Photoemission (XPS and XPD) study of epitaxial LaAlO3 film grown on SrTiO3(0 0 1)

This study investigates the tensile-strained growth of LaAlO3 on SrTiO3(0 0 1) substrate by molecular beam epitaxy (MBE). Growth was controlled in situ by reflection high energy electron diffraction (RHEED). The characterization was carried out ex situ by photoemission and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) reveals the development of a TiOx-rich interface. Photoelectron diffraction (XPD) confirms that a 1.2-nm-thick pseudomorphic LaAlO3 film has been grown on SrTiO3(0 0 1) substrate with a perpendicular lattice parameter of 0.372±0.02 nm.