Effect of oxygen partial pressure on the magnetic properties of La_2/3Sr_1/3MnO₃ films grown on SrTiO₃ (1 1 1) substrates by pulsed laser deposition

The influence of oxygen partial pressure on phase formation and magnetic properties of LSMO (La_2/3Sr_1/3MnO₃) thin films deposited on STO (1 1 1) substrates by pulsed laser deposition was investigated. Phase formation and epitaxial growth were confirmed by X-ray diffraction. Good crystalline mosaic is observed for oxygen partial pressures ranging from 0.3 to 1.0 mbar. For each of the pressures, the lattice parameters were estimated assuming the lattice distortion is volume conserving. The Curie temperatures T_C vs lattice strain relation thus obtained is comparable to the available data in literature. Variation in coercive field of the films can be accounted for by the variation in T_C