Transition of the exchange bias effect from in-plane to out-of-plane in La0.7Sr0.3MnO3:NiO nanocomposite thin films

Abstract

The regulation of the exchange bias (EB) effect is of great significance to promote potential applications such as read heads in magnetic storage devices with more flexibility. In this study, epitaxial La_0.7Sr_0.3MnO₃:NiO (LSMO:NiO) nanocomposite thin films with multilayer and columnar structures were deposited on SrTiO₃ substrates by pulsed laser deposition, and the impact of microstructures on the EB effect was studied. The EB effect transforms from in-plane to out-of-plane by controlling the microstructure from the multilayer structure to the columnar structure. The strain state of NiO in the nanocomposite films varies with the microstructures. The results indicate that the interface strain-induced spin coupling reorientation dominates the redirection of the EB effect in the LSMO:NiO nanocomposite films. This provides a promising way to modulate the interfacial effects by utilizing the interface strain in the epitaxial nanocomposite films.