Magnetic domain wall motion in SrRuO$_3$ thin films

TL;DR

This study investigates how substrate miscut angles affect magnetization dynamics and defect density in SrRuO$_3$ thin films, revealing that high miscut substrates improve magnetic quality by reducing defects.

Contribution

It demonstrates that high substrate miscut angles suppress multi-variant growth, leading to fewer defects and better magnetic properties in SrRuO$_3$ thin films.

Findings

High miscut substrates suppress multi-variant growth.

Defect density influences magnetization reversal processes.

High miscut substrates improve magnetic properties.

Abstract

Influence of substrate miscut on magnetization dynamics in SrRuO$_3$ (SRO) thin films was studied. Two films were grown on SrTiO$_3$ substrates with high ($\sim1^{\circ}$) and low ($\sim0.1^{\circ}$) miscut angles, respectively. As expected, high miscut angle leads to suppression of multi-variant growth. By means of SQUID magnetometry, comparable relaxation effects were observed in both the multi-variant and the nearly single-variant sample. Differences in the magnetization reversal process were revealed by magnetic force microscopy. It showed that the multi-variant growth leads to higher density of defects acting as pinning or nucleation sites for magnetic domains, which consequently results in deterioration of magnetic properties. It was demonstrated that the use of high miscut substrate is important for fabrication of high quality SRO thin films with low density of crystallographic defects and excellent magnetic properties.