Control of the metal-insulator transition in NdNiO 3 thin films through the interplay between structural and electronic properties

The metal-insulator transition in NdNiO${}_{3}$ macroscopically manifests close-lying energy scales of lattice and electronic degrees of freedom. Hence, epitaxial heterostructures offer fascinating possibilities to manipulate these degrees of freedom. Here, the authors show that the metal-insulator transition in NdNiO${}_{3}$ epitaxial thin films grown on different facets of the same orthorhombic substrate varies over a wide temperature range. Authors' combined results from electrical transport measurements, scanning transmission electron microscopy, and $a\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}b$ $i\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}n\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}i\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}t\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}i\phantom{\rule{0}{0ex}}o$ theory give detailed insights into the interplay of structural pinning, lattice mismatch, and electronic interactions promoting the complex facet and thickness dependence of the metal-insulator transition in NdNiO${}_{3}$.