Electric Transport Characteristics of Gallium Iron Oxide Epitaxial Thin Film

ABSTRACTA Ga0.8Fe1.2O3 epitaxial thin film was fabricated on a SrTiO3(111) substrate using pulsed laser deposition. The film is c-axis-oriented and has multiple in-plane domains. In-plane magnetization measurements show that it exhibits ferrimagnetic behavior with a Curie temperature (TC) of 290 K. The insulating film exhibits hopping conduction with a resistivity (ρ) of 4 × 105 Ωcm at 300 K. The ρ value is four orders lower than that of a BiFeO3 film, probably owing to the formation of multiple in-plane domains in the Ga0.8Fe1.2O3 film. Positive magnetoresistance with a maximum value of 3.5% near TC was observed, suggesting that antiferromagnetic interaction between Fe3+ ions decreases carrier transfer between the ions.