Abstract
Defects exist ubiquitously in crystal materials, and usually exhibit a very different nature from the bulk matrix. Hence, their presence can have significant impacts on the properties of devices. Although it is well accepted that the properties of defects are determined by their unique atomic environments, the precise knowledge of such relationships is far from clear for most oxides because of the complexity of defects and difficulties in characterization. Here, we fabricate a 36.8° SrRuO3 grain boundary of which the transport measurements show a spin-valve magnetoresistance. We identify its atomic arrangement, including oxygen, using scanning transmission electron microscopy and spectroscopy. Based on the as-obtained atomic structure, the density functional theory calculations suggest that the spin-valve magnetoresistance occurs because of dramatically reduced magnetic moments at the boundary. The ability to manipulate magnetic properties at the nanometer scale via defect control allows new strategies to design magnetic/electronic devices with low-dimensional magnetic order.
Highlights
The altered continuity of atomic bonding at grain boundaries makes the physical properties of these defects significantly different from those of the rest of the bulk matrix
We studied the atomic structure and magnetic properties of SrRuO3 (SRO) grain boundaries by combining advanced scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM), spectroscopy, density functional theory (DFT) calculations and transport property measurements
To reveal the underlying mechanism, we determine the atomic structure by using the recently developed atomically resolved integrated differential phase contrast imaging technique combined with atomically resolved energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) with aberration corrected STEM
Summary
INTRODUCTION The altered continuity of atomic bonding at grain boundaries makes the physical properties of these defects significantly different from those of the rest of the bulk matrix. We studied the atomic structure and magnetic properties of SrRuO3 (SRO) grain boundaries by combining advanced scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM), spectroscopy, density functional theory (DFT) calculations and transport property measurements. The atomic structure of grain boundaries in SRO has rarely been studied, and the properties of grain boundaries and the effects of their presence on thin-film devices are largely unknown. The substantial reduction of the magnetic moments leads to spin-valve magnetoresistance at the grain boundary These findings unveil the structure and properties of the grain boundary in a commonly used ferromagnetic electrode SRO, which can help us to understand the effects of such a grain boundary on the magnetic transport properties of SRO and provide new insights into defect engineering for novel magnetic/electric devices
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