Growth and Characterization of Cr<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> and B:Cr<sub>2</sub>O<sub>3</sub> thin films for Spintronics Applications

POSTER

Abstract

Chromium oxide (Cr₂O₃, chromia) and its boron-doped counterpart are archetypal magnetoelectric antiferromagnets with established relevance in voltage-controlled antiferromagnetic spintronics. We synthesize these materials as thin films (20-200 nm) by pulsed laser deposition (PLD). Film quality, measured through parameters such as surface roughness, is crucial for advancing functional substrates toward device-type architectures with memory and logic functionality. To assess structural properties, we employ atomic force microscopy (AFM) and X-ray reflectivity (XRR). For thicker films, XRR becomes limited as Kiessig fringes increasingly less resolvability. We complement AFM and XRR with spectroscopic ellipsometry to determine film thickness and wavelength-dependent effective optical constants. We further investigate whether ellipsometry can distinguish between doped and undoped chromia and explore the possibility of non-volatile, electric-field-induced changes in the optical constants of B-doped chromia films that can be toggled by reversing the field polarity.

*Financial support was provided by the NSF/EPSCoR RII Track-1: Emergent Quantum Materials and Technologies, OIA-2044049. The research was performed in part in the Nebraska Nanoscale Facility: NNCI and the Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, which are supported by the NSF under Award ECCS: 2025298, and the Nebraska Research Initiative.

Presenters

  • Heejae Cho

    • University of Nebraska-Lincoln
    • University of Nebraska -Lincoln, Dept. of Physics and Astronomy and the Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, Lincoln, NE, 68588-0111

Authors

  • Heejae Cho

    • University of Nebraska-Lincoln
    • University of Nebraska -Lincoln, Dept. of Physics and Astronomy and the Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, Lincoln, NE, 68588-0111

  • Abhilash Mishra

    • University of Nebraska - Lincoln
    • University of Nebraska -Lincoln, Dept. of Physics and Astronomy and the Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, Lincoln, NE, 68588-0111

  • Ather Mahmood

    • University of Nebraska - Lincoln
    • University of Nebraska -Lincoln, Dept. of Physics and Astronomy and the Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, Lincoln, NE, 68588-0111

  • Aditi Das

    • University of Nebraska - Lincoln
    • University of Nebraska -Lincoln, Dept. of Physics and Astronomy and the Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, Lincoln, NE, 68588-0111

  • Christian Binek

    • University of Nebraska - Lincoln
    • University of Nebraska -Lincoln, Dept. of Physics and Astronomy and the Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience, Lincoln, NE, 68588-0111