Tuning the structure of ultrathin BaTiO3 films on Me(001) (Me=Fe, Pd, Pt) surfaces

H L Meyerheim; A Ernst; K Mohseni; I V Maznichenko; J Henk; S Ostanin; N Jedrecy; F Klimenta; J Zegenhagen; C Schlueter; I Mertig; J Kirschner

doi:10.1103/PhysRevLett.111.105501

Tuning the structure of ultrathin BaTiO3 films on Me(001) (Me=Fe, Pd, Pt) surfaces

Phys Rev Lett. 2013 Sep 6;111(10):105501. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.111.105501. Epub 2013 Sep 4.

Authors

H L Meyerheim¹, A Ernst², K Mohseni¹, I V Maznichenko³, J Henk³, S Ostanin¹, N Jedrecy⁴, F Klimenta¹, J Zegenhagen⁵, C Schlueter⁵, I Mertig⁶, J Kirschner⁶

Affiliations

¹ Max-Planck-Institut für Mikrostrukturphysik, Weinberg 2, D-06120 Halle, Germany.
² Max-Planck-Institut für Mikrostrukturphysik, Weinberg 2, D-06120 Halle, Germany and Wilhelm-Ostwald-Institut für Physikalische und Theoretische Chemie, Universität Leipzig, Linnéstraße 2, 04103 Leipzig, Germany.
³ Institut für Physik, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg, D-06099 Halle, Germany.
⁴ Institut des Nano Sciences de Paris, UPMC-Sorbonne Universités, CNRS-UMR7588, 75005 Paris, France.
⁵ ESRF, Boîte Postale 220, F-38043 Grenoble Cedex, France.
⁶ Max-Planck-Institut für Mikrostrukturphysik, Weinberg 2, D-06120 Halle, Germany and Institut für Physik, Martin-Luther-Universität Halle-Wittenberg, D-06099 Halle, Germany.

PMID: 25166678
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.111.105501

Abstract

Using surface x-ray diffraction in combination with ab initio calculations, we demonstrate that the atomic structure of ultrathin BaTiO3 (BTO) films grown on Me(001) surfaces (Me=Fe, Pd, Pt) depends on subtle modifications of the interface chemical composition. A complete reversal of the surface termination from a BaO- [BTO on Fe(001)] to a TiO2-terminated film [BTO on Pt(001)] is observed which goes in parallel with the adsorption of submonolayer amounts of oxygen at metal hollow sites of the interface. Our results may suggest a new route to an overall control of both the surface and the interface geometry in BaTiO3/metal contacts.