Thermoelectric Properties of SrTiO3 and CaTiO3 Thin Films

Abstract

This thesis studies the thermoelectric properties of SrTiO3 and CaTiO3 thin films. We study the effects of epitaxial strain and incorporated anionic/cationic defects on the functional properties of the thin films. Controlling the parameters during the fabrication process, determines the structural properties of the thin films, which permits the tailoring of the magnetotransport and thermoelectric properties of the thin films. We discuss the similarities in the behaviors observed in our thin films, to the ones reported in LaAlO3/SrTiO3, and other interfaces. We report a dramatic decrease in the thermal conductivity of the thin films due to epitaxial strain, point defects, and ferroelectricity. Moreover, we have observed that oxygen vacancy manipulation in CaTiO3 thin films reveals a ferroelectric-like response.