Structure, stability and magnetic properties of the Fe3O4(1 1 0) surface: Density functional theory study

Six surface models for the Fe₃O₄(1 1 0) surface were studied using the density functional theory (DFT), namely the AB-terminated surface (AB model), the AB-terminated with Fe_A vacancy (AB-Fe_A vac model), the AB-terminated with Fe_B vacancy (AB-Fe_B vac model), the B-terminated surface (B model), the B-terminated surface with Fe_B vacancy (B-Fe_B vac model), and the B-terminated surface with O vacancy (B-O vac model). Here, A and B denoted the Fe cations in tetrahedrally (Fe_A) and octahedrally (Fe_B) coordinated interstices. The stability, the electronic structure and the magnetic properties of the six surface models were also calculated. The results predict that the B-O vac model is more stable than other surface models. The half-metallic property remains in the AB and B models, while the other four surface models exhibit metallic properties. At the same time, the AB, AB-Fe_A vac, AB-Fe_B vac, B and the B-Fe_B vac models have ferrimagnetic properties, while the B-O vac model has antiferromagnetic property.     

Electronic structures and mechanical properties of Al(111)/ZrB2(0001) heterojunctions from first-principles calculation

Employing first-principles density functional theory (DFT), the structures and electronic and mechanical properties of Al(111)/ZrB₂(0001) heterojunctions are investigated. It is found that both B-terminated ZrB₂(0001) and Zr-terminated ZrB₂(0001) can form heterojunction interfaces with Al(111) surface. The heterojunction with B-terminated ZrB₂(0001) is demonstrated to be most stable by comparing the surface adhesion energies of six different heterojunction models. In the stable configurations, the Al atom is found projecting to the hexagonal hollow site of neighbouring boron layer for the B-terminated ZrB₂(001), and locating at the top site of the boron atoms for Zr-terminated ZrB₂(001) interface. The mechanisms of interface interaction are investigated by density of states, charge density difference and band structure calculations. It is found that covalent bonds between surface Al atoms and B atoms are formed in the B-terminated heterojunction, whereas the Al atoms and Zr atoms are stabilised by interface metallic bonds for the Zr-terminated case. Mechanical properties of Al/ZrB₂ heterojunctions are also predicted in the current work. The values of moduli of Al/ZrB₂ heterojunctions are determined to be between those of single crystal Al and ZrB₂, which exhibit the transition of mechanical strength between two bulk phases. DFT calculations with the current models provide the mechanical properties for each heterojunction and the corresponding contributions by each type of interface in the composite materials. This work paves the way for industrial applications of Al(111)/ZrB₂(0001) heterojunctions.     

Magnetism in boron nitride monolayer: Adatom and vacancy defect

Using the full potential linearized augmented plane wave (FLAPW) method, we have investigated the adatom or vacancy defect induced magnetic properties of hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) monolayer. It has been observed that the N vacancy defect has no influence on the magnetic property of h-BN, whereas the B vacancy defect caused spin polarization in the nearest three N atoms. The total magnetic moment is about 0.87 μ_B within muffin-tin radius (0.29 μ_B per N atom) and the spin polarized N atoms show metallic feature. In the presence of B adatom defect, we have obtained rather weak spin polarization about 0.1 μ_B. However, the sizable magnetic moment of 0.38 μ_B appears in N adatom defect. Both B and N adatom defect systems preserve very close to semiconducting feature with a finite band gap. We have found that the DOS and the XMCD spectral shapes are strongly dependent on the defect type existing in the h-BN monolayer and this finding may help reveal the origin of magnetism in the h-BN layer if one performs surface sensitive experiment such as spin polarized scanning tunneling microscopy or XMCD measurement in the near future.     

