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Two-dimensional Frank-van-der-Merwe growth of functional oxide and nitride thin film superlattices by pulsed laser deposition

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Abstract

Pulsed laser deposition is one of the most flexible growth methods for high-quality epitaxial multifunctional thin films and short-period superlattices. The following examples of current research interest demonstrate the state-of-the art: First, it is shown that the magnetoelectric performance of multiferroic BiFeO3-BaTiO3 (001)-oriented superlattices depends on the crystalline coherence of the different layers at the interfaces. Second, it is exemplified that dielectric-plasmonic superlattices built from the electrically insulating oxide MgO and the metallically conducting nitride TiN are promising metamaterials with hyperbolic dispersion. As a third example, it is demonstrated that LaNiO3- and LaMnO3-based superlattices with (001)-, (011)-, and (111)-out-of-plane orientation and controlled single layer thickness from 2 to 15 atomic monolayers show metal-insulator transitions and tunable gaps, in partial agreement with density functional theory calculations. Underlined by these examples, it is shown that the precise control of an epitaxially coherent, or two-dimensional layer-by-layer growth, named after Jan van der Merwe, is a prerequisite to achieve the desired functionality of oxide-oxide and oxide-nitride superlattices.

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ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

We thank Gabriele Ramm and Monika Hahn for PLD target preparation, and single crystal substrate preparation, respectively. We kindly acknowledge the financial support from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft within SFB 762 “Functionality of Oxide Interfaces”.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Felix-Bloch-Institut für Festkörperphysik, Semiconductor Physics Group, Universität Leipzig, Leipzig, D-04103, Germany

    Michael Lorenz, Haoming Wei, Florian Jung, Stefan Hohenberger, Holger Hochmuth & Marius Grundmann

  2. Center for Applied Microstructure Diagnostics CAM, Fraunhofer-Institut für Mikrostruktur von Werkstoffen und Systemen IMWS, Halle, D-06120, Germany

    Christian Patzig, Susanne Selle & Thomas Höche

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  1. Michael Lorenz
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  2. Haoming Wei
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  3. Florian Jung
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  4. Stefan Hohenberger
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  5. Holger Hochmuth
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  6. Marius Grundmann
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Correspondence to Michael Lorenz.

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Lorenz, M., Wei, H., Jung, F. et al. Two-dimensional Frank-van-der-Merwe growth of functional oxide and nitride thin film superlattices by pulsed laser deposition. Journal of Materials Research 32, 3936–3946 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1557/jmr.2017.266

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