Metal to insulator transition at the surface of $V_2O_3$ thin films: an\n in-situ view

Abstract

$V_2O_3$ has long been studied as a prototypical strongly correlated\nmaterial. The difficulty in obtaining clean, well ordered surfaces, however,\nhindered the use of surface sensitive techniques to study its electronic\nstructure. Here we show by mean of X-ray diffraction and electrical transport\nthat thin films prepared by pulsed laser deposition can reproduce the\nfunctionality of bulk $V_2O_3$. The same films, when transferred in-situ, show\nan excellent surface quality as indicated by scanning tunnelling microscopy and\nlow energy electron diffraction, representing a viable approach to study the\nmetal-insulator transition (MIT) in $V_2O_3$ by means of angle-resolved\nphotoemission spectroscopy. Combined, these two aspects pave the way for the\nuse of $V_2O_3$ thin films in device-oriented heterostructures.\n