Probing three-dimensional magnetic excitation in strain-engineering SrCoO3

Epitaxial strain provides an important method to control the magnetic and electronic states. Recent transport and XMCD experiments on SrCoO3 films (thickness ~30 nm) show that there exists a metal-to-insulator transition (MIT) with the tensile strain up to 3%, while the ferromagnetic (FM) state is robust and Curie temperature is almost unchanged. The persistent FM state conflicts with the first-principles calculations that predict the transition between FM and antiferromagnetic (AFM) state is induced by the tensile strain, which calls for further investigation of the intrinsic mechanism of this magnetic compound. Here we proposed to use resonant inelastic x-ray scattering (RIXS) at Co L3-edge (~ 780 eV) to study the three-dimensional spin excitations in strain-engineering SrCoO3 thin films on various substrates. The results will help to uncover the underlying spin mechanisms of SrCoO3, and provide valuable information on how to realize novel functionalities via stain engineering.