Quasi-Homoepitaxial Growth of Highly Strained Alkali-Metal Ultrathin Films on Kagome Superconductors.

ABSTRACT: Applying lattice strain to thin films, a critical factor to tailor their properties such as stabilizing a structural phase unstable at ambient pressure, generally necessitates heteroepitaxial growth to control the lattice mismatch with substrate. Therefore, while homoepitaxy, the growth of thin film on a substrate made of the same material, is a useful method to fabricate high-quality thin films, its application to studying strain-induced structural phases is limited. Contrary to this general belief, here the quasi-homoepitaxial growth of Cs and Rb thin films is reported with substantial in-plane compressive strain. This is achieved by utilizing the alkali-metal layer existing in bulk crystal of kagome metals AV₃Sb₅ (A = Cs and Rb) as a structural template. The angle-

SUBMITTER: Kato T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11304331 | biostudies-literature | 2024 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature