Spontaneous Supercrystal Formation During a Strain-Engineered Metal–Insulator Transition

Oleg Yu Gorobtsov, Ludi Miao, Ziming Shao, Yueze Tan, Noah Schnitzer, Berit Hansen Goodge, Jacob Ruf, Daniel Weinstock, Mathew Cherukara, Martin Victor Holt, Hari Nair, Long Qing Chen, Lena Fitting Kourkoutis, Darrell G. Schlom, Kyle M. Shen, Andrej Singer

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Mott metal–insulator transitions possess electronic, magnetic, and structural degrees of freedom promising next-generation energy-efficient electronics. A previously unknown, hierarchically ordered, and anisotropic supercrystal state is reported and its intrinsic formation characterized in-situ during a Mott transition in a Ca2RuO4 thin film. Machine learning-assisted X-ray nanodiffraction together with cryogenic electron microscopy reveal multi-scale periodic domain formation at and below the film transition temperature (TFilm ≈ 200–250 K) and a separate anisotropic spatial structure at and above TFilm. Local resistivity measurements imply an intrinsic coupling of the supercrystal orientation to the material's anisotropic conductivity. These findings add a new degree of complexity to the physical understanding of Mott transitions, opening opportunities for designing materials with tunable electronic properties.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Article number2403873
JournalAdvanced Materials
Volume36
Issue number32
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 8 2024

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • General Materials Science
  • Mechanics of Materials
  • Mechanical Engineering

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