Preparation of epitaxial La 0.7Ba 0.3MnO 3 thin films on SrTiO 3 substrates by excimer laser-assisted metal organic deposition

Abstract

A KrF excimer laser irradiation was successfully used at 773 K to crystallize and epitaxially grow La 0.7Ba 0.3MnO 3 (LBMO) thin films on SrTiO 3 substrates. The starting amorphous LBMO films were prepared by metal–organic deposition at 773 K. The effects of the irradiation time, the laser fluence and the film thickness on the electrical properties and the microstructures of the films were investigated. Ten pulses of the KrF laser at a fluence of 80 mJ/cm 2 were found to be sufficient to crystallize the 25 nm thick LBMO film. Increasing the irradiation time was found to be useful for the densification of the films and efficient to improve their oxidation states. High qualities of LBM/STO interfaces were obtained by the excimer-laser irradiation in comparison with those films obtained by thermal annealing process. The temperature dependence of resistance R( T) of the LBMO thin films were investigated as function of the preparation conditions.