Freestanding perovskite and infinite-layer nickelate membranes

Following the discovery of superconductivity in hole-doped NdNiO2 infinite-layer thin films, extensive research has been conducted particularly to compare these materials with cuprates. Superconductivity has also been observed in nickelate thin films with other rare-earth elements such as Pr and La,...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Sahib, Hoshang|||0000-0001-6841-7759, Schlur, Laurent|||0009-0001-2320-7632, Mundet, Bernat|||0000-0003-0608-2070, Cordero-Edwards, Kumara|||0000-0003-3721-7863, Viart, Nathalie|||0000-0002-7851-017X, Pesquera, David|||0000-0003-0681-3371, Preziosi, Daniele|||0000-0002-6608-7036
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Fecha de publicación:2025
País:España
Institución:Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
Repositorio:Dipòsit Digital de Documents de la UAB
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:ddd.uab.cat:326344
Acceso en línea:https://ddd.uab.cat/record/326344
https://dx.doi.org/urn:doi:10.1103/PhysRevMaterials.9.014801
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:Cuprates
Infinite-layer
Nickelates
Perovskite layers
Rare-earths
Sacrificial layer
Substrate-induced strain
Thin-films
Topotactic reduction
Watersoluble
Descripción
Sumario:Following the discovery of superconductivity in hole-doped NdNiO2 infinite-layer thin films, extensive research has been conducted particularly to compare these materials with cuprates. Superconductivity has also been observed in nickelate thin films with other rare-earth elements such as Pr and La, but not in their bulk forms, suggesting a critical role for substrate-induced strain/interface or dimensionality effects. In this study, we used water-soluble (Ca,Sr)3Al2O6 sacrificial layers to fabricate freestanding perovskite nickelate membranes and explore the phase transformation to infinite layers of the membranes via topotactic reduction in the absence of any template effect from the substrate. Highly metallic NdNiO3 membranes with bulk-like hysteretic metal-to-insulator transitions could be obtained when transferred from a LaAlO3 substrate. The topotactic reduction of these membranes with CaH2 was shown to be successful as characterized by the expected decrease of the out-of-plane cell parameter and absence of apical oxygens. The reduced membranes, however, displayed insulating characteristics similar to those of bulk infinite-layer nickelates. Our findings strongly indicate that a template is necessary to stabilize a coherent and robust infinite-layer phase with optimal transport properties.