Highly aligned epitaxial nanorods with a checkerboard pattern in oxide films.
One of the central challenges of nanoscience is fabrication of nanoscale structures with well-controlled architectures using planar thin-film technology. Herein, we report that ordered nanocheckerboards in ZnMnGaO4 films were grown epitaxially on single-crystal MgO substrates by utilizing a solid-state method of the phase separation-induced self-assembly. The films consist of two types of chemically distinct and regularly spaced nanorods with mutually coherent interfaces, approximately 4 x 4 x 750 nm3 in size and perfectly aligned along the film growth direction. Surprisingly, a significant in-plane strain, more than 2%, from the substrate is globally maintained over the entire film thickness of about 820 nm. The strain energy from Jahn-Teller distortions and the film-substrate lattice mismatch induce the coherent three-dimensional (3D) self-assembled nanostructure, relieving the volume strain energy while suppressing the formation of dislocations.
Park
S
S
Rutgers Center for Emergent Materials, Rutgers University, Piscataway, New Jersey 08854, USA. floura@physics.rutgers.edu
Horibe
Y
Y
Asada
T
T
Wielunski
L S
LS
Lee
N
N
Bonanno
P L
PL
O'Malley
S M
SM
Sirenko
A A
AA
Kazimirov
A
A
Tanimura
M
M
Gustafsson
T
T
Cheong
S-W
SW
D016880:Anisotropy; D003460:Crystallization / Q000379:methods*; D046911:Macromolecular Substances / Q000737:chemistry; D008422:Materials Testing; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D008968:Molecular Conformation; D036103:Nanotechnology / Q000379:methods*; D043942:Nanotubes / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D010087:Oxides / Q000737:chemistry*; D010316:Particle Size; D013499:Surface Properties
D046911:Macromolecular Substances; D008567:Membranes, Artificial; D010087:Oxides