Preparation and electric field driven magnetoelectric effect for multiferroic La2/3Sr1/3MnO3/BaTiO3 composite films

Using pulsed laser deposition, multiferroic La2/3Sr1/3MnO3(LSMO)/BaTiO3(BTO) composite films are deposited on LaAlIO3(LAO) (001) substrate. X-ray diffraction results show that LSMO and BTO films exhibit only (001) orientation. Film smoothness is verified by their low root-mean-square surface roughness values as 1.4 nm from atomic force microscope study. The magnetic and the electric properties of these composite films are investigated. Furthermore, the variations of resistivity and metal-insulator transition temperature T-MI of LSMO, induced by the external electric field, are studied. The resisitivity is reduced while the T-MI is enhanced for hole accumulation state which is induced by negative electric field across ETO layer. In contrast, the resistivity is enhanced while the T-MI is reduced for hole depletion state, which shows coupling between magnetic and electric order parameters, i.e., there is a magnetoelectric effect induced by electric field.