Surface topography and electrical properties in Sr2FeMoO6 films studied at cryogenic temperatures

Pulsed laser deposited Sr₂FeMoO₆ thin films were investigated for the first time with scanning tunneling microscopy and spectroscopy. The results confirm atomic scale layer growth, with step-terrace structure corresponding to a single lattice cell scale. The spectroscopy research reveals a distribution of local electrical properties linked to structural deformation in the initial thin film layers at the film substrate interface. Significant hole structure giving rise to electrically distinctive regions in thinner film also seems to set a thickness limit for the thinnest films to be used in applications.