From high-T_c superconductors to highly correlated Mott insulators-25 years of pulsed laser deposition of functional oxides in Leipzig

摘要

Pulsed laser deposition (PLD) in Leipzig started in 1989 with Bi_2Sr_2Ca_1Cu_2O_8 high-T_c superconducting thin films grown in a laser-ionization mass spectrometer. Here, we briefly review 25 years of development of advanced PLD processes in Leipzig and their application to high-T_c superconducting, wide-bandgap semiconducting and multiferroic thin films, nanostructures and composites. The first two decades were devoted to large-area and double-sided YBa_2Cu_3O_(7-δ) thin films and hetero- and homoepitaxial ZnO-based films and nanowires, respectively. Based on that, transparent, oxide-based electronic devices are processed with epitaxial n-ZnO:Mg, Ga_2O_3, In_2O_3, or TiO_2 films. Amorphous oxide films of p-ZnCo_2O_4 and p-NiO provide p-type counterparts in highly rectifying pn-junction devices and are an environmentally friendly alternative. Magnetoelectric multiferroic composites, and highly correlated iridate thin films are other current hot research topics. PLD appears as one of the most flexible growth techniques for functional oxides on research and demonstrator level.