Abstract
We performed investigations of the atomic-scale surface structure of epitaxial La5/8Ca3/8MnO3 thin films as a model system dependent on growth conditions in pulsed laser deposition with emphasis on film growth kinetics. Postdeposition in situ scanning tunneling microscopy was combined with in operando reflective high-energy electron diffraction to monitor the film growth and ex situ X-ray diffraction for structural analysis. We find a correlation between the out-of-plane lattice parameter and both adspecies mobility and height of the Ehrlich-Schwoebel barrier, with mobility of adatoms greater over the cationically stoichiometric terminations. The data suggest that the out-of-plane lattice parameter is dependent on the mechanism of epitaxial strain relaxation, which is controlled by the oxidative power of the deposition environment.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 2708-2716 |
Number of pages | 9 |
Journal | Crystal Growth and Design |
Volume | 16 |
Issue number | 5 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - May 4 2016 |
Funding
This research was sponsored by the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Science, Basic Energy Sciences, Materials Sciences and Engineering Division (A.T., R.K.V., A.G.G., T.L.M., H.N.L., S.V.K.). Research was conducted at CNMS, which also provided support (A.P.B., M.D.B., L.Q.) and which is a DOE Office of Science User Facility. A.G. acknowledges fellowship support from the UT/ORNL Bredesen Center for Interdisciplinary Research and Graduate Education.