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Updated: May 11, 2026
Applying Dynamic Strain on Thin Oxide Films Immobilized on a Pseudoelastic Nickel-Titanium Alloy
Published on: July 28, 2020
Modifying the electronic orbitals of nickelate heterostructures via structural distortions
Hanghui Chen1, Divine P Kumah, Ankit S Disa
1Department of Physics, Columbia University, New York, New York 10027, USA.
Abstract:
We describe a general materials design approach that produces large orbital energy splittings (orbital polarization) in nickelate heterostructures, creating a two-dimensional single-band electronic surface at the Fermi energy. The resulting electronic structure mimics that of the high temperature cuprate superconductors. The two key ingredients are (i) the construction of atomic-scale distortions about the Ni site via charge transfer and internal electric fields, and (ii) the use of three-component (tricomponent) superlattices to break inversion symmetry. We use ab initio calculations to implement the approach, with experimental verification of the critical structural motif that enables the design to succeed.
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