Electronic and structural properties of LaNiO₃ based heterostructures This thesis explores an amazing family of oxide compounds the nickelates known for their metal to insulator transition and in the case of LaNiO3 to be a possible building block for designing a synthetic high Tc superconductor. Competition between various fascinating phases makes these materials very sensitive to external parameters and it is thus possible to dramatically tune their properties. This work on ultrathin LaNiO3 and the solid solution Nd1 xLaxNiO3 has important implications for the search for superconductivity in this class of materials Introduction Perovskite Oxides Thin Film Physics The Nickelates Experimental Techniques Quantifying Octahedral Distortions in Perovskites Ultrathin LaNiO3 The Nd1−xLaxNiO3 Solid Solution Conclusions and Perspectives Bibliography