Perspective on Epitaxial NiCo2O4 Film as an Emergent Spintronic Material: Magnetism and Transport Properties

Abstract

The ferrimagnetic inverse spinel NiCo2O4 has attracted extensive research interests for its versatile electrochemical properties, robust magnetic order, high conductivity, and fast spin dynamics, as well as its highly tunable nature due to the closely coupled charge, spin, orbital, lattice, and defect effects. Single-crystalline epitaxial thin films of NiCo2O4 present a model system for elucidating the intrinsic physical properties and strong tunability, which are not viable in bulk single crystals. In this perspective, we discuss the recent advances in epitaxial NiCo2O4 thin films, focusing on understanding its unusual magnetic and transport properties in light of crystal structure and electronic structure. The perpendicular magnetic anisotropy in compressively strained NiCo2O4 films is explained by considering the strong spin-lattice coupling, particularly on Co ions. The prominent effect of growth conditions reveals the complex interplay between the crystal structure, cation stoichiometry, valence state, and site occupancy. NiCo2O4 thin films also exhibit various magnetotransport anomalies, including linear magnetoresistance and sign change in anomalous Hall effect, which illustrate the competing effects of band intrinsic Berry phase and impurity scattering. The fundamental understanding of these phenomena will facilitate the functional design of NiCo2O4 thin films for nanoscale spintronic applications.

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Cited by in corpus (6)

• Interfacial and Surface Magnetism in Epitaxial NiCo2O4(001)/MgAl2O4 Films
• All-optical helicity-dependent switching in NiCo${}_2$O${}_4$ thin films
• High-mobility inertial domain walls driven by spin-transfer torque in a ferrimagnetic spinel oxide
• Type-II-like ultrafast demagnetization behavior in NiCo2O4 thin films
• Giant Topological Hall Effect Across Wide Temperature in Pt/NiCo2O4 Heterostructure
• Intrinsic Exchange Bias from Interfacial Reconstruction in an Epitaxial NixCoyFe3-x-yO4(111)/α-Al2O3(0001) Thin Film Family