Extreme Reconfigurable Nanoelectronics at the CaZrO₃ /SrTiO₃ Interface

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Condensed Matter Physics
• Nanotechnology

Background:

• Complex oxide heterostructures exhibit emergent properties due to bulk characteristics and dimensional confinement.
• Polar/nonpolar interfaces like LaAlO3/SrTiO3 show switchable conductivity via conductive atomic force microscopy (c-AFM) lithography.
• Controlling nonpolar oxide interfaces at the nanoscale presents unique challenges and opportunities.

Purpose of the Study:

• To achieve extreme nanoscale control over the nonpolar CaZrO3/SrTiO3 (CZO/STO) interface.
• To realize and characterize ultrathin nanostructures at the CZO/STO interface.
• To explore the potential of these nanostructures for oxide nanoelectronics and fundamental physics investigations.

Main Methods:

• Utilizing conductive atomic force microscopy (c-AFM) lithography for nanoscale patterning.
• Fabricating ultrathin nanowires at the CZO/STO interface at room temperature.
• Constructing devices with quasi-1D channels, tunnel barriers, and planar gates for cryogenic measurements.

Main Results:

• Realization of CZO/STO interface nanowires with widths as narrow as 1.2 nm at room temperature.
• Demonstration of gate-tunable superconductivity, quantum oscillations, and electron pairing in cryogenic measurements.
• Observation of quasi-ballistic transport in the fabricated nanostructures.

Conclusions:

• Extreme nanoscale control over nonpolar oxide interfaces is achievable, expanding the range of patternable materials.
• Ultrathin CZO/STO nanostructures offer a promising platform for alternative oxide-based nanoelectronics.
• These findings open new avenues for investigating the electronic structure and quantum phenomena at complex oxide interfaces.