Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 February 2011
Infinite-layer-structure epitaxial thin films of SrFeO2 and LaNiO2 respectively were prepared by low-temperature reduction with CaH2 from brownmillerite SrFeO2.5 and perovskite LaNiO3 epitaxial thin films grown on single-crystal substrates. The reduction process, removing oxygen ions from the perovskite-structure framework and causing rearrangements of oxygen ions, topotactically transforms the initial compounds to the c-axis oriented infinite-layer-structure epitaxial thin films. Consequently, the oxidation state of transition-metal ions in the film changed in wide ranges.