Aspects of the colossal magnetoresistance material lanthanum calcium manganese oxide across the metal-insulator transition

Some properties of thin films of the colossal magnetoresistance material La0.65Ca0.35MnO3-delta in the c-axis oriented perovskite structure are measured. The resistivity is measured in the transition region and compared against a scattering probability based on Jahn-Teller polarons. The magnetoresistive anisotropy is measured both as a function of temperature and applied magnetic field in the transition and compared against a phase separation model involving double exchange carriers and polarons. Oxygen stoichiometry of the films is investigated by vacuum annealing and is shown to shift the magnetoresistance and the negative anisotropy peak to lower temperatures. An electric field on the order of 1x107 V/m has been shown to have no effect on the resistivity of this material at room temperature and in the transition. Some results regarding the deposition of piezoelectric thin films of PbZr1-xTi xO3 are presented.