Epitaxial stabilization of ε-Fe2O3 (00l) thin films on SrTiO3 (111)

Thin films of the metastable and elusive epsilon-Fe2O3 have been epitaxially stabilized on SrTiO3 (111) substrates. The epsilon-Fe2O3 films present a (001) orientation perpendicular to the substrate and three in-plane domains measuring a few nanometers and showing atomically sharp interfaces. We argue that this domain structure, rather than the epitaxial-strain, plays an essential role in stabilizing the epsilon-Fe2O3 by minimizing the energy of (100) surfaces. The epsilon-Fe2O3 films show a large in-plane coercivity similar to 8 kOe which combined with the magnetoelectric character claimed for this oxide may lead to novel applications in spintronics.