Tuning the Electron Gas at an Oxide Heterointerface via Free Surface Charges

Abstract

Oxide heterointerfaces are emerging as one of the most exciting materials systems in condensed matter science. One remarkable example is the LaAlO{sub 3}/SrTiO{sub 3} (LAO/STO) interface, a model system in which a highly mobile electron gas forms between two band insulators, exhibiting two dimensional superconductivity and unusual magnetotransport properties. An ideal tool to tune such an electron gas is the electrostatic field effect. In principle, the electrostatic field can be generated by bound charges due to polarization (as in the normal and ferroelectric field effects) or by adding excess free charge. In previous studies, a large modulation of the carrier density and mobility of the LAO/STO interface has been achieved using the normal field effect. However, little attention has been paid to the field effect generated by free charges. This issue is scarcely addressed, even in conventional semiconductor devices, since the free charges are typically not stable. Here, we demonstrate an unambiguous tuning of the LAO/STO interface conductivity via free surface charges written using conducting atomic force microscopy (AFM). The modulation of the carrier density was found to be reversible, nonvolatile and surprisingly large, {approx}3 x 10{sup 13} cm{sup -2}, comparable to the maximum modulation by the normal field effect.more » Our finding reveal the efficiency of free charges in controlling the conductivity of this oxide interface, and suggest that this technique may be extended more generally to other oxide systems.« less