LPCMO nano-templates grown using substrate induced strain

Abstract

Abstract The phase diagram of mixed phase manganites exhibits an electronic soft matter (ESM) like state, where the coexisting metallic and insulating phases behave like a fluid under the influence of external stress and electric field. We present here the nano-template growth of (La0.5Pr0.5)0.67Ca0.33MnO3 on NdGaO3 (NGO) (1 1 0) and SrTiO3 (STO) (1 0 0) substrates using pulsed laser ablation technique. The films grown on STO have disconnected islands due to the large lattice mismatch of about 2%. These single crystalline islands are approximately 50 nm in size and also display the ESM state. The ESM state in these nano-templates is found to be sensitive to the substrate induced strain. On NGO, the ESM is formed near the insulator to metal transition temperature (TIM). When the film thickness is increased, i.e. the substrate strain is relaxed; the ESM region in the phase diagram shrinks, confirming the influence of strain on the ESM. Thus by engineering strain, we can create nano-templates which display electronic soft matter like behavior. Since the magnetism of the nano-templates can be manipulated by an electric field, novel magneto-electronic devices can be fabricated.