Two-dimensional (2-D) crystalline films often exhibit interesting physical characteristics, such as unusual magnetic or electric properties. By layering together distinct crystalline thin films, a so-called “superlattice” is formed. Due to their close proximity, the distinct layers of a superlattice may significantly affect the properties of other layers. In this research, single 2-D layers of strontium iridium oxide were sandwiched between either one, two, or three layers of strontium titanium oxide to form three distinct superlattices. Researchers then used x-ray scattering at the U.S. Department of Energy’s Advanced Photon Source (APS) to probe the magnetic structure of each superlattice. The x-ray data revealed that the number of layers of the titanium-based material produced a dramatic difference in the magnetic behavior of the iridium-based layer. These findings are especially significant because the iridium compound is one of the perovskites, a class of materials known for their unique electric, magnetic, optical, and other properties that have proven useful in sensor and energy-related devices, and which are being intensively investigated for their application towards improved electronics and other technologies.
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Image: Fig. 1. Illustration of superlattices. Panel (a) shows the Sr2IrO4 crystalline superlattice, with alternating layers of SrIrO3 and SrO. The SrIrO3 layers are perovskites, depicted as diamond-like shapes formed by six oxygen atoms; inside each diamond is a gold-colored iridium ion (cation), while pink strontium ions lay near the diamond’s ends. The SrIrO3 layers are separated by non-perovskite (inert) SrO layers, depicted as pink bars. Panel (b) shows the more-recently developed SrIrO3/SrTiO3 superlattice used for this research. Three distinct SrIrO3/SrTiO3 superlattices were created, having 1, 2, or 3 layers of inert SrTiO3 layers (colored green) separating the active SrIrO3 layers. Bold green boxes highlight the number of inert SrTiO3 layers in the three distinct lattices. While both SrIrO3 (gold diamonds) and SrTiO3 (green diamonds) are perovskites, the green-colored SrTiO3 layers buffer the active SrIrO3 layers. (The entire image is visible here)