Nanotechnology Now

Our NanoNews Digest Sponsors
Heifer International



Home > Press > 'Exotic' material is like a switch when super thin

Abstract:
Researchers from Cornell University and Brookhaven National Laboratory have shown how to switch a particular transition metal oxide, a lanthanum nickelate (LaNiO3), from a metal to an insulator by making the material less than a nanometer thick.

'Exotic' material is like a switch when super thin

Ithaca, NY | Posted on April 18th, 2014

Ever-shrinking electronic devices could get down to atomic dimensions with the help of transition metal oxides, a class of materials that seems to have it all: superconductivity, magnetoresistance and other exotic properties. These possibilities have scientists excited to understand everything about these materials, and to find new ways to control their properties at the most fundamental levels.

The team of researchers, which published its findings online April 6 in Nature Nanotechnology (to appear in the journal's May issue), includes lead researcher Kyle Shen, associate professor of physics; first author Phil King, a recent Kavli postdoctoral fellow at Cornell now on the faculty at the University of St. Andrews; Darrell Schlom, the Herbert Fisk Johnson Professor of Industrial Chemistry; and co-authors Haofei Wei, Yuefeng Nie, Masaki Uchida, Carolina Adamo, and Shabo Zhu, and Xi He and Ivan Božović.

Using an extremely precise growth technique called molecular-beam epitaxy (MBE), King synthesized atomically thin samples of the lanthanum nickelate and discovered that the material changes abruptly from a metal to an insulator when its thickness is reduced to below 1 nanometer. When that threshold is crossed, its conductivity - the ability for electrons to flow through the material - switches off like a light, a characteristic that could prove useful in nanoscale switches or transistors, Shen said.

Using a one-of-a-kind system at Cornell, which integrates MBE film growth with a technique called angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy (ARPES), King and colleagues mapped out how the motions and interactions of the electrons in the material changed across this threshold, varying the thickness of their oxide films atom by atom. They discovered that when the films were less than 3 nickel atoms thick, the electrons formed an unusual nanoscale order, akin to a checkerboard.

The results demonstrate the ability to control the electronic properties of exotic transition metal oxides at the nanometer scale, as well as revealing the striking cooperative interactions that govern the behavior of the electrons in these ultrathin materials. Their discovery paves the way for making advanced new electronic devices from oxides.

###

The work was supported by the Kavli Institute at Cornell for Nanoscale Science, the Office of Naval Research, the National Science Foundation through the Cornell Center for Materials Research (MRSEC program), and the U.S. Department of Energy, Basic Energy Sciences.

####

For more information, please click here

Contacts:
Syl Kacapyr

607-255-7701

Copyright © Cornell University

If you have a comment, please Contact us.

Issuers of news releases, not 7th Wave, Inc. or Nanotechnology Now, are solely responsible for the accuracy of the content.

Bookmark:
Delicious Digg Newsvine Google Yahoo Reddit Magnoliacom Furl Facebook

Related News Press

News and information

Researchers are cracking the code on solid-state batteries: Using a combination of advanced imagery and ultra-thin coatings, University of Missouri researchers are working to revolutionize solid-state battery performance February 28th, 2025

Unraveling the origin of extremely bright quantum emitters: Researchers from Osaka University have discovered the fundamental properties of single-photon emitters at an oxide/semiconductor interface, which could be crucial for scalable quantum technology February 28th, 2025

Closing the gaps — MXene-coating filters can enhance performance and reusability February 28th, 2025

Rice researchers harness gravity to create low-cost device for rapid cell analysis February 28th, 2025

Govt.-Legislation/Regulation/Funding/Policy

Rice researchers harness gravity to create low-cost device for rapid cell analysis February 28th, 2025

Department of Energy announces $71 million for research on quantum information science enabled discoveries in high energy physics: Projects combine theory and experiment to open new windows on the universe January 17th, 2025

Quantum engineers ‘squeeze’ laser frequency combs to make more sensitive gas sensors January 17th, 2025

Chainmail-like material could be the future of armor: First 2D mechanically interlocked polymer exhibits exceptional flexibility and strength January 17th, 2025

Chip Technology

Development of 'transparent stretchable substrate' without image distortion could revolutionize next-generation displays Overcoming: Poisson's ratio enables fully transparent, distortion-free, non-deformable display substrates February 28th, 2025

New ocelot chip makes strides in quantum computing: Based on "cat qubits," the technology provides a new way to reduce quantum errors February 28th, 2025

Enhancing transverse thermoelectric conversion performance in magnetic materials with tilted structural design: A new approach to developing practical thermoelectric technologies December 13th, 2024

Bringing the power of tabletop precision lasers for quantum science to the chip scale December 13th, 2024

Discoveries

Development of 'transparent stretchable substrate' without image distortion could revolutionize next-generation displays Overcoming: Poisson's ratio enables fully transparent, distortion-free, non-deformable display substrates February 28th, 2025

Unraveling the origin of extremely bright quantum emitters: Researchers from Osaka University have discovered the fundamental properties of single-photon emitters at an oxide/semiconductor interface, which could be crucial for scalable quantum technology February 28th, 2025

Closing the gaps — MXene-coating filters can enhance performance and reusability February 28th, 2025

Rice researchers harness gravity to create low-cost device for rapid cell analysis February 28th, 2025

Announcements

Development of 'transparent stretchable substrate' without image distortion could revolutionize next-generation displays Overcoming: Poisson's ratio enables fully transparent, distortion-free, non-deformable display substrates February 28th, 2025

Unraveling the origin of extremely bright quantum emitters: Researchers from Osaka University have discovered the fundamental properties of single-photon emitters at an oxide/semiconductor interface, which could be crucial for scalable quantum technology February 28th, 2025

Closing the gaps — MXene-coating filters can enhance performance and reusability February 28th, 2025

Rice researchers harness gravity to create low-cost device for rapid cell analysis February 28th, 2025

Interviews/Book Reviews/Essays/Reports/Podcasts/Journals/White papers/Posters

Development of 'transparent stretchable substrate' without image distortion could revolutionize next-generation displays Overcoming: Poisson's ratio enables fully transparent, distortion-free, non-deformable display substrates February 28th, 2025

Leading the charge to better batteries February 28th, 2025

Quantum interference in molecule-surface collisions February 28th, 2025

New ocelot chip makes strides in quantum computing: Based on "cat qubits," the technology provides a new way to reduce quantum errors February 28th, 2025

Military

Quantum engineers ‘squeeze’ laser frequency combs to make more sensitive gas sensors January 17th, 2025

Chainmail-like material could be the future of armor: First 2D mechanically interlocked polymer exhibits exceptional flexibility and strength January 17th, 2025

Single atoms show their true color July 5th, 2024

NRL charters Navy’s quantum inertial navigation path to reduce drift April 5th, 2024

NanoNews-Digest
The latest news from around the world, FREE




  Premium Products
NanoNews-Custom
Only the news you want to read!
 Learn More
NanoStrategies
Full-service, expert consulting
 Learn More











ASP
Nanotechnology Now Featured Books




NNN

The Hunger Project