Growth of atomically smooth thin films of the electronically phase separated manganite (La$_{0.5}$Pr$_{0.5}$)$_{0.67}$Ca$_{0.33}$MnO$_{3}$

Abstract

Atomically flat, epitaxial, and stoichiometric thin films of the electronically phase separated compound (La$_{0.5}$Pr$_{0.5}$)$_{0.67}$Ca$_{0.33}$MnO$_{3}$ were grown on as-received and treated NdGaO$_{3}$ substrates by fine tuning of oxygen pressure during deposition. Optimal thin films with step flow growth mode show superior physical properties compared to thin films grown in off-optimal oxygen pressures, {\em viz.} the highest maximum temperature coefficient of resistance, the highest peak-resistivity temperature, and reduced coercive fields. Transport, magnetization, and x-ray diffraction measurements indicate that the oxygen pressure during growth plays a critical role in the formation of oxygen vacancies, cation vacancies, and grain boundaries.