Modulation-doping a correlated electron insulator

Debasish Mondal, Smruti Rekha Mahapatra, Abigail M. Derrico, Rajeev Kumar Rai, Jay R. Paudel, Christoph Schlueter, Andrei Gloskovskii, Rajdeep Banerjee, Atsushi Hariki, Frank M. F. DeGroot, D. D. Sarma, Awadhesh Narayan, Pavan Nukala, Alexander X. Gray () and Naga Phani B. Aetukuri ()
Additional contact information
Debasish Mondal: Indian Institute of Science
Smruti Rekha Mahapatra: Indian Institute of Science
Abigail M. Derrico: Temple University
Rajeev Kumar Rai: Indian Institute of Science
Jay R. Paudel: Temple University
Christoph Schlueter: Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron
Andrei Gloskovskii: Deutsches Elektronen-Synchrotron
Rajdeep Banerjee: Indian Institute of Science
Atsushi Hariki: Osaka Metropolitan University
Frank M. F. DeGroot: Utrecht University, Inorganic Chemistry and Catalysis Group Universiteitsweg 99
D. D. Sarma: Indian Institute of Science
Awadhesh Narayan: Indian Institute of Science
Pavan Nukala: Indian Institute of Science
Alexander X. Gray: Temple University
Naga Phani B. Aetukuri: Indian Institute of Science

Nature Communications, 2023, vol. 14, issue 1, 1-11

Abstract: Abstract Correlated electron materials (CEMs) host a rich variety of condensed matter phases. Vanadium dioxide (VO2) is a prototypical CEM with a temperature-dependent metal-to-insulator (MIT) transition with a concomitant crystal symmetry change. External control of MIT in VO2—especially without inducing structural changes—has been a long-standing challenge. In this work, we design and synthesize modulation-doped VO2-based thin film heterostructures that closely emulate a textbook example of filling control in a correlated electron insulator. Using a combination of charge transport, hard X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and structural characterization, we show that the insulating state can be doped to achieve carrier densities greater than 5 × 1021 cm−3 without inducing any measurable structural changes. We find that the MIT temperature (TMIT) continuously decreases with increasing carrier concentration. Remarkably, the insulating state is robust even at doping concentrations as high as ~0.2 e−/vanadium. Finally, our work reveals modulation-doping as a viable method for electronic control of phase transitions in correlated electron oxides with the potential for use in future devices based on electric-field controlled phase transitions.

Date: 2023
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-023-41816-3

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