New Magneto‐Optical Film of Ce,Ga:GIG with High Performance

Ce³⁺‐doped Gd₃Fe₅O₁₂ (Ce:GIG) film has a good application prospect in the field of integrated optical device. In this article, Ce:GIG and Ce,Ga:GIG films were deposited onto the quartz glass substrate by using radio‐frequency magnetron sputtering technology. The crystal phase, surface morphology, magnetization, and magnetic circular dichroism properties of films were characterized by using the X‐ray powder diffraction, atomic force microscopy, vibrating sample magnetometer, and circular dichroism spectrometer. The results show that as‐prepared Ce,Ga:GIG films has a good quality and show an excellent magneto‐optical performance, and the doping of Ga³⁺ ion and the annealing process have significant effect on the magnetism and magneto‐optical performances. It is expected that Ce,Ga:GIG film with a moderate Ga³⁺‐doping content is a better candidate than Ce:GIG and Ce:YIG films for the next generation of integrated optical isolator and other magneto‐optical equipment.     

Growth and structural characteristics of perovskite-wurtzite oxide ceramics thin films

Wurtzite ZnO thin films were grown on single-crystal perovskite SrTiO₃(STO) (1 0 0) substrates at various temperatures. The ZnO/STO thin films thus formed exhibit a preferred (1 1 0)-orientation at a growth temperature of 600-700 °C. A high growth temperature enhances not only the (1 1 0)-texture of ZnO/STO thin films but also the crystalline quality of the film. (La_0.7Sr_0.3)MnO₃ (LSMO) thin films were subsequently grown on ZnO(1 1 0)/STO(1 0 0) substrates with various thicknesses, and were polycrystalline. A thicker LSMO film has a stronger (0 0 l)-preferred orientation than the thinner one. The lattice distortion of LSMO decreases as the LSMO thickness increases. Magnetization vs. temperature curves show that both crystalline quality and lattice distortion influence the magnetic properties of LSMO thin films. The physical properties of the manganite oxide can be modulated by forming a heterostructure with wurtzite ZnO.     

High magneto-optical performance of GdFeO3 thin film with high orientation and heavy Ce3+ doping

In this paper, GdFeO₃ thin films with high orientation and heavily Ce³⁺ doping were deposited by radio frequency magnetron sputtering with a matching substrate. The effects of substrates and Ce³⁺ doping on the structure, magnetic and magneto-optical properties of thin films were investigated. As a result, Ce³⁺ doping can not only increase the saturation magnetization but also greatly enhance the magnetic circular dichroism signals of Ce:GdFeO₃ thin films. Based on the density functional theory calculation, it can be found that the probability of electron transition between Ce³⁺ 4f and Fe³⁺ 3d and the difference in the absorption of right and left circularly polarized light increase, which results in the strong magneto-optical effect of Ce:GdFeO₃/STO thin films.     

Substitutional effect of Mg2+ on structural and magnetic properties of La2MgxNi1-xMnO6 double-perovskite thin films

By doping different concentrations of Mg²⁺ at Ni site, the (00l)-oriented La₂Mg_xNi_1-xMnO₆ (abbreviated as LM_xNMO, x = 0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4) double-perovskite thin films were epitaxially grown by pulsed laser deposition. The substitutional effect of Mg²⁺ on the structural and magnetic properties of the films is comprehensively investigated. It is found that with the increase of Mg-doping concentration, the in-plane and out-of-plane lattice constants as well as the cell volume of the LM_xNMO thin films increase, which could be ascribed to the radius difference between Mg²⁺ and Ni²⁺/Ni³⁺ ions, resulting in the in-plane compressive stress in LM_xNMO films. When the Mg-doping concentration is small (x ≤ 0.1), the doped Mg²⁺ tends to substitute Ni³⁺, which restrains the intensity of antiferromagnetic interaction between Ni³⁺-O-Mn³⁺, resulting in the reduced the exchange bias field as well as the increased the saturation magnetization. However, when the Mg-doping concentration increases to x ≥ 0.2, Mg²⁺ becomes to mainly replace Ni²⁺ position, which could inhibit the super-exchange ferromagnetic interaction between Ni²⁺-O-Mn⁴⁺ magnetic paths and thus reduce the saturation magnetization. The enhanced magnetic properties can be obtained in the LM_0.1NMO double-perovskite thin film, with a large saturation magnetization of 492.12 emu/cm³ and a high Curie temperature of 262.7 K.     