笼状Au$lt;sub$gt;20$lt;/sub$gt;内掺$lt;i$gt;M$lt;/i$gt;$lt;sub$gt;13$lt;/sub$gt;($lt;i$gt;M$lt;/i$gt;=Fe，Ti)团簇磁性的密度泛函计算研究

采用密度泛函理论中的广义梯度近似方法,对M₁₃（M=Fe,Ti）以及M₁₃内掺Au₂₀团簇的几何结构和磁性进行了计算研究.结果表明：M₁₃和M₁₃内掺Au₂₀团簇的几何结构在0.006—0.05 nm误差范围内保持着I_h对称性.Fe₁₃团簇最低能态的总磁矩为44 μ_B,内掺到Au₂₀笼中后形成的Fe₁₃内掺Au₂₀团簇的最低能态总磁矩为38 μ_B,且Au原子与内掺Fe₁₃团簇之间存在着弱铁磁相互作用.Ti₁₃团簇在总磁矩为6 μ_B时能量最低,掺入Au₂₀笼后形成的Ti₁₃内掺Au₂₀团簇最低能态总磁矩是4 μ_B,内表面12个Ti原子与表面Au壳之间是弱铁磁相互作用,而与中心Ti原子之间是弱反铁磁相互作用.由于Au₂₀笼状外壳的影响,Fe₁₃内掺Au₂₀和Ti₁₃内掺Au₂₀团簇中Fe₁₃和Ti₁₃的磁矩比无金壳的Fe₁₃和Ti₁₃团簇的磁矩分别减少了6.81 μ_B和2.88 μ_B. 关键词： 几何结构 磁性 密度泛函理论     

Magnetic properties,microstructure, and phase evolution of PrxFebal.TiyB20−x (x=4–9; y=2.5–5) nanocomposites

Magnetic properties, microstructure, and phase evolution of Pr lean and boron-enriched Pr_xFe_bal.Ti_yB_20−x (x=4–9; y=2.5–5) melt-spinning ribbons with nanostructures have been investigated. Based on thermal magnetic analysis (TMA), for y=2.5, two phases, namely Pr₂Fe₁₄B and α-Fe, were found for ribbons with x=9, while additional two metastable phases, Pr₂Fe₂₃B₃ and Fe₃B, existed for x=4, 7 and 8. With the decrease of Pr content, the remanence increases but coercivity decreases. The optimal properties of B_r=9.5 kG, _iH_c=10.7 kOe, and (BH)_max=17.8 MG Oe are achieved in Pr₉Fe_bal.Ti_2.5B₁₁ nanocomposites. On the other hand, higher Ti substitution for Fe in Pr₇Fe_bal.Ti_yB₁₃ ribbons could refine the grain size and suppress the metastable Pr₂Fe₂₃B₃ and Fe₃B phases effectively. The excellent permanent magnetic properties are mainly dominated by the nanoscaled microstructures and the coexistence of sufficient magnetically soft phases, Fe₃B, Pr₂Fe₂₃B₃ and α-Fe, with magnetically hard Pr₂Fe₁₄B phase.     

The magnetic properties of diluted CoFe2O4 nanomaterials

The magnetic properties of （Cox Fe1-x）A （Zn1-x Fe1＋x）B O4 are studied using mean-field theory and the probability distribution law to obtain the saturation magnetization, the coercive field, the critical temperature, and the exchange interactions with different values of D （nm） and x. High-temperature series expansions （HTSEs） combined with the Pade approximant are used to calculate the critical temperature of （CoxFe1-x）A（Znl-xFe1＋x）BO4, and the critical exponent associated with magnetic susceptibility is obtained.     

