Proximity‐Induced Interfacial Antiferromagnetic Coupling in EuO/KTaO <sub>3</sub> Heterostructures with LaTiO <sub>3</sub> Buffer Layers
Abstract Artificial oxide heterostructures provide valuable opportunities for tailoring interfacial magnetic coupling, which is a central topic of spintronics. In this work, the antiferromagnetic interfacial magnetic coupling is demonstrated in EuO/KTaO 3 (001) heterostructures by introducing a LaTiO 3 (LTO) buffer layer. Depth‐resolved polarized neutron reflectometry reveals that ferromagnetic EuO induces magnetism in the adjacent LTO buffer layer and the interfacial KTaO 3 (KTO) through the magnetic proximity effect (MPE). Remarkably, the introduction of the LTO buffer layer at the EuO/KTO interface results in antiparallel alignment between the interfacial KTO layer and EuO, indicating proximity‐induced antiferromagnetic coupling across the spacer layer. Anomalous Hall effect and hysteretic magnetoresistance measurements indicate the presence of spin‐polarized 2D electron gases in the interfacial layer of KTO. The maximum thickness of the LTO buffer layer for EuO to be able to magnetize KTO is 8 uc (≈3.2 nm), beyond which no hysteretic magnetoresistance is observed. Density functional theory calculations suggest that antiferromagnetic coupling lowers the system energy in LTO‐buffered EuO/KTO heterostructure, corroborating the experimental findings. This work highlights the crucial role of interface engineering in controlling interfacial magnetic coupling, providing novel pathways for designing advanced spintronic devices.
Authors
- Weiliang Qiao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7575-4518)
- Jirong Sun (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4531-4794)
- Wei Han (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1757-4479)
- Bang‐Gui Liu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6030-6680)
- Fengxia Hu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0383-0213)
- Ning Wu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0616-3460)
- Tao Zhu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0335-6657)
- Baogen Shen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4819-1806)
- Weisheng S. Zhao (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8088-0404)
- Yuansha Chen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7291-5088)
- Fanqi Meng (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9921-089X)
- Furong Han (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0001-5239-2320)
- Qinghua Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9086-7000)
- Lu Chen (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0003-7950-0883)
- Yang Ma (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5168-0427)
- Lin Gu (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9269-7092)
- Jine Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7949-3239)
- Hui Zhang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1238-8770)
- He Bai (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0007-6941-1579)
- Huaiwen Yang (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0009-6509-1998)
Institutions
- Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN)
- Peking University (CN)
- China Spallation Neutron Source (CN)
- Songshan Lake Materials Laboratory (CN)
- Beijing Institute of Nanoenergy and Nanosystems (CN)
- Institute of Physics (CN)
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CN)
- Ningbo Institute of Industrial Technology (CN)
- Zhejiang University (CN)
- Beihang University (CN)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Advanced Functional Materials
- Published
- 2025-07-01
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202506394
- Citations
- 1
- Primary Topic
- Electronic and Structural Properties of Oxides
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.52
Funders
- National Natural Science Foundation of China
- Chinese Academy of Sciences
- Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia em Biodiversidade e Produtos Naturais
- National Key Research and Development Program of China