Interface exchange coupling controlled electronic transport in (La,Nd)NiO3/La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 multilayer thin films

The hetero-structures of different correlated electronic and magnetic oxides have created fresh hope for the emerging class of oxide electronics. Here, we present a detailed investigation on structural, electrical, and magnetic properties of two such hetero-structures of perovskite nickelates and manganites; i.e., NdNiO₃/La_0.7Sr_0.3MnO₃ (NL) which exhibits metal-insulator (M-I) transition and LaNiO₃/La_0.7Sr_0.3MnO₃ (LL) sans MIT. The interfacial properties of these two heterostructures are scaled and compared as a function of the number of stacking layer periodicity (x) and the layer thickness (n). For NL series, we found a pronounced dependence of M-I transition on 'x' but for LL series, in contrast, we observed a different electronic transition: from a non-Fermi liquid to a Fermi liquid behavior upon reduction of layer thickness. A significant difference in magnetic properties of these two SL series reveals that the rare-earth cation size and/or magnetic order exceptionally control the charge redistribution at the interface of these two different SL series. Overall, this study brings out a broad range of electronic phases that can be realized in nickelate based heterostructures in which the rare-earth cation size can act as an effective controlling parameter.