The Role of Cation Intermixing, Interfacial Chemistry, and Oxygen Deficiency in Understanding the Properties of the LaFeO3/SrTiO3(100) Interface

The properties of oxide perovskites vary broadly for different cations and stoichiometries, and interfaces between dissimilar oxides can have entirely novel characteristics not seen in the bulk of either material. The anomalous conducting interface between LaAlO3 and SrTiO3(001) has received the most attention, and numerous hypothetical explanations have been posited related to resolution of the polar discontinuity at the interface, including cation inter-diffusion, interfacially-reduced B-site cations, local oxygen deficiency, and various combinations thereof [1–3]. The growing body of research indicates a diverse interplay of these effects in various polar/non-polar perovskite oxide interfaces—possibly specific to each materials system—and a coherent approach to predicting the properties of such interfaces remains elusive.