The inverse spinel ferrimagnetic NiCo2 O4 presents a unique model system for studying the competing effects of crystalline fields, magnetic exchange, and various types of chemical and lattice disorder on the electronic and magnetic states. Here, magnetotransport anomalies in high-quality epitaxial NiCo2 O4 thin films resulting from the complex energy landscape are reported. A strong out-of-plane magnetic anisotropy, linear magnetoresistance, and robust anomalous Hall effect above 300 K are observed in 5-30 unit cell NiCo2 O4 films. The anomalous Hall resistance exhibits a nonmonotonic temperature dependence that peaks around room temperature, and reverses its sign at low temperature in films thinner than 20 unit cells. The scaling relation between the anomalous Hall conductivity and longitudinal conductivity reveals the intricate interplay between the spin-dependent impurity scattering, band intrinsic Berry phase effect, and electron correlation. This study provides important insights into the functional design of NiCo2 O4 for developing spinel-based spintronic applications.
Keywords: Berry phase effect; anomalous Hall effect; epitaxial thin film; inverse spinel; perpendicular magnetic anisotropy.
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