Effect of Substrate on Structure and Multiferrocity of (La,Mn) CoSubstituted BiFeO3 Thin Films

In this article, we report the substrate effect on ferroelectric and magnetic properties of epitaxial BiFeO₃‐based thin films at room temperature. (La, Mn) cosubstituted BiFeO₃ (BFOLM) thin films were deposited on differently lattice mismatched single‐crystal substrates to manipulate the strain states in the as‐deposited films. All the films with 30‐nm thick CaRuO₃ bottom electrodes exhibited highly epitaxial growth behavior with a slightly monoclinic distorted lattice structure while their strain states are drastically different as confirmed by X‐ray reciprocal space mapping. These films possessed significantly different macroscopic ferroelectric properties with giant remanent polarization of 101 ± 2, 65 ± 2, and 48 ± 2 μC/cm² for the films grown on SrTiO₃, (La, Sr)(Al, Ta)O₃, and LaAlO₃, respectively. It is found that the room‐temperature magnetic properties are also in accordance with their strain state, having a reciprocal relationship with polarization. For example, the enhanced magnetization is associated with the suppressed polarization and vice versa. The stain tunability of multiferroic properties in BFOLM thin films are presumably ascribed to the polarization rotation and oxygen octahedral tilts.     

Magnetic and antibacterial studies of sol-gel dip coated Ce doped TiO2 thin films: Influence of Ce contents

Ce-doped TiO₂ thin films were synthesized by sol-gel dip coating route to evaluate the effect of Ce doping percentage on properties of TiO₂. X-ray diffraction spectra revealed both anatase and brookite phases, and Ce doping favours the anatase–brookite transformation of TiO₂ films. The optical constants of the thin films were achieved by evaluating spectroscopic UV-VIS-NIR spectrophotometry data. The band gap of the Ce doped TiO₂ was reduced from ~3.93 eV to ~3.79 eV with an increase in Ce doping percentage. All films have shown ferromagnetic behaviors which increase with the increase in Ce content due to enhancement in the bound magnetic polaron. Higher Ce doping increases the oxygen vacancies and saturation magnetization. Boost magnetic properties stem from the generation of the interaction between the Ce ion and an oxygen vacancy. The study showed that the antimicrobial activity of Ce doped TiO₂ is ineffective. Hence doping of Ce can modify the properties of TiO₂ and are used in LEDs, magneto-optical devices and solar cells.     

Structural,Thermal and Magnetic Properties of Thin Metal Films and Adsorbate–Substrate Systems Studied by XAFS and XMCD

Thin metal films often exhibit interesting properties that are essentially different from the bulk ones. XAFS (X-ray absorption fine structure) and XMCD (X-ray magnetic circular dichroism) techniques are quite suitable to investigate structural, thermal and magnetic properties of thin metal films. In this proceeding, we will present following two topics concerning structural and magnetic properties of adsorbates on thin metal films. The first one is the adsorption geometry of SO₂ on a 1-monolayer (ML) Pd thin film grown on a Ni(111) single crystal. It was found by S K-edge XAFS that SO₂ is lying flat on 1-ML Pd/Ni(111). This result is not similar to the bulk Pd surface but to the bulk Ni one. This finding indicates significant modification of the electronic structure of the 1-ML Pd film compared to the bulk one. The second topic is the magnetic moment induced on CO adsorbed on Ni epitaxial films grown on Cu(001). The O K-edge XMCD results revealed that in the perpendicularly magnetized 10-ML Ni film the orbital moment of CO is parallel to the substrate Ni magnetization, while it is antiparallel in the in-planar magnetized 6-ML and thick (>100 ML) films. The origin of the induced orbital moment at CO is discussed.     

Optical properties of epitaxial BiFeO3 thin film grown on SrRuO3-buffered SrTiO3 substrate

The BiFeO₃ (BFO) thin film was deposited by pulsed-laser deposition on SrRuO₃ (SRO)-buffered (111) SrTiO₃ (STO) substrate. X-ray diffraction pattern reveals a well-grown epitaxial BFO thin film. Atomic force microscopy study indicates that the BFO film is rather dense with a smooth surface. The ellipsometric spectra of the STO substrate, the SRO buffer layer, and the BFO thin film were measured, respectively, in the photon energy range 1.55 to 5.40 eV. Following the dielectric functions of STO and SRO, the ones of BFO described by the Lorentz model are received by fitting the spectra data to a five-medium optical model consisting of a semi-infinite STO substrate/SRO layer/BFO film/surface roughness/air ambient structure. The thickness and the optical constants of the BFO film are obtained. Then a direct bandgap is calculated at 2.68 eV, which is believed to be influenced by near-bandgap transitions. Compared to BFO films on other substrates, the dependence of the bandgap for the BFO thin film on in-plane compressive strain from epitaxial structure is received. Moreover, the bandgap and the transition revealed by the Lorentz model also provide a ground for the assessment of the bandgap for BFO single crystals.     

