3D oxygen vacancy order and defect-property relations in multiferroic (LuFeO$_3$)$_9$/(LuFe$_2$O$_4$)$_1$ superlattices

TL;DR

This study reveals how oxygen vacancy arrangements in multiferroic superlattices influence their electric and magnetic properties, emphasizing the importance of defect control for designing functional oxide heterostructures.

Contribution

The paper introduces an atomic-scale 3D quantification method for oxygen vacancies and links their ordered distribution to multiferroic behavior in LuFeO$_3$/LuFe$_2$O$_4$ superlattices.

Findings

Oxygen vacancies form layered 3D structures with high local density.

Vacancy order stabilizes ferroelectric domains and ferrimagnetism.

Oxygen defect control enables property tuning in oxide heterostructures.

Abstract

Oxide heterostructures exhibit a vast variety of unique physical properties. Examples are unconventional superconductivity in layered nickelates and topological polar order in (PbTiO$_3$)$_n$/(SrTiO$_3$)$_n$ superlattices. Although it is clear that variations in oxygen content are crucial for the electronic correlation phenomena in oxides, it remains a major challenge to quantify their impact. Here, we measure the chemical composition in multiferroic (LuFeO$_3$)$_9$/(LuFe$_2$O$_4$)$_1$ superlattices, revealing a one-to-one correlation between the distribution of oxygen vacancies and the electric and magnetic properties. Using atom probe tomography, we observe oxygen vacancies arranging in a layered three-dimensional structure with a local density on the order of 10$^{14}$ cm$^{-2}$, congruent with the formula-unit-thick ferrimagnetic LuFe$_2$O$_4$ layers. The vacancy order is promoted by the locally reduced formation energy and plays a key role in stabilizing the ferroelectric domains and ferrimagnetism in the LuFeO$_3$ and LuFe$_2$O$_4$ layers, respectively. The results demonstrate the importance of oxygen vacancies for the room-temperature multiferroicity in this system and establish an approach for quantifying the oxygen defects with atomic-scale precision in 3D, giving new opportunities for deterministic defect-enabled property control in oxide heterostructures.