title: Epitaxial Stabilization of the Perovskite Phase in (Sr(1-x)Ba(x))MnO3 Thin Films.
abstract: A novel mechanism of ferroelectricity driven by off-centering magnetic Mn(4+) ions was proposed in (Sr1-xBax)MnO3, in its ideal perovskite phase, which yields enormous expectations in the search for strong magnetoelectric materials. Still, the desired perovskite phase has never been stabilized in thin films due to its extremely metastable character. Here, we report on a thorough study of the perovskite phase stabilization of (Sr1-xBax)MnO3 thin films, 0.2 ≤ x ≤ 0.5, grown by pulsed laser deposition onto (001)-oriented perovskite substrates. X-ray diffraction measurements and scanning transmission electron microscopy reveal that, under appropriate deposition conditions, the perovskite phase is fully stabilized over the nonferroelectric hexagonal phase, despite the latter being increasingly favored on increasing Ba-content. Moreover, we have managed to grow epitaxial coherent cube-on-cube (Sr1-xBax)MnO3 films upon strains ranging from 0% to 4%. Our results become a milestone in further studying perovskite (Sr1-xBax)MnO3 thin films and pave the way for tailoring ferroic and magnetoelectric properties either by strain engineering or Ba-doping.
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Nanociencia de Aragón, Universidad de Zaragoza , 50018 Zaragoza, Spain.
authors.forename: Eric
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Langenberg
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Microscopías Avanzadas, Instituto de Nanociencia de Aragón, Universidad de Zaragoza , 50018 Zaragoza, Spain.
authors.forename: Roger
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Guzmán
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Nanociencia de Aragón, Universidad de Zaragoza , 50018 Zaragoza, Spain.|Departamento de Física de la Materia Condensada, Universidad de Zaragoza , 50009 Zaragoza, Spain.
authors.forename: Laura
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Maurel
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Nanociencia de Aragón, Universidad de Zaragoza , 50018 Zaragoza, Spain.
authors.forename: Lourdes
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Martínez de Baños
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Nanociencia de Aragón, Universidad de Zaragoza , 50018 Zaragoza, Spain.|Departamento de Física de la Materia Condensada, Universidad de Zaragoza , 50009 Zaragoza, Spain.
authors.forename: Luis
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Morellón
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Nanociencia de Aragón, Universidad de Zaragoza , 50018 Zaragoza, Spain.|Laboratorio de Microscopías Avanzadas, Instituto de Nanociencia de Aragón, Universidad de Zaragoza , 50018 Zaragoza, Spain.|Departamento de Física de la Materia Condensada, Universidad de Zaragoza , 50009 Zaragoza, Spain.
authors.forename: M Ricardo
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: Ibarra
authors.affiliation: ALBA Synchrotron , 08290 Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Spain.
authors.forename: Javier
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Herrero-Martín
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Física de la Materia Condensada, Universidad de Zaragoza , 50009 Zaragoza, Spain.|Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Aragón, Universidad de Zaragoza-CSIC , 50009 Zaragoza, Spain.
authors.forename: Javier
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Blasco
authors.affiliation: Laboratorio de Microscopías Avanzadas, Instituto de Nanociencia de Aragón, Universidad de Zaragoza , 50018 Zaragoza, Spain.|Departamento de Física de la Materia Condensada, Universidad de Zaragoza , 50009 Zaragoza, Spain.|Fundación ARAID , 50018 Zaragoza, Spain.
authors.forename: César
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Magén
authors.affiliation: Departamento de Física de la Materia Condensada, Universidad de Zaragoza , 50009 Zaragoza, Spain.|Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Aragón, Universidad de Zaragoza-CSIC , 50009 Zaragoza, Spain.
authors.forename: Pedro A
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Algarabel
authors.affiliation: Instituto de Nanociencia de Aragón, Universidad de Zaragoza , 50018 Zaragoza, Spain.|Laboratorio de Microscopías Avanzadas, Instituto de Nanociencia de Aragón, Universidad de Zaragoza , 50018 Zaragoza, Spain.|Departamento de Ciencia y Tecnología de Materiales y Fluidos, Universidad de Zaragoza , 50018 Zaragoza, Spain.
authors.forename: José A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Pardo
keywords: (Sr1−xBax)MnO3 thin films; epitaxial stabilization; ferroelectrics; multiferroics; perovskite phase stability; pulsed laser deposition