Magnetic properties of Fe substituted SrRuO$_{3}$ thin films and SrRuO$_{3}$/Fe$_{2}$O$_{3}$ superlattices

In recent years, SrRuO$_{3}$ thin films have received considerable interest because of their potential for use as electrodes in oxide-based spintronic applications. SrRuO$_{3}$ bulk materials are known to exhibit good room temperature thermal and electrical conductivity, a stable perovskite crystal structure, and itinerant ferromagnetic properties at temperatures below 163 K. To the best of our knowledge, attempts to enhance the magnetic properties of SrRuO$_{3}$ through chemical substitutions of transition metal elements (e.g., Fe, Co, Mn, Cu, Zn, Ti, Cr, etc) at the Ru site, all failed except for the case of Cr substitutions in which T$_{C}$ was successfully raised to 190 K. In this work, we will demonstrate the drastically different effects of Fe on the magnetic properties of SrRuO$_{3}$ bulk materials and thin films. We will also show and discuss the magnetic properties of SrRuO$_{3}$/Fe$_{2}$O$_{3}$ superlattices. Work supported by the NSF (DMR-0706610) and the DOE-Office of Science (DEAC-02-06CH11357).