Mossbauer study of the Cu-Cd ferrite system

The magnetic properties of the Cd_xCu_1?xFe₂O₄ ferrite system (x = 0 to 1) have been investigated by means of Mossbauer Spectroscopy. Mossbauer Spectra for x = 0.0 to 0.6 suggest the existence of two hyperfine fields, one due to the Fe³⁺ tetrahedral ions (A-sites) and the other due to Fe³⁺ octahedral ions (B-sites), while for x = 0.7 it shows relaxation behaviour and for x ? 0.8 it exhibits a paramagnetic quadrupole doublet. The systematic dependence of the isomer shift, quadrupole interactions and nuclear fields of ⁵⁷Fe³⁺ ions in both A- and B-sites has been determined as a function of cadmium content. The variation of nuclear magnetic fields at the A- and B-sites are explained on the basis of A-B and B-B supertransferred hyperfine interactions. Analysis of the relaxation spectrum observed at x = 0.7 (300 K) suggests that the relaxation mechanism is due to domain wall oscillations. It has been found here that the QS increases from CuFe₂O₄ as the cadmium concentration is increased.     

Magnetic properties and phase compositions of rapidly quenched Nd4Fe96−x B x after crystallization

Permanent magnets, composition Nd₄Fe_96?x B _x (x=10–21), were made by rapid quenching followed by crystallization. The effects of B concentration and annealing time on the magnetic properties and phase compositions were studied by Mössbauer spectroscopy and magnetic measurements. The stripping method was adopted to obtain the subspectral area of each Fe phase. Optimum magnetic properties are obtained for the composition Nd₄Fe₇₇B₁₉ annealed at 670°C for 3 minutes. Then the remanence is 12.0 kGs, the intrinsic coercivity 3.2 kOe, and the maximum energy product 12.6 MGOe. The crystalline phases are Fe₃B, Nd₂Fe₁₄B and α-Fe with volume percentages of 60%, 36%, and 4%, respectively.     

Tetragonal rare earth (R) Iron borides,R1+εFe4B4 (ε≅0.1), with incommensurate rare earth and iron substructures

Crystallographic and magnetic properties of a new structural series of ternary borides with composition R_1+εFe₄B₄ (R = Ce, Pr, Nd, Sm, Gd, Tb, 0.11(Pr) ≤ε≤ 0.15(Tb) are reported. The compounds are built of incommensurate substructures of rare earth atoms (linear strings ?? c?), iron atoms (chains of edge sharing tetrahedra ?? c?),and boron atom pairs. A single crystal X-ray diffraction study of one representative (Sm_1.13Fe₄B₄) based on a commensurate structure model (composition : Sm₁₇(Fe₄B₄)₁₅, a = 7.07 Å, c ≡ 17c_Sm ≡ 15c_Fe= 58.69 Å, space group P4₂/n) revealed a periodic twist modulation of the Fe tetrahedra chains around c?. Magnetic susceptibility measurements on single crystals of another representative (Nd_1.11Fe₄B₄) revealed ferromagnetic ordering at T_c = 13 K. Above this temperature the magnetic properties are dominated by ferromagnetic inclusions (Fe₂B, Nd₂Fe₁₄B).     

One-step fabricated Fe3O4@C core–shell composites for dye removal: Kinetics,equilibrium and thermodynamics

B-Fe₃O₄@C core–shell composites were synthesized via one-pot hydrothermal carbonization (HTC) process and used as an adsorbent for the removal of methylene blue (MB) from aqueous solution. By using sodium borate as the catalyst, the hydrothermal carbonization process of B-Fe₃O₄@C core–shell composites was optimized and a higher surface area was obtained. The adsorbent was characterized by XRD, Raman spectra, SEM, TEM and N₂ adsorption/desorption isotherms. We studied the dye adsorption process at different conditions and analyzed the data by employing the Langmuir and Freundlich models, and the equilibrium data fitted well with both models. Kinetic analyses were conducted by using the Lagergren pseudo-first-order and pseudo-second-order model and the results showed that the adsorption process was more consistent with the pseudo-second-order kinetics. To better understand the dye adsorption process from the thermodynamics perspective, we also calculated ΔH^ο, ΔS^ο, ΔG^ο and E_a, the results suggesting that the MB adsorption process was physisorption endothermic process, and spontaneous at room temperature. The as-synthesized B-Fe₃O₄@C showing high magnetic sensitivity provides a facile and efficient way to recycle from aqueous solution.     

