Coexistence of paramagnetism and ferromagnetism in Fe-TiO2 nanoparticle

Magnetic properties of pure and Fe doped rutile TiO₂ and TiO_2-ε are investigated using the first principle density functional theory. The results show that the considered systems are ferromagnetic. Furthermore, the origin of ferromagnetism is discussed and it is found that the double exchange and super-exchange are the main interactions in these compounds. Based on the calculations, the magnitude of the magnetic moment depends on the concentration of impurities and oxygen vacancies and the largest magnetic moment corresponds to the Fe_xTi_1-xO_2-ε. Moreover, using a model based on the bound magnetic polarons, the coexistence of ferromagnetic and paramagnetic phases can occur in Fe_xTi_1-xO₂ containing different impurity ions such as Fe⁺² and Fe⁺³ with different Curie temperatures. The finding may presents the potential application of the considered system as diluted magnetic semiconductor.     

Electron spin resonance investigation of the substitution of Fe3^＋ for Ti4^＋ ions in rutile TiO2 single crystal

A Fe doped rutile TiO 2 single crystal is grown in an O 2 atmosphere by the floating zone technique.Electron spin resonance (ESR) spectra clearly demonstrate that Fe 3+ ions are substituted for the Ti 4+ ions in the rutile TiO 2 matrix.Magnetization measurements reveal that the Fe:TiO 2 crystal shows paramagnetic behaviour in a temperature range from 5 K to 350 K.The Fe 3+ ions possess weak magnetic anisotropy with an easy axis along the c axis.The annealed Fe:TiO 2 crystal shows spin-glass-like behaviours due to the aggregation of the ferromagnetic clusters.     

Ti1－xCrxO2±δ体系的相关系、晶体结构和磁性能研究

采用溶胶凝胶法制备了Ti_1-xCr_xO_2±δ体系系列样品.利用扫描电子显微镜(SEM)，X射线光电子能谱(XPS)，粉末X射线衍射分析(XRD)方法研究了Ti_1-xCr_xO_2±δ系列样品的颗粒尺寸、形貌、组分化学态、相关系和固溶区范围；并利用超导量子干涉磁强计对样品的磁性能进行了研究.采用Rietveld结构精修的方法研究了Cr的不同掺杂量对TiO₂晶体结构的影响，研究表明，1000℃烧结的样品的固溶区范围是x=0—0.03，为金红石单相；随着Cr掺杂量的增加，金红石相晶胞参数规律性地减小；当x>0.03，为金红石相和CrO₂相两相共存.综合XRD和磁性测量结果，500℃烧结的样品的固溶区范围是x=0—0.02，为锐钛矿单相；随着Cr掺杂量的增加，锐钛矿相晶胞参数规律性地减小；当x≥0.04，为锐钛矿相和绿铬矿相(Cr₂O₃)两相共存.XPS实验结果表明，500℃和1000℃退火的样品中Cr都是以Cr⁺³和Cr⁺⁶两种化学态存在，1000℃烧结的样品中可能有更多的Cr³⁺转化为Cr⁶⁺.根据M-H和M-T曲线的测试结果发现，本文500℃烧结的Ti_1-xCr_xO_2±δ体系样品当x=0—0.02时，为室温铁磁性.当x≥0.04时，由铁磁相和顺磁相所组成，在低温下有较强的铁磁性；室温下主要是顺磁相，铁磁相只占据很小的体积分数. 关键词： 1-xCr_xO_2±δ体系')" href="#">Ti_1-xCr_xO_2±δ体系 相关系 固溶区 磁性能     

Structural characterization and ferromagnetic behavior of Fe-doped TiO2 powder by high-energy ball milling

Fe-doped TiO₂ powder was prepared by high-energy ball milling, using TiO₂ Degussa P-25 and α-Fe powders as the starting materials. The structure and magnetic properties of the Fe-doped TiO₂ powder were studied by X-ray diffraction, ⁵⁷Fe Mossbauer spectroscopy and vibrating sample magnetometer. The Reitveld refinement of XRD revealed that ball milling not only triggered incorporation of Fe in TiO₂ lattice but also induced the phase transformation from anatase to rutile in TiO₂ and consequently the milled Fe-doped TiO₂ powder contained only rutile.⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer effect measure showed that Fe atoms existed in Fe²⁺ and Fe³⁺ state, which were assigned to the solid solution Fe_xTi_1−xO₂. The magnetization measurements indicated that the milled Fe-doped TiO₂ powder was ferromagnetic above room temperature. The ferromagnetism in our milled Fe-doped TiO₂ powder seemingly does not come from Fe and iron oxides particles/clusters but from the Fe-doped TiO₂ powder matrices.     

Photofragmentation of mass-selected titanium oxide cluster cations

In this paper we present the photofragmentation spectra of mass-selected positive titanium oxide cluster ions Ti _x O _y ⁺. The clusters are generated by the combination of laser ablation of a titanium target and the supersonic nozzle expansion of oxygen and are detected by time-of-flight mass spectrometry. Small clusters are mass-selected and photodissociated at a wavelength of 308 nm. The recorded photofragmentation spectra indicate that for all parent clusters the main fragment is TiO⁺ and, in some cases, Ti₂O₃ ⁺ is also observed. This is consistent with the assumption that small Ti _x O _y ⁺ clusters are built from a TiO⁺ core with TiO₂ building blocks.     

Preparation, structure and ferromagnetic properties of the nanocrystalline Ti1-xMnxO2 thin films grown by radio frequency magnetron co-sputtering

This paper reported that the Mn-doped TiO2 films were prepared by radio frequency （RF） magnetron cosputtering. X-ray diffraction measurements indicate that the samples are easy to form the futile structure, and the sizes of the crystal grains grow big and big as the Mn concentration increases. X-ray photoemlssion spectroscopy measurements and high resolution transmission electron microscope photographs confirm that the manganese ions have been effectively doped into the TiO2 crystal when the Mn concentration is lower than 21%. The magnetic property measurements show that the Ti1-xMnxO2 （x = 0.21） films are ferromagnetic at room temperature, and the saturation magnetization, coercivity, and saturation field are 16.0 emu/cm^3, 167.5 × 80 A/m and 3740 × 80 A/m at room temperature, respectively. The room-temperature ferromagnetism of the films can be attributed to the new futile Ti1-xMnxO2 structure formed by the substitution of Mn^4＋ for Ti^4＋ into the TiO2 crystal .lattice, and could be explained by O vacancy （Vo）-enhanced ferromagnetism model.     

Exchange mechanism of half-metallic ferromagnetism of TiO2 doped with double impurities: A first-principles ASW study

The electronic structure and ferromagnetic properties of rutile TiO₂ doped with double-impurities Ti_1−2xCr_xMn_xO₂ has been investigated using first-principles calculations within the density-functional theory (DFT) and the local density approximation (LDA), functional for treating the effects of exchange and correlation. They were performed using the scalar-relativistic implementation of the augmented spherical wave (ASW). The advantages of doping TiO₂ with double impurities instead of single impurities are the increase of the total moment of the system and the exhibition of the half-metallic ferromagnetic nature in Cr- and Mn-doped TiO₂ rutile. These behaviors are due to the hybridization of Cr 3d states and nearest-neighboring O 2p states. The spin-spin interaction between magnetic impurities examined by the total energy between parallel and antiparallel aligned states indicated that the Cr and Mn impurities are energetically favorable to be parallel coupled, which mean that the ferromagnetic state is more stable than the ferrimagnetic one. We proposed a bond magnetic polarons (BMP) model, based on localized carriers, to explain the mechanism of ferromagnetism in these systems.     

The relationship between magnetic behaviour and local structure around Fe ions in Fe-doped TiO2 rutile

The magnetic and structural characterization of Ti_1−xFe_xO₂ (x=0.025, 0.05, 0.07, 0.125, and 0.15) samples prepared by mechano-synthesis using TiO₂ and Fe₂O₃ as starting materials are reported. XANES measurements performed at the Fe K-edge show that Fe ions are in 3+ oxidation state in the 7 at% Fe-doped sample and in a mixture of 2+ and 3+ oxidation states in the other samples. EXAFS results show the incorporation of Fe ions substituting Ti ones in the rutile TiO₂ structure. They also reveal a strong correlation between the number of oxygen nearest neighbours and the Fe²⁺ fraction, i.e the number of oxygen near neighbours decreases when the Fe²⁺ fraction increases. All samples present ferromagnetic-like behaviour at room temperature. We found a clear dependence between saturation magnetization and coercivity with the fraction of Fe²⁺ and/or the number of Fe near neighbour oxygen vacancies.     

High temperature ferromagnetism of the vacuum-annealed (In1−xFex)2O3 powders

(In_1−xFe_x)₂O₃ (x = 0.02, 0.05, 0.2) powders were prepared by a solid state reaction method and a vacuum annealing process. A systematic study was done on the structural and magnetic properties of (In_1−xFe_x)₂O₃ powders as a function of Fe concentration and annealing temperature. The X-ray diffraction and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy results confirmed that there were not any Fe or Fe oxide secondary phases in vacuum-annealed (In_1−xFe_x)₂O₃ samples and the Fe element was incorporated into the indium oxide lattice by substituting the position of indium atoms. The X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy revealed that both Fe²⁺ and Fe³⁺ ions existed in the samples. Magnetic measurements indicated that all samples were ferromagnetic with the magnetic moment of 0.49-1.73 μ_B/Fe and the Curie temperature around 783 K. The appearance of ferromagnetism was attributed to the ferromagnetic coupling of Fe²⁺ and Fe³⁺ ions via an electron trapped in a bridging oxygen vacancy.     

Studies on Structural, Magnetic and Thermal Properties of xFe2TiO4-(1−x)Fe3O4 (0≤x≤1) Pseudo-binary System

The xFe₂TiO₄-(1−x)Fe₃O₄ pseudo-binary systems (0≤x≤1) of ulvöspinel component were synthesized by solid-state reaction between ulvöspinel Fe₂TiO₄ precursors and commercial Fe₃O₄ powders in stochiometric proportions. Crystalline structures were determined by X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) and it was found that the as-obtained titanomagnetites maintain an inverse spinel structure. The lattice parameter a of synthesized titanomagnetite increases linearly with the increase in the ulvöspinel component. ⁵⁷Fe room temperature Mössbauer spectra were employed to evaluate the magnetic properties and cation distribution. The hyperfine magnetic field is observed to decrease with increasing Fe₂TiO₄ component. The fraction of Fe²⁺ in both tetrahedral and octahedral sites increases with the increase in Ti⁴⁺ content, due to the substitution and reduction of Fe³⁺ by Ti⁴⁺ that maintains the charge balance in the spinel structure. For x in the range of 0 ≤x≤0.4, the solid solution is ferrimagnetic at room temperature. However, it shows weak ferrimagnetic and paramagnetic behavior for x in the range of 0.4<x≤0.7. When x>0.70, it only shows paramagnetic behavior, with the appearance of quadrupole doublets in the Mössbauer spectra. Simultaneous differential scanning calorimetry and thermogravimetric analysis (DSC-TGA) studies showed that magnetite is not stable, and thermal decomposition of magnetite occurs with weight losses accompanying with exothermic processes under heat treatment in inert atmosphere.     

The magnetic phase transition in titanium oxide induced by proton irradiation

We have studied the magnetic properties of ⁵⁷Fe-doped TiO₂ compounds irradiated by proton with 0, 5 and 10 pC/μm². We have observed the enhancement of the magnetic moment, measured by superconducting quantum interference device magnetometer, with increasing proton irradiation ranging from 0 to 10 pC/μm². Mössbauer spectra of proton irradiated Ti_0.99⁵⁷Fe_0.01O₂ samples were taken at room temperature. Two sites of the wing (sextet) and the central (doublet) are shown in the spectra, which suggest the magnetically ordered phase and the paramagnetic phase, respectively. With increasing proton irradiation, the part of Fe³⁺ ions was converted to Fe²⁺ ions by compensation charge. This clearly suggests that the enhancement of magnetic moment after proton irradiation is contributed to the moment by the spin-orbit coupling of Fe²⁺ ions.     

Magnetic Resonance Study of Fe-Implanted TiO<Subscript>2</Subscript> Rutile

Single-crystal (100) and (001) TiO₂ rutile substrates have been implanted with 40 keV Fe⁺ at room temperature with high doses in the range of (0.5–1.5) × 10¹⁷ ions/cm². A ferromagnetic resonance (FMR) signal has been observed for all samples with the intensity and the out-of-plane anisotropy increasing with the implantation dose. The FMR signal has been related to the formation of a percolated metal layer consisting of close-packed iron nanoparticles in the implanted region of TiO₂ substrate. Electron spin resonance (ESR) signal of paramagnetic Fe³⁺ ions substituting Ti⁴⁺ positions in the TiO₂ rutile structure has been also observed. The dependences of FMR resonance fields on the DC magnetic field orientation reveal a strong in-plane anisotropy for both (100) and (001) substrate planes. An origin of the in-plane anisotropy of FMR signal is attributed to the textured growth of the iron nanoparticles. As result of the nanoparticle growth aligned with respect to the structure of the rutile host, the in-plane magnetic anisotropy of the samples reflects the symmetry of the crystal structure of the TiO₂ substrates. Crystallographic directions of the preferential growth of iron nanoparticles have been determined by computer modeling of anisotropic ESR signal of substitutional Fe³⁺ ions.     

Titanium atoms dimerization phenomenon and magnetic properties of titanium-antisite (TiO) and chromium doped rutile TiO2, ab-initio calculation

The ab-initio calculations based on the Korringa Kohn Rostoker approximation approach combined with coherent potential approximation (KKR-CPA), were used to study the magnetic properties of the titanium anti-site (Ti_O) and chromium (Cr) doped TiO₂. In the considered systems, we used different concentrations for Ti_O defect and Cr doping. In TiO_2(0.98)(Ti_O)_0.02, the obtained results indicate that Ti_O is a donor having half-metal behavior. Ti_O[3d] band is located at the Fermi level, although isn’t 100% polarized, the ferromagnetic (FM) state is verified as being more stable than disordered local moment (DLM) state. For Ti_0.98Cr_0.02O₂ the Cr doping introduced new states which give the material half-metallic feature. The majority spin of Cr impurities are located at the Fermi level and the conduction electrons around the Fermi level are 100% spin polarized. This indicates the stability of (FM) state. Moreover, in Ti_0.98Cr_0.02O_2(0.98)(Ti_O)_0.02, the top of the valence band is shifted to lower energy compared to pure TiO₂, and the n-type of TiO₂ is verified. The majority spin of Cr[3d] are located at 0.025 Ry close to the Fermi level. The predicted Curie temperatures (Tc) were calculated using the mean field approximation (MFA) and we predicted that Ti_O defect in Cr doped TiO₂ makes Tc higher. This kind of defect makes the material useful for spinotronics's applications and devices.     

Ferromagnetic-to-antiferromagnetic transition in (Hf1−xTix)Fe2 intermetallic compounds induced by geometrical frustration of the Fe(2a) sites

The ferromagnetic-to-antiferromagnetic transition in the hexagonal (Hf_1−xTi_x)Fe₂ (0?x?1) intermetallic compounds has been investigated by ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy. At 10 K, the transition occurs within rather narrow concentration limits, around x=0.55–0.65. We found that the key factor governing the unexpected quick change of the magnetic structure is the magnetic frustration of the Fe(2a) sites. The magnetic frustration is caused by the noncollinearity of the Fe(6h) magnetic sublattice. The noncollinearity arises from the rotation of the magnetic moments due to the competition between the ferromagnetic exchange interactions and the antiferromagnetic Fe(6h)–Ti–Fe(6h) interaction. In the compounds with x=0.4–0.6, the temperature transitions to the antiferromagnetic state are observed. As an example, the Hf_0.4Ti_0.6Fe₂ compound is completely antiferromagnetic above 200 K.     

Half-metallic behaviour in doped TiO2 (rutile) with double impurities: ab initio calculation

Dilute magnetic oxides are without doubt among the most interesting classes of magnetic materials. However, the nature of their electronic structure and magnetic exchange is far from understood. Here, we apply the ab initio augmented spherical wave (ASW) method, with corrected generalised gradient approximation to study the electronic structure and magnetic properties of doped TiO₂ rutile with double impurities. The study reveals a half-metallic ferromagnetic behaviour for Ti_1?2x Cr _x Mo _x O₂, and the local magnetic moments of the impurities and their oxidation states agree with the charge transfer between Cr and Mo, which would lead to the ferromagnetic state through the double-exchange mechanism in transition metal oxides.     

Defect clusters in titanium-substituted spinel-related lithium ferrite

The cation distribution in spinel-related titanium-substituted lithium ferrite, Li_0.5+0.5xFe_2.5−1.5xTi_xO₄ has been explored using interatomic potential and ab initio calculations. The results suggest that the cation distribution with Ti⁴⁺ substituting for Fe³⁺ on octahedral B sites and excess Li⁺ substituting for Fe³⁺ on tetrahedral A sites is stabilised by the formation of clusters of two octahedrally coordinated Ti⁴⁺ ions and one tetrahedrally coordinated Li⁺ ion linked through a common oxygen.     

Microstructure, magnetic and optical properties of sputtered polycrystalline ZnO films with Fe addition

Microstructure, magnetic and optical properties of polycrystalline Fe-doped ZnO films fabricated by cosputtering with different Fe atomic fractions (x_Fe) have been examined systematically. Fe addition could affect the growth of ZnO grains and surface morphology of the films. As x_Fe is larger than 7.0%, ZnFe₂O₄ grains appear in the films. All the films are ferromagnetic. The ferromagnetism comes from the ferromagnetic interaction activated by defects between the Fe ions that replace Zn ions. The average moment per Fe ion reaches a maximum value of 1.61 μ_B at x_Fe = 4.8%. With further increase in x_Fe, the average moment per Fe ion decreases because the antiferromagnetic energy is lower than the ferromagnetic one due to the reduced distance between the adjacent Fe ions. The optical band gap value decreases from 3.245 to 3.010 eV as x_Fe increases from 0% to 10%. Photoluminescence spectra analyses indicate that many defects that affect the optical and magnetic properties exist in the films.     

Formation and photodecomposition of cationic titanium oxide clusters

In this paper we report on the titanium oxide cluster cations Ti _x O _y ⁺, generated by laser ablation of a titanium target in the region of the nozzle expansion of oxygen. The mass distribution of the clusters produced is recorded with a time-of-flight mass spectrometer. Three different series, namely TiO(TiO₂) _n ⁺ , TiO(TiO₂) _n O₂⁺, and (TiO₂) _n ⁺, appear in the spectra. Two different ablation wavelengths (infrared at 1064 nm and ultraviolet at 308 nm) are used to generate the titanium oxide clusters. At the shorter wavelength the maximum size of the clusters formed decreases. The interaction of the UV photons with the Ti _x O _y ⁺ clusters is further investigated in a separate two-laser arrangement with an IR laser for ablation and after some mm downstream with an UV system for the cluster beam irradiation. These studies indicate that the intensity of the T _x O _y ⁺ clusters with x≥4, y≥7 is strongly influenced by the absorption of UV photons. This is attributed mainly to dissociation into smaller ones.     

Multiferroic properties of solben gel derived Bi5Fe1-xCoxTi3O15 thin films

Co-doped Bi₅FeTi₃O₁₅ thin films (BFCT-x, Bi₅Fe_1-xCo_xTi₃O₁₅) were prepared using a sol—gel technique. XRD patterns confirm their single phase Aurivillius structure, and the corresponding powder Rietveld analysis indicates the change of space group around x=0.12. The magnetic hysteresis loops are obtained and ferromagnetism is therefore confirmed in BFCT-x thin films. The remanent magnetization (M_r) first increases and reaches the maximum value of 0.42 emu/cm³ at x=0.12 due to the possible Fe³⁺—O—Co³⁺ ferromagnetic coupling. When x = 0.25, the M_r increases again because of the dominant Fe³⁺—O—Co³⁺ ferromagnetic coupling. The remanent polarization (2P_r) of BFCT-0.25 was measured to be as high as 62 μC/cm², a 75% increase when compared with the non-doped BFCT-0 films. The 2P_r remains almost unchanged after being subjected to 5.2 × 10⁹ read/write cycles. Greatly enhanced ferroelectric properties are considered to be associated with decreased leakage current density.     

Etude par spectroscopie Mössbauer d'une serie de ferrites mixtes de terre rare et d'alcalinoterreux: SrLn2Fe2O7Mössbauer spectroscopy study of a series of mixed alkaline-earth and rare-earth ferrites: SrLn2Fe2O7

The room-temperature magnetic structure of some mixed alkaline-earth and rare-earth ferrites, with the formula Sr(Ba)Ln₂Fe₂O₇, consists of a pattern perpendicular to the c tetragonal axis, either along the [110] or the [1$\text{1}$0] direction. One of the G_x^? ± A_y^? magnetic modes is obtaine for SrTb₂Fe₂O₇ and one of the A_x^? ± G_y^? modes is obtained for SrNd₂Fe₂O₇ and for SrPr₂Fe₂O₇. This ambiguity is removed by the use of powder and single crystal Mössbauer spectroscopy, which also allows us to determine the magnetic structures of all other members of the series; at room temperature the magnetic moments are aligned along the [110] diagonal for all compounds. In lowering the temperature to 4.2 K, different magnetic moment reorientations have been observed. In SrTb₂Fe₂O₇ and SrNd₂Fe₂O₇ the magnetic moments go from the basal plane to along the c axis, whereas in BaLa₂Fe₂O₇ and SrGd₂Fe₂O₇ they rotate in the basal plane itself, the rotation angle being π/4 and π/2, respectively.