Thin Film of Perovskite Oxide with Atomic Scale p-n Junctions

Thin films of perovskite manganese oxide La_0.66Ca_0.29K_0.05MnO₃(LCKMO) on Au/ITO(ITO=indium tin oxide) substrates were prepared by off-axis radio frequency magnetron sputtering and characterized by X-ray diffraction( XRD), high-resolution transmission electron microscopy(HRTEM), and conductive atomic force microscopy (C-AFM) at room temperature. The thin films with thickness ranged from 100 nm to 300 nm basically show cubic structures with a=0.3886 nm, the same as that of the raw material used, but the structures are highly modulated. C-AFM results revealed that the atomic scale p-n junction feature of the thin films was the same as that of the single crystals. The preparation of the thin films thus further confirms the possibility of their application extending from micrometer-sized single crystals to macroscopic thin film.