Surface magnetic disorder in nanostructured Ni0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4 particles

Nanostructured ferroxide particles with initial formula Ni_0.5Zn_0.5Fe₂O₄ are investigated. The aim was to explore the monodomain and the superparamagnetic states of the ferrospinel and the impact of the surface magnetic disorder on the magnetization processes. Mössbauer spectroscopy (MöS) demonstrated that the ion distribution follows the general formula (Zn_0.5Fe_0.5)_A[Ni_0.5Fe_1.5]_BO₄, where A is the tetrahedral and B, the octahedral sublattice. MöS in an external magnetic field (5 T) at 4.2 K shows non-collinearity of the sublattices’ magnetic moments and deviations in the hyperfine magnetic field that could be related to a canting effect. Magnetic measurements were applied to characterize the temperature behavior of the magnetic properties and the a.c. complex magnetic susceptibility.     

热处理对非晶态合金Nd4Fe96-xBx磁性的影响

本文研究了用单辊急冷方法制备的非晶态合金Nd₄Fe_96-xB_x的晶化,以及热处理对其硬磁性和相组成的影响,发现非晶态合金Nd₄Fe_96-xB_x的晶化温度比相同B含量的非晶态合金Fe_100-xB_x高120—190K,X射线衍射和热磁测量表明,15≤x≤25的样品晶化相是由Nd₂Fe₁₄B(T 关键词：     

Effect of element substitution on nanostructure and hard magnetism of rapidly quenched Nd2Fe14B

The structural and magnetic properties of Nd₁₂Fe₈₂B₆ and Nd₁₀M₂Fe₈₂B₆ (M = Nb, Ti, Zr, Cr) alloys prepared using arc melting and melt spinning have been investigated. All the samples are found to crystallise with a tetragonal Nd₂Fe₁₄B phase without any alloy or elemental impurities. There is a small decrease in the unit cell volume of Nd₂Fe₁₄B due to transition metal (M) addition. The substitution of Nb and Ti refines and homogenises the nanostructure of the alloys, promoting intergrain exchange coupling leading to an increase in the remanence and energy product. For example, the remanence and energy product of Nd₁₂Fe₈₂B₆ and Nd₁₀Nb₂Fe₈₂B₆ are 8.4 kG and 15 MGOe, and 9.9 kG and 20 MGOe, respectively. The J(T) curves are similar to those of a single phase ferromagnetic material suggesting no segregation of ferromagnetic impurities. The observed structural and magnetic properties are consistent with the fact that the substitutional transition metal atoms occupy the Nd site of the tetragonal Nd₂Fe₁₄B crystal lattice. The improvement of magnetic properties of nanocrystalline Nd₂Fe₁₄B alloys with the decrease in Nd concentration may be beneficial for the application of this material in bonded magnets.     

Effect of calcination temperature on the structure and hydroxylation activity of Ni0.5Cu0.5Fe2O4 nanoparticles

Nanocrystalline Ni_0.5Cu_0.5Fe₂O₄ was synthesized by sol-gel method with varying calcination temperature over the range of 500-1000. The powders obtained were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). In addition, thermal analysis (TG-DTG-DTA) of the precursor was carried out. The study reveals the simultaneous decomposition and ferritization process at rather low temperature (280-350). For the crystalline structure investigated, single cubic spinel is gained when the precursor was decomposed at 800-1000, whereas separated crystal CuO formed when calcination temperature is below 800. The increase of calcination temperature favors the appearance of Fe_B³⁺, Cu_A²⁺ and O on the spinel surface. The hydroxylation activity is relative to the amount of Cu_B²⁺ species on the spinel surface. The lattice oxygen species on the spinel surface are favorable for the deep oxidation of phenol.     