Optical modulation and magnetic transition in PbTi1−xPdxO3−δ ferroelectric thin films

The PbTi_1−xPd_xO_3−δ (xPTPO) thin films prepared by chemical solution deposition have been investigated by means of structural characterizations, optical and magnetic measurements. X-ray diffraction patterns show that all the films have a pseudotetragonal perovskite structure, but also exhibit a lattice dilatation behavior and increased internal strain as the x increases. A possible mechanism for strain-induced structural evolution is discussed. Raman scattering further corroborates this change in average structure, where the characteristic variation of phonon modes, indirectly reveal the incorporation of Pd²⁺ ions into host lattice. Transmittance spectra analysis indicates that Pd doping has a key effect on the energy band structure. The optical bandgap of xPTPO films decreases significantly with increasing Pd content, expressed by (3.5–9.0x) eV (0≤x≤0.09). Also, magnetic switching driven by doping has been confirmed in the films, which is attributed to the competition between ferromagnetic and paramagnetic/antiferromagnetic components.     

Large Piezoelectricity and Ferroelectricity in Mn‐Doped (Bi0.5Na0.5)TiO3‐BaTiO3 Thin Film Prepared by Pulsed Laser Deposition

Mn‐doped (Bi_0.5Na_0.5)_0.94Ba_0.06TiO₃ (MnBNBT) thin films were prepared on SrRuO₃ (SRO)‐coated (001) SrTiO₃ (STO) single crystal substrates by pulsed laser deposition under different processing conditions. Structural characterization (i.e., XRD and TEM) confirms the epitaxial growth of STO/SRO/MnBNBT heterostructures. Through the judicious control of deposition temperature, the defect level within the films can be finely tuned. The MnBNBT thin film deposited at the optimized temperature exhibits superior ferroelectric and piezoelectric responses with remanent polarization P_r of 33.0 μC/cm² and piezoelectric coefficient d₃₃ of 120.0 ± 20 pm/V.     

Electro-optical performances of nanostructured SrTiOx films: The effect of plasma power,Ar/O2 ratio and annealing

The present work evaluates the effects of plasma power and oxygen mixing ratios (OMRs) on structural, morphological, optical, and electrical properties of strontium titanate SrTiO_x (STO) thin films. STO thin films were grown by magnetron sputtering, and later thermal annealing at 700°C for 1 h was applied to improve film properties. X-ray diffraction analysis indicated that as-deposited films have amorphous microstructure independent of deposition conditions. The films deposited at higher OMR values and later annealed also showed amorphous structure while the films deposited at lower OMR value and annealed have nanocrystallinity. In addition, all as-deposited films were highly transparent (~80%–85%) in the visible spectrum and exhibited well-defined main absorption edge, while the annealing improved transparency (90%) within the same spectrum. The calculated direct and indirect optical band gaps for films were in the range of 3.60-4.30 eV as a function of deposition conditions. The refractive index of the films increased with OMRs and the postdeposition annealing. The frequency dependent capacitance measurements at 100 kHz were performed to obtain film dielectric constant values. High dielectric constant values reaching up to 100 were obtained. All STO samples exhibited more than 2.5 μC/cm² charge storage capacity and low dielectric loss (less than 0.07 at 100 kHz). The leakage current density was relatively low (3 × 10⁻⁸Acm⁻² at +0.8 V) indicating that STO films are promising for future dynamic random access memory applications.     

Growth,microstructure and magnetic properties of bixbyite structure ScFeO3: A comparative study between bulk and thin film

The growth, microstructure and magnetic property of both bulk and thin film types of ScFeO₃ are studied. Results show that the mono-phase bixbyite structure bulk ScFeO₃ can be obtained with sintering temperature above 1400 °C. The bulk ScFeO₃ shows dominant antiferromagnetic property with an antiferromagnetic Neel temperature T_N about -26 K. The epitaxial type of ScFeO₃ thin film with bixbyite structure can be well grown on the SrTiO₃(111) substrate. The magnetic property of ScFeO₃ thin film is significantly different from that of bulk material which shows notable room temperature ferromagnetism with a saturation field below 0.4 T. The saturation magnetization M_S, remanent magnetization M_r, coercivity H_c and of ScFeO₃ film increase with decreasing temperature with maximum values of M_S = 5.1 emu/cc, M_r = 1.5 emu/cc, and H_c = 29 mT at 5 K. The ferromagnetism of ScFeO₃ thin film should be caused by the interface mismatch strain at film/substrate interface. This further proves that ferromagnetism of ScFeO₃ can be stabilized with microstructure engineering including strain, which enable multifunctional properties of this material.     

