Magnetothermopower ofδ-dopedLaTiO3/SrTiO3interfaces in the Kondo regime

Abstract

Measurements of magnetothermopower [S (H,T)] of interfacial δ-doped LaTiO3/SrTiO3 (LTO/STO) heterostructure by an isostructural antiferromagnetic perovskite LaCrO3 are reported. The thermoelectric power of the pure LTO/STO interface at 300 K is ≈118 μV /K, but increases dramatically on δ doping. The observed linear temperature dependence of S (T) over the temperature range 100 to 300 K is in agreement with the theory of diffusion thermopower of a two-dimensional electron gas. The S (T) displays a distinct enhancement in the temperature range (T < 100 K) where the sheet resistance shows a Kondo-type minimum. We attributed this maximum in S (T) to Kondo scattering of conduction electron by localized impurity spins at the interface. The suppression of S by a magnetic field and the isotropic nature of the suppression in out-of-plane and in-plane field geometries further strengthen the Kondo-model-based interpretation of S (H,T).