Strain engineering of the magnetic anisotropy and magnetic moment in NdFeO3 epitaxial thin films

Strain engineering is a powerful mean for tuning the various functionalities of $AB{\mathrm{O}}_{3}$ perovskite oxide thin films. Rare-earth orthoferrite $R{\mathrm{FeO}}_{3}$ materials such as ${\mathrm{NdFeO}}_{3}$ (NFO) are of prime interest because of their intriguing magnetic properties as well as their technological potential applications especially as thin films. Here, using a large set of complementary and advanced techniques, we show that NFO epitaxial thin films, successfully grown by pulsed laser deposition on (001)-${\mathrm{SrTiO}}_{3}$, show a strong magnetic anisotropy below a critical thickness ${t}_{\mathrm{c}}$ of \ensuremath{\sim}54 nm, associated with the occurrence of structural modifications related to symmetry and domain pattern changes. By varying the tensile misfit strain through the decrease of film thickness below ${t}_{c}$, the amplitudes of in- and out-of-plane magnetization can be continuously tuned while their ratio stays constant. Furthermore, different low-temperature magnetic behaviors are evidenced for strained and relaxed films, suggesting that the strain-induced structural state impacts the magnetic phase stability.