On the resistance minimum in LaAlO${}_3$/Eu${}_{1-x}$La${}_x$TiO${}_3$/SrTiO${}_3$ heterostructures

Abstract

In this paper we study LaAlO${}_3$/Eu${}_{1-x}$La${}_x$TiO${}_3$/SrTiO${}_3$ structures with nominally x = 0, 0.1 and different thicknesses of the Eu${}_{1-x}$La${}_x$TiO${}_3$ layer. We observe that both systems have many properties similar to previously studied LaAlO${}_3$/EuTiO${}_3$/SrTiO${}_3$ and other oxide interfaces, such as the formation of a 2D electron liquid for 1 or 2 unit cells of Eu${}_{1-x}$La${}_x$TiO${}_3$; a metal-insulator transition driven by the thickness increase of Eu${}_{1-x}$La${}_x$TiO${}_3$ layer; the presence of an Anomalous Hall effect (AHE) when driving the systems above the Lifshitz point with a backgate voltage; and a minimum in the temperature dependence of the sheet resistance below the Lifshitz point in the one-band regime, which becomes more pronounced with increasing gate voltage. However, and notwithstanding the likely presence of magnetism in the system, we do not attribute that minimum to the Kondo effect, but rather to the properties of SrTiO${}_3$ crystal and the inevitable effects of charge trapping when using back gates.

9 pages, 6 figures