Sung k A. Seo

Multiple conducting carriers generated in LaAlO3/SrTiO3 heterostructures

We have found that there is more than one type of conducting carriers generated in LaAlO3/SrTiO3 heterostructures by comparing the sheet carrier density and mobility from optical transmission spectroscopy with those from dc-transport measurements. When multiple types of carriers exist, optical characterization dominantly reflects the contribution from the high-density carriers whereas dc-transport measurements may exaggerate the contribution of the high-mobility carriers even though they are present at low density. Since the low-temperature mobility determined by dc-transport in the LaAlO3/SrTiO3 heterostructures is much higher than that extracted by optical method, we attribute the origin of high-mobility transport to the low-density conducting carriers.

Nonlinear Hall effect and multichannel conduction in LaTiO3/SrTiO3 superlattices

We report magnetotransport properties of heterointerfaces between the Mott insulator LaTiO{sub 3} and the band insulator SrTiO{sub 3} in a delta-doping geometry. At low temperatures, we have found a strong nonlinearity in the magnetic field dependence of the Hall resistivity, which can be effectively controlled by varying the temperature and the electric field. We attribute this effect to multichannel conduction of interfacial charges generated by an electronic reconstruction. In particular, the formation of a highly mobile conduction channel revealed by our data is explained by the greatly increased dielectric permeability of SrTiO{sub 3} at low temperatures and its electric field dependence reflects the spatial distribution of the quasi-two-dimensional electron gas.

Electronic structures of hexagonal R Mn O 3 ( R = Gd , Tb, Dy, and Ho) thin films: Optical spectroscopy and first-principles calculations

We investigated the electronic structure of multiferroic hexagonal RMnO3 (R = Gd, Tb, Dy, and Ho) thin films using both optical spectroscopy and first-principles calculations. Using artificially stabilized hexagonal RMnO3, we extended the optical spectroscopic studies on the hexagonal multiferroic manganite system. We observed two optical transitions located near 1.7 eV and 2.3 eV, in addition to the predominant absorption above 5 eV. With the help of first-principles calculations, we attribute the low-lying optical absorption peaks to inter-site transitions from the oxygen states hybridized strongly with different Mn orbital symmetries to the Mn 3d3z2-r2 state. As the ionic radius of the rare earth ion increased, the lowest peak showed a systematic increase in its peak position. We explained this systematic change in terms of a flattening of the MnO5 triangular bipyramid.

Reversal of the lattice structure in SrCoO(x) epitaxial thin films studied by real-time optical spectroscopy and first-principles calculations.

Using real-time spectroscopic ellipsometry, we directly observed a reversible lattice and electronic structure evolution in SrCoO(x) (x=2.5-3) epitaxial thin films. Drastically different electronic ground states, which are extremely susceptible to the oxygen content x, are found in the two topotactic phases: i.e., the brownmillerite SrCoO2.5 and the perovskite SrCoO3. First-principles calculations confirmed substantial differences in the electronic structure, including a metal-insulator transition, which originate from the modification in the Co valence states and crystallographic structures. More interestingly, the two phases can be reversibly controlled by changing the ambient pressure at greatly reduced temperatures. Our finding provides an important pathway to understanding the novel oxygen-content-dependent phase transition uniquely found in multivalent transition metal oxides.

Compressive strain-induced metal–insulator transition in orthorhombic SrIrO 3 thin films

Orthorhombic SrIrO 3 is a correlated metal whose electronic properties are highly susceptible to external perturbations due to the comparable interactions of spin–orbit interaction and electronic correlation. We have investigated the electronic properties of epitaxial orthorhombic SrIrO 3 thin-films under compressive strain using transport measurements, optical absorption spectra, and magnetoresistance. The metastable, orthorhombic SrIrO 3 thin-films are synthesized on various substrates using an epi-stabilization technique. We have observed that as in-plane lattice compression is increased, the dc-resistivity (ρ) of the thin films increases by a few orders of magnitude, and the dρ/d T changes from positive to negative values. However, optical absorption spectra show Drude-like, metallic responses without an optical gap opening for all compressively strained thin films. Transport measurements under magnetic fields show negative magnetoresistance at low temperature for compressively strained thin-films. Our results suggest that weak localization is responsible for the strain-induced metal–insulator transition for the orthorhombic SrIrO 3 thin-films.

Atomic Layer Engineering of Perovskite Oxides for Chemically Sharp Heterointerfaces

Atomic layer engineering enables fabrication of a chemically sharp oxide heterointerface. The interface formation and strain evolution during the initial growth of LaAlO(3) /SrTiO(3) heterostructures by pulsed laser deposition are investigated in search of a means for controlling the atomic-sharpness of the interface. This study shows that inserting a monolayer of LaAlO(3) grown at high oxygen pressure dramatically enhances interface abruptness.

Growth control of oxygen stoichiometry in homoepitaxial SrTiO3 films by pulsed laser epitaxy in high vacuum.

In many transition metal oxides, oxygen stoichiometry is one of the most critical parameters that plays a key role in determining the structural, physical, optical, and electrochemical properties of the material. However, controlling the growth to obtain high quality single crystal films having the right oxygen stoichiometry, especially in a high vacuum environment, has been viewed as a challenge. In this work, we show that, through proper control of the plume kinetic energy, stoichiometric crystalline films can be synthesized without generating oxygen defects even in high vacuum. We use a model homoepitaxial system of SrTiO3 (STO) thin films on single crystal STO substrates. Physical property measurements indicate that oxygen vacancy generation in high vacuum is strongly influenced by the energetics of the laser plume, and it can be controlled by proper laser beam delivery. Therefore, our finding not only provides essential insight into oxygen stoichiometry control in high vacuum for understanding the fundamental properties of STO-based thin films and heterostructures, but expands the utility of pulsed laser epitaxy of other materials as well.

Charge states and magnetic ordering in LaMnO3/SrTiO3 superlattices

We investigated the magnetic and optical properties of [(LaMnO{sub 3}){sub n}/(SrTiO{sub 3}){sub 8}]{sub 20} (n = 1, 2, and 8) superlattices grown by pulsed-laser deposition. We found that a weak ferromagnetic and semiconducting state developed in all superlattices. An analysis of the optical conductivity showed that the LaMnO{sub 3} layers in the superlattices were slightly doped. The amount of doping was almost identical regardless of the LaMnO{sub 3} layer thickness up to eight unit cells, suggesting that the effect is not limited to the interface. On the other hand, the magnetic ordering became less stable as the LaMnO{sub 3} layer thickness decreased, probably due to a dimensional effect.

Observation of sphere resonance peak in ferromagnetic GaN:Mn

We report temperature-dependent optical spectra of ferromagnetic Mn-doped GaN in a wide photon energy region of 5 meV–4 eV. Below the GaN gap, an absorption peak around 1.25 eV whose intensity increases at lower temperatures was observed. A composite medium theory, called the Maxwell–Garnett theory, shows that the absorption peak can be assigned to a sphere resonance from metallic particles embedded in a Mn-doped GaN matrix. We also report that the far-infrared absorption of Mn-doped GaN sample was very small. This result suggests that itinerant carrier-mediated ferromagnetism does not fully explain the observed magnetic properties.

ZnO–ZnTe nanocone heterojunctions

We report heterojunctions made of vertically aligned ZnO–ZnTe nanocones synthesized using a combination of thermal vapor deposition and pulsed-laser deposition. ZnO nanocones and nanorods were controlled by utilizing the growth rate difference between central and boundary sites of precursor domains. The p–n heterojunctions were subsequently formed by growing ZnTe as shells on the nanocone surface. Structural and electric characteristics indicate that nanocones are more feasible than nanorods for forming heterojunction. Furthermore, theoretical modeling demonstrates that the nanocone-based junction exhibits an electrostatic potential profile that is much more effective for carrier transport than the electrostatic potential for the nanorod-based junction.