Ultra-high purity elemental sources have long been considered a prerequisite for obtaining low impurity concentrations in compound semiconductors in the world of molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) since its inception in 1968. However, we demonstrate that a “dirty” solid precursor, ruthenium(III) acetylacetonate [also known as Ru(acac)3], can yield single-phase, epitaxial, and superconducting Sr2RuO4 films with the same ease and control as III–V MBE. A superconducting transition was observed at ∼0.9 K, suggesting a low defect density and a high degree of crystallinity in these films. In contrast to the conventional MBE, which employs the ultra-pure Ru metal evaporated at ∼2000 °C as a Ru source, along with reactive ozone to obtain Ru → Ru4+ oxidation, the use of the Ru(acac)3 precursor significantly simplifies the MBE process by lowering the temperature for Ru sublimation (less than 200 °C) and by eliminating the need for ozone. Combining these results with the recent developments in hybrid MBE, we argue that leveraging the precursor chemistry will be necessary to realize next-generation breakthroughs in the synthesis of atomically precise quantum materials.
- Award ID(s):
- 2011401
- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10410925
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- APL Materials
- Volume:
- 10
- Issue:
- 9
- ISSN:
- 2166-532X
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 091118
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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- Free Publicly Accessible Full Text
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Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.1063/5.0110707
