Fabrication of polycrystalline La2NiMnO6 thin films on LaAlO3 (1 0 0) substrates by chemical solution deposition

Polycrystalline double-perovskite La2NiMnO6 thin films were deposited on LaAlO3 substrates by chemical solution deposition method and annealed individually in different atmospheres O2, air and N2. The X-ray diffraction patterns and Raman scattering spectroscopy reveal that the films annealed in O2 and air are single phase, while an additional Mn3O4 phase exists in the films annealed in N2, which indicates that different annealing atmospheres have great influence on the structure and surface of the films. Moreover, the magnetic properties of the films, including the Curie temperature, coercive field, and remnant magnetization are also strongly dependent on the annealing atmospheres. The optimized films exhibit a Curie temperature of about 280 K, which is close to that of the bulk material.