Strong Effect of Oxygen Partial Pressure on Electrical Properties of 0.5Ba(Zr0.2Ti0.8)O3–0.5(Ba0.7Ca0.3)TiO3 Thin Films

0.5Ba(Zr_0.2Ti_0.8)O₃–0.5(Ba_0.7Ca_0.3)TiO₃ (BCZT) epitaxial thin films were grown on SrRuO₃ (SRO) coated (001)‐oriented SrTiO₃ (STO) single crystal substrates by pulsed laser deposition under different oxygen partial pressures in the processing of deposition. The effects of oxygen partial pressure on structure, cation stoichiometry, surface morphology, leakage current behavior, ferroelectric, and piezoelectric properties were investigated. Both the lattice parameters and (Ba + Ca)/(Ti + Zr) cation ratio decrease with increasing oxygen partial pressure. The BCZT thin film with the ideal cation stoichiometry was obtained under 200 mTorr, giving rise to a remanent polarization P_r = 14.5 μC/cm² and effective piezoelectric coefficient d₃₃ = 96 ± 5 pm/V.     

Effect of Fe-doping on the structural,optical and magnetic properties of ZnO thin films prepared by RF magnetron sputtering

In this paper, we report the fabrication and systematic characterization of Fe Doped ZnO thin Films. Fe_xZn_1−x O (x=0<0.05) films were prepared by RF magnetron sputtering on Si (400) substrate. Influence of Fe doping on structural, optical and magnetic properties has been studied. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis shows that Fe doping has affected the crystalline structure, grain size and strain in the thin films. The best crystalline structure is obtained for 3% Fe Doping as observed from Atomic Force Microscopy (AFM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The magnetic properties studied using Vibrating Sample Magnetometer reveals the room temperature ferromagnetic nature of the thin films. However, changing the Fe concentration degrades the magnetic property in turn. The mechanism behind the above results has been discussed minutely in this paper.     

Magnetic and electric properties of wrinkled manganite films derived by sol‐gel method

Flat and wrinkled La_0.7Sr_0.3MnO₃ (LSMO) thin films were prepared by sol‐gel method, respectively, on Si (001) substrates by adjusting heating rate at drying stage. Wrinkled film has larger grains than flat film. Coercive field (about 27 Oe) of wrinkled film is higher than that of flat film, which is much low as around 5 Oe. Compared with flat films, wrinkled films have larger magnetization, higher Curie temperature (334 K) and peak resistivity temperature (243 K), and lower resistivity (0.18 Ohm·cm at 300 K). The introducing of wrinkles is an efficient way to induce compressive stress in sol‐gel derived polycrystalline LSMO films and enhance the magnetic and electric properties.     

Tuning magnetic properties of BiFeO3 thin films by controlling Mn doping concentration

Mn-doped BiFeO₃ (BiFe_1–xMn_xO₃, x = 0, 0.03, 0.05, 0.10, 0.15 and 0.20) polycrystalline multiferroic thin films were successfully synthesized using the facile sol-gel spin-coating method. The crystal structures, surface features, elements valences, and magnetic properties of as-prepared samples were systematically explored. X-ray diffraction and Raman spectroscopy studies revealed the substitutions of Mn into the Fe site and a rhombohedral-to-orthorhombic phase transition. The Field Emission Scanning Electron Microscopy showed a decrease in the average particle sizes and an improvement of surface morphology with increasing the concentration of the substitutes. Energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy confirmed the doping concentration of Mn²⁺ in the samples. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy indicated the co-existence of Mn²⁺/Mn³⁺ ions in the doped films. The remnant magnetization value of BiFe_0.90Mn_0.10O₃ thin film was found to be approximately six times than that of pure BiFeO₃ thin film under a magnetic field of 10 kOe. The enhanced magnetic property of BiFe_0.90Mn_0.10O₃ thin film was mainly ascribed to the structural distortion of spin cycloid and the enhancement of super-exchange interaction between the Fe³⁺ (Mn²⁺) and O^2- ions.     

