Open AccessAsymmetric response of electrical conductivity and V valence state to strain in cation‐deficient Sr 1– y VO 3 ultrathin films based on absorption measurements at the V L 2 ‐ and L 3 ‐edges
Author(s) -
Wu Meng,
Huang Si-Zhao,
Zeng Hui,
Koster Gertjan,
Huang Yu-Yang,
Zheng Jin-Cheng,
Wang Hui-Qiong
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of synchrotron radiation
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.172
H-Index - 99
ISSN - 1600-5775
DOI - 10.1107/s1600577519007094
Subject(s) - valence (chemistry) , materials science , electrical resistivity and conductivity , conductivity , epitaxy , thin film , oxide , condensed matter physics , analytical chemistry (journal) , metal , nanotechnology , chemistry , electrical engineering , metallurgy , physics , organic chemistry , layer (electronics) , chromatography , engineering
The correlation between electronic properties and epitaxial strain in a cation‐deficient system has rarely been investigated. Cation‐deficient SrVO 3 films are taken as a model system to investigate the strain‐dependent electrical and electronic properties. Using element‐ and charge‐sensitive soft X‐ray absorption, V L ‐edge absorption measurements have been performed for Sr 1– y VO 3 films of different thicknesses capped with 4 u.c. (unit cell) SrTiO 3 layers, showing the coexistence of V 4+ and V 5+ in thick films. A different correlation between V valence state and epitaxial strain is observed for Sr 1– y VO 3 ultrathin films, i.e. a variation in V valence state is only observed for tensile‐strained films. Sr 1– y VO 3 thin films are metallic and exhibit a thickness‐driven metal–insulator transition at different critical thicknesses for tensile and compressive strains. The asymmetric response of electrical conductivity to strain observed in cation‐deficient Sr 1– y VO 3 films will be beneficial for functional oxide electronic devices.