Strain induced magnetic domain evolution and spin re-orientation transition in epitaxial manganite films
Abstract
The evolution of magnetic domain structure in epitaxial La
0.625
Ca
0.375
MnO
3
films on (001) NdGaO
3
is monitored as a function of temperature and magnetic field using Magnetic Force Microscopy. We see two distinct regions of magnetic orientational order; one in-plane displaying contrast-less image and the other tilted away from the film plane forming a distinct stripe pattern. A strong domain splitting is observed at the boundary of two regions, which is resilient to reorientation with temperature and magnetic field. We propose a model magnetic free energy functional to explain the mechanism of domain splitting seen in manganite films.