Artificial charge modulation in perovskite vanadate superlattices

A series of epitaxial (LaVO3)6m(SrVO3)m superlattices having the same nominal composition as La6/7Sr1/7VO3, a Mott–Hubbard insulator, was grown with pulsed-laser deposition on [001]-oriented SrTiO3 substrates, and their superlattice period is varied. When m = 1, the insulating resistivity of bulk-like La6/7Sr1/7VO3 is obtained; however, an increase in the periodicity (m ≥ 2) results in metallic samples. Comparison of the superlattice periodicity with the coherence length of charge carriers in perovskite oxide heterostructures is used to understand these observations. A filling-controlled insulator-metal transition is induced by placing a single dopant layer of SrVO3 within LaVO3 layers of varying thickness.