Extreme magnetoresistance at high-mobility oxide heterointerfaces with dynamic defect tunability

Abstract

Magnetic field-induced changes in the electrical resistance of materials reveal insights into the fundamental properties governing their electronic and magnetic behavior. Various classes of magnetoresistance have been realized, including giant, colossal, and extraordinary magnetoresistance, each with distinct physical origins. In recent years, extreme magnetoresistance (XMR) has been observed in topological and non-topological materials displaying a non-saturating magnetoresistance reaching 10³-10⁸% in magnetic fields up to 60 T. XMR is often intimately linked to a gapless band structure with steep bands and charge compensation. Here, we show that a linear XMR of 80,000% at 15 T and 2 K emerges at the high-mobility interface between the large band-gap oxides γ-Al₂O₃ and SrTiO₃. Despite the chemically and electronically very dissimilar environment, the temperature/field phase diagrams of γ-Al₂O₃/SrTiO₃ bear a striking resemblance to XMR semimetals. By comparing magnetotransport, microscopic current imaging, and momentum-resolved band structures, we conclude that the XMR in γ-Al₂O₃/SrTiO₃ is not strongly linked to the band structure, but arises from weak disorder enforcing a squeezed guiding center motion of electrons. We also present a dynamic XMR self-enhancement through an autonomous redistribution of quasi-mobile oxygen vacancies. Our findings shed new light on XMR and introduce tunability using dynamic defect engineering.