Article ID | Journal | Published Year | Pages | File Type |
---|---|---|---|---|
1666402 | Thin Solid Films | 2013 | 7 Pages |
Abstract
Doped SrTiO3 thin films, 55 nm thick, were epitaxially grown by Pulsed Laser Deposition with niobium contents ranging from 2 to 5 mol% on SrTiO3 and LaAlO3 substrates. The different templates result in different growth defects, film growth mechanism and therefore a different volume fraction of uniformly strained film under the critical thickness. The investigation of the conductivity reveals a significant difference between the two substrate choices, but only at elevated temperatures with conductivity values up to 30% larger for films on SrTiO3 substrates compared with LaAlO3. Whereas in bulk ceramics the niobium level dictates the total conductivity, here it was found that the substrate choice had a greater influence for thin films, in particular at temperatures over 400 °C. This finding provides important information on conductive layers in complex heterostructures where strain and defects could work cooperatively.
Keywords
Related Topics
Physical Sciences and Engineering
Materials Science
Nanotechnology
Authors
Frédéric Aguesse, Anna-Karin Axelsson, Patrick Reinhard, Vasiliki Tileli, Jennifer L.M. Rupp, Neil McN Alford,