  The authors report on the interplay between magnetically ordered phases with
temperature and magnetic field across compressively strained interfaces of thin
La0.67Sr0.33MnO3 films on LaAlO3 substrates. From the temperature dependence of
the magnetization and resistivity studies, they find two distinct temperature
regimes, where this interplay is clearly exhibited. They ascribe this to the
strain induced Jahn-Teller-like distortion that favors the stabilization of the
d3z2-r2 orbitals and enhances superexchange between adjoining Mn atoms. The
temperature and field sweep of the magnetization and electronic transport lead
to a hybridization between the closely spaced energy levels of d3z2-r2 and
dx2-y2 orbitals leading to the coexistence of ferromagnetic and
antiferromagnetic phases. Such an observation, not reported earlier, offers new
routes for the design and study of magnetic textures in variously strained
interfaces between perovskite oxides.
