Cation non-stoichiometry in pulsed laser deposited Sr2+yFe1+xMo1-xO6 epitaxial films

Abstract

Sr2FeMoO6 (SFMO) films were grown on SrTiO3 (100)- and (111)-oriented substrates via pulsed laser deposition (PLD). In order to study the fundamental characteristics of deposition, films were grown in two different PLD chambers. In chamber I, the best films were grown with a relatively long substrate-to-target distance (89 mm), high substrate temperature (850 °C), and low pressure (50 mTorr) in a 95% Ar/5% H2 atmosphere. Although X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurements indicate these films are single phase, Rutherford Backscattering (RBS) measurements reveal considerable non-stoichiometry, corresponding to a Sr2Fe1−xMo1+xO6 composition with x ≅ 0.2–0.3. This level of non-stoichiometry results in inferior magnetic properties. In chamber II, the best films were grown with a much shorter substrate-to-target distance (38 mm), lower temperature (680 °C), and higher pressure (225 mTorr). XRD measurements show that the films are single phase, and RBS measurements indicate that they are nearly stoichiometric. The degree of ordering between Fe and Mo was dependent on both the temperature and pressure used during deposition, reaching a maximum order parameter of 85%. The saturation magnetization increases as the Fe/Mo ordering increases, reaching a maximum of 2.4 μB/f.u. Based on prior studies of bulk samples, one would expect a higher saturation magnetization for this degree of Fe/Mo order. The presence of extra strontium oxide layers in the form of Ruddlesden-Popper intergrowths appears to be responsible for the lower than expected saturation magnetization of these films.