Epitaxial (001) NiCo2O4 films with perpendicular magnetic anisotropy were grown on (001) MgAl2O4 at various
oxygen pressures of 10-200 mTorr using pulsed laser deposition. X-ray diffraction suggested that the lattice
constant, crystallinity, and deposition rate displayed distinctive changes around 50 mTorr. The temperaturedependent
resistance displayed an insulating behavior in the films grown below 15 mTorr but a metallic one in
the films grown above 20 mTorr. Magneto-optical Kerr effect measurement suggested that the NiCo2O4 films
grown above 15 mTorr are ferrimagnetic at room temperature and possess a distinctive perpendicular magnetic
anisotropy. The ferrimagnetic-to-paramagnetic transition temperature reached a maximum of ~385 K at
50 mTorr. During the magnetic reversal, the density of small nucleated domains increased with increasing oxygen
pressure from 20 to 200 mTorr, and exhibited metallic ferrimagnetism at room temperature. Consequently,
the optimal growth condition for magnetic device applications of NiCo2O4 films is believed to be 50-200 mTorr
at 320 ℃.