Low-temperature ferromagnetism in tensile-strained LaCoO_(2.5)thin film

The origin of ferromagnetism in epitaxial strained LaCoO_(3-x)films has long been controversial.Here,we investigated the magnetic behavior of a series of oxygen vacancy-ordered LaCoO_(3-x)films on different substrates.Obvious ferromagnetism was observed in perovskite LaCoO_(3)/LSAT(LSAT=(LaAlO_(3))0.3(SrAlTaO_(6))_(0.7))and LaCoO_(3)/SrTiO_(3) films,while LaCoO_(3)/LaAlO_(3)films showed weak ferromagnetic behavior.Meanwhile,LaCoO_(2.67) films exhibited antiferromagnetic behavior.An unexpected low-temperature ferromagnetic phenomenon with a Curie temperature of~83 K and a saturation magnetization of~1.2μB/Co was discovered in 15 nm thick LaCoO_(2.5)/LSAT thin films,which is probably related to the change in the interface CoO_(6) octahedron rotation pattern.Meanwhile,the observed ferromagnetism gradually disappeared as the thickness of the film increased,indicating a relaxation of tensile strain.Analysis suggests that the rotation and rhombohedral distortion of the CoO_(6) octahedron weakened the crystal field splitting and promoted the generation of the ordered high-spin state of Co^(2+).Thus the super-exchange effect between Co^(2+)(high spin state),Co^(2+)(low spin state)and Co^(2+)(high spin state)produced a low-temperature ferromagnetic behavior.However,compressive-strained LaCoO_(2.5)film on a LaAlO_(3)substrate showed normal anti-ferromagnetic behavior.These results demonstrate that both oxygen vacancies and tensile strain are correlated with the emergent magnetic properties in epitaxial LaCoO_(3-x)films and provide a new perspective to regulate the magnetic properties of transition oxide thin films.

Multicaloric and coupled-caloric effects

The multicaloric effect refers to the thermal response of a solid material driven by simultaneous or sequential application of more than one type of external field.For practical applications,the multicaloric effect is a potentially interesting strategy to improve the efficiency of refrigeration devices.Here,the state of the art in multi-field driven multicaloric effect is reviewed.The phenomenology and fundamental thermodynamics of the multicaloric effect are well established.A number of theoretical and experimental research approaches are covered.At present,the theoretical understanding of the multicaloric effect is thorough.However,due to the limitation of the current experimental technology,the experimental approach is still in progress.All these researches indicated that the thermal response and effective reversibility of multiferroic materials can be improved through multicaloric cycles to overcome the inherent limitations of the physical mechanisms behind single-field-induced caloric effects.Finally,the viewpoint of further developments is presented.