${\mathrm{SrRuO}}_3$ is a complex oxide with a large absorption coefficient in the visible range. Recent studies have suggested that it might exhibit photostrictive properties, which could pave the way for the design of alternative optomechanical or multiferroic heterostructures. However, the physical mechanisms underlying the observed, light-induced deformations have remained unclear. In the present work, we combine temperature-dependent Raman spectroscopy and thermometry with atomic force microscopy and x-ray diffraction measurements under continuous-wave laser irradiation to reassess earlier findings. Our experimental data show that in epitaxial ${\mathrm{SrRuO}}_3/{\mathrm{SrTiO}}_3$ thin films, measurable deformations can be achieved via optical excitation. Nevertheless, our results—corroborated by finite element method simulations—also indicate that the observed Raman shifts and the strain generated in the samples can be traced back to a significant temperature increase, thereby questioning the existence of nonthermal photostriction in ${\mathrm{SrRuO}}_3$.

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• Structural phase transition
• Structural properties
• Complex oxides
• Thin films
• Atomic force microscopy
• Epitaxy
• Finite-element method
• Raman spectroscopy
• X-ray diffraction