Enhanced low field magnetoresistance of Al2O3-La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 composite thin films via a pulsed laser deposition

Al2O3-doped La0.7Sr0.3MnO3(Al2O3-LSMO) thin films were deposited on Si(111) substrate via a pulsed laser deposition. The deposited Al2O3-LSMO composite thin films were characterized by x-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and electro- and magneto-transport measurements. The main phase in the Al2O3-LSMO composite films was the perovskite phase. Texturelike microstructure was observed in the Al2O3-LSMO composite films while the average grain size remained almost unchanged compared to the pure samples. The metal-insulator transition temperature decreased as a result of the addition of Al2O3 and further reduced with increasing Al2O3 content. A maximum low field mangetoresistance of similar to15% was achieved in the 2/20 Al2O3-LSMO thin films, which could be well explained in terms of the grain boundary tunneling effect. The composition of the composite thin films can be easily tuned by adjusting the target composition. This method is believed to be applicable to exploring the combinations of other manganites and insulators. (C) 2004 American Institute of Physics.