Mössbauer study of the spinel system GexCu1−xFe2O4

The magnetic properties of the spinel series Ge_xCu_1?xFe₂O₄ (X = 0 to 0.8) have been investigated by means of Mössbauer spectroscopy. Mössbauer spectra for X = 0.0 to 0.6 suggest the existence of two hyperfine fields, one due to the Fe³⁺ tetrahedral ions (A-sites) and the other due to Fe³⁺ octahedral ions (B-sites), while for X = 0.8 it shows the superposition of hyperfine field split spectra from A- and B-site ions and a broad central line spectrum. For 0.2 ? X ? 0.4, fast electron exchange among octahedral iron ions occurs as in Fe₃O₄. The variations of nuclear magnetic fields at the A- and B-sites are explained on the basis of AB and BB supertransferred hyperfine interactions.     

Enhanced alignment and magnetic properties of die-upset nano-crystal Nd2Fe14B magnets with Nb addition

It is difficult to obtain the crystallographic alignment for stoichiometric Nd₂Fe₁₄B alloys by applying the melt-spun and subsequent hot-pressing and hot-deformation techniques. However, the enhanced alignment and magnetic properties of die-upset nano-crystal Nd₂Fe₁₄B magnets have been obtained by Nb addition in the present paper. The magnetic properties studies show that Nb addition leads to the remarkable increase of remanence B_r and intrinsic coercivity H_ci, which is due to the improvement of c-axis texture and refinement of microstructure. Microstructure studies using transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD) reveal that Nb atoms are enriched at grain boundary and the NbFeB phase is observed with increasing Nb content. Since some Fe atoms in the Nd₂Fe₁₄B phase participate in the formation of NbFeB phase, the excessive Nd atoms may be enriched at grain boundary, which may improve the physical property of grain boundary and provide a mass transport pass for preferential growth of oriented Nd₂Fe₁₄B grains, thus leading to the enhanced alignment and magnetic properties.     

μSR measurements on UAl2

Magnetic properties and crystallization of amorphous Fe₇₄Co₁₀B₁₆ have been investigated by Mössbauer and DSC measurements. Probability distribution of hyperfine field P(H) shows a single peak which shifts to lower fields with increase in temperature. Crystallization has been found to give rise to α-(Fe-Co), Fe₂B and (Fe-Co)₂B phases.     

High surface area monodispersed Fe3O4 nanoparticles alone and on physical exfoliated graphite for improved supercapacitors

Highly conductive, unsophisticated and easy to be obtained physical exfoliated graphite (PHG) supporting well dispersed magnetite, Fe₃O₄/PHG nanocomposite, has been prepared by a one-step chemical strategy and physico-chemical characterized. The nanocomposite, favoured by the a-polar nanoparticles (NPs) capping, results in a self-assembled monolayer of monodispersed Fe₃O₄, covering perfectly the hydrophobic surfaces of PHG. The nanocomposite as an electrode material was fabricated into a supercapacitor and characterized by cyclic voltammetry (CV) and galvanostatic charge–discharge measurements. It shows, after a suitable annealing, significant electrochemical properties (capacitance value of 787 F/g at 0.5 A g⁻¹ and a Fe₃O₄/PHG weight ratio of 0.31) and good cycling stability (retention 91% after 30,000 cycles). Highly monodispersed very fine Fe₃O₄ NPs, covered by organic chains, have been also synthesized. The high surface area Fe₃O₄ NPs, after washing to leave a low content of organic chains able to avoid aggregation without excessively affecting the electrical properties of the material, exhibit remarkable pseudocapacitive activities, including the highest specific capacitance over reported for Fe₃O₄ (300 F/g at 0.5 A g⁻¹).     

Correlation between the optical properties of surface layers and bulk characteristics of amorphous alloys

Spectral ellipsometry was used to study surface layers of Fe₈₀ A ₅B₁₅ (A = Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni) and Fe_78-x Ni_xSi₉B₁₃ (x = 0, 1, 4, 8, 16, 21