tc grain-boundary Josephson junctions. , 1990, Physical review letters.

[23]  H. Rogalla,et al.  In-situ monitoring during pulsed laser deposition of complex oxides using reflection high energy electron diffraction under high oxygen pressure , 1997 .

[24]  P. Slycke,et al.  Imposed layer-by-layer growth by pulsed laser interval deposition , 1999 .

[25]  H. Cerva.  High-resolution transmission electron microscopy of heterostructures , 1994 .

[26]  F. Lichtenberg,et al.  Refinement of the Structure of Sr2RuO4 with 100 and 295 K X‐Ray Data. , 1993 .

[27]  D. E. Savage,et al.  Quantitative Electron Diffraction from Thin Films , 1993 .

[28]  Y. Tokura,et al.  Atomically defined epitaxy and physical properties of strained La0.6Sr0.4MnO3 films , 1998 .

[29]  T. M. Rice,et al.  Sr2RuO4: an electronic analogue of 3He? , 1995 .

[30]  S. Uhlenbruck,et al.  On the nature of grain boundaries in the colossal magnetoresistance manganites , 1999 .

[31]  R. Gross,et al.  Structure and chemical composition of planar defects in Sr0.9La0.1CuO2 infinite-layered superconductors by electron spectroscopic imaging , 1998 .

[32]  J. Seo,et al.  TEM investigation of grain boundaries in YBa2Cu3O7 thin films grown on SrTiO3 bicrystal substrates , 1995 .

[33]  Voltage and temperature dependence of the grain boundary tunneling magnetoresistance in manganites , 2000, cond-mat/0005158.

[34]  K. O'Donnell,et al.  Influence of a 36.8° grain boundary on the magnetoresistance of La0.8Sr0.2MnO3−δ single crystal films , 1997 .

[35]  C. Chu.  High Temperature Superconductivity , 1996 .

[36]  D. Dimos,et al.  Superconducting transport properties of grain boundaries in YBa2Cu3O7 bicrystals. , 1990, Physical review. B, Condensed matter.

[37]  Chi,et al.  Direct measurement of the superconducting properties of single grain boundaries in Y1Ba2Cu3O7- delta. , 1988, Physical review letters.

[38]  C. Zheng,et al.  ; 0 ; , 1951 .

[39]  H. Koinuma.  Why Crystal Engineering of Oxides? , 1994 .

[40]  P. Larsen,et al.  Reflection High-Energy Electron Diffraction and Reflection Electron Imaging of Surfaces , 1989 .

[41]  G. Virshup,et al.  Control of Composition and Microstructure in High-Temperature Superconductors at the Atomic Level by Molecular Beam Epitaxy , 1992 .

[42]  J. Eckstein,et al.  Analysis of Growing Films of Complex Oxides by RHEED , 1995 .

[43]  H. Koinuma,et al.  Oxide Quantum Structures for Future Electro-Photonics , 1997 .

[44]  P ? ? ? ? ? ? ? % ? ? ? ? , 1991 .

[45]  Jean-Pierre Locquet,et al.  Block-by-Block Deposition of Complex Oxide Films , 1994 .

[46]  D. Koelle,et al.  Physics and technology of high temperature superconducting Josephson junctions , 1997, IEEE Transactions on Applied Superconductivity.

[47]  H. Koinuma,et al.  Atomic Control of the SrTiO3 Crystal Surface , 1994, Science.

[48]  A. Marx,et al.  CORRELATION OF CRITICAL CURRENT AND RESISTANCE FLUCTUATIONS IN BICRYSTAL GRAIN BOUNDARY JOSEPHSON JUNCTIONS , 1995 .