Temperature dependence of the magnetoelectric effect in Pb(Zr0.2Ti0.8)O3/La0.8Sr0.2MnO3 multiferroic heterostructures

The magnetoelectric response of Pb(Zr0.2Ti0.8)O-3/La0.8Sr0.2MnO3 (PZT/LSMO) artificial multiferroic heterostructures as a function of temperature, electric, and magnetic field, shows that the largest magnetoelectric coupling is attained at temperatures near the magnetic critical point of LSMO, at similar to 180 K (-13.5 Oe cm kV(-1)). The magnetoelectric coupling displays a strong temperature dependence, changing sign at 150 K and saturating to positive values below similar to 100 K (+6 Oe cm kV(-1)). The magnetoelectric curve switches hysteretically between two states in response to the ferroelectric switching. The peak in the magnetoelectric response coincides with the observation of on/off switching of magnetism in LSMO near the critical region, where the sensitivity to electric field is largest, making it a promising approach for device applications. (C) 2010 American Institute of Physics. [doi:10.1063/1.3472259]