Growth and crystallographic feature-dependent characterization of spinel zinc ferrite thin films by RF sputtering

ZnFe₂O₄ (ZFO) thin films exhibiting varying crystallographic features ((222)-epitaxially, (400)-epitaxially, and randomly oriented films) were grown on various substrates by radio-frequency magnetron sputtering. The type of substrate used profoundly affected the surface topography of the resulting ZFO films. The surface of the ZFO (222) epilayer was dense and exhibited small rectangular surface grains; however, the ZFO (400) epilayer exhibited small grooves. The surface of the randomly oriented ZFO thin film exhibited distinct three-dimensional island-like grains that demonstrated considerable surface roughness. Magnetization-temperature curves revealed that the ZFO thin films exhibited a spin-glass transition temperature of approximately 40 K. The crystallographic orientation of the ZFO thin films strongly affected magnetic anisotropy. The ZFO (222) epitaxy exhibited the strongest magnetic anisotropy, whereas the randomly oriented ZFO thin film exhibited no clear magnetic anisotropy.     

Ferroic ordering and charge‐spin‐lattice order coupling in Gd‐doped Fe3O4 nanoparticles relaxor multiferroic system

We investigated the effect of gadolinium doping (1‐5 at.%) on the magnetic and dielectric properties of Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles, synthesized by the chemical co‐precipitation technique, primarily to understand the onset of multifunctional properties such as ferroelectricity and magnetodielectric coupling. The substitution of larger Gd³⁺ ions at smaller Fe³⁺ octahedral sites in inverse spinel Fe₃O₄ has significantly influenced the morphology, average crystallite size, and more importantly, the magneto‐crystalline anisotropy and saturation magnetization. The magneto‐crystalline anisotropy and the saturation magnetization decreases substantially, however, significant increase in the average crystallite size is observed upon Gd doping. Furthermore, temperature‐dependent dielectric studies suggest that these nanoparticle systems exhibit relaxor ferroelectric behavior, with much pronounced ferroelectric polarization moment recorded for 5 at.% Gd doped Fe₃O₄ as compared to its undoped counterpart.     

Dysprosium‐Doped (Ba,Sr)TiO3 Thin Films on Nickel Foilsfor Capacitor Applications

The substitution in (Ba_0.70Sr_0.30)TiO₃ thin films by the rare‐earth element dysprosium prepared at 1000°C by chemical solution deposition on nickel foils was investigated. The relatively large thermal budget applied (via annealing temperature) is shown to enhance the solubility of the Dy³⁺doping ion into the crystal lattice of the perovskite films. Preference for B‐site occupancy of this amphoteric cation was further promoted by the addition of BaO excess (1 mol%), which results in slightly larger grains in the films as observed by scanning electron microscopy. Despite this Ba‐rich composition, the presence of secondary phases in the thin films was not detected by X‐ray diffraction. Transmission electron microscopy revealed no evidence for local segregation of Dy at grain boundaries, neither the formation of NiO at the interface between the film and the metal foil was observed. The substitution of Ti⁴⁺ by Dy³⁺ leads to the formation of strong electron acceptors in the system, which balance the number of ionized oxygen vacancies arisen from the reductive crystallization atmosphere used during processing. As a consequence, the dielectric loss (tan σ) and leakage conduction measured in the resulting thin‐film capacitors were significantly reduced with respect to nominally undoped samples. The improvement of this capacitor feature, combined with the relatively high permittivities obtained in the films (490–530), shows the effectiveness of dysprosium doping within a thin‐film fabrication method for potential application into the multilayer ceramic capacitor technology.     

Influence of transition metal doping on the structural,optical, and magnetic properties of TiO2 films deposited on Si substrates by a sol–gel process

Transition metal (TM)-doped TiO₂ films (TM = Co, Ni, and Fe) were deposited on Si(100) substrates by a sol–gel method. With the same dopant content, Co dopants catalyze the anatase-to-rutile transformation (ART) more obviously than Ni and Fe doping. This is attributed to the different strain energy induced by the different dopants. The optical properties of TM-doped TiO₂ films were studied with spectroscopic ellipsometry data. With increasing dopant content, the optical band gap (E_OBG) shifts to lower energy. With the same dopant content, the E_OBG of Co-doped TiO₂ film is the smallest and that of Fe-doped TiO₂ film is the largest. The results are related to electric disorder due to the ART. Ferromagnetic behaviors were clearly observed for TM-doped TiO₂ films except the undoped TiO₂ film which is weakly magnetic. Additionally, it is found that the magnetizations of the TM-doped TiO₂ films decrease with increasing dopant content.