Surface-step-terrace tuned magnetic properties of epitaxial LaBaCo2O5.5+δ thin films on vicinal (La,Sr)(Al,Ta)O3 substrates

Abstract

Interface-engineered double-perovskite structural LaBaCo₂O_5.5+δ thin films were highly epitaxially fabricated on (001) (La,Sr)(Al,Ta)O₃ substrates with various miscut angles of 0°, 1°, 3° and 5° using a pulsed laser deposition system. All the LaBaCo₂O_5.5+δ thin films have a c-axis orientation with a highly epitaxial crystalline quality. Moreover, the effect of the interface tuning mechanism on the magnetic properties has been systematically investigated using physical properties measurement systems. Larger strain can be obtained by increasing the substrates’ surface miscut angles and can further enhance the magnetic properties of the LaBaCo₂O_5.5+δ thin films. All these results reveal that interface engineering using surface-step-terraces is an effective way of tuning/controlling the magnetic properties of LaBaCo₂O_5.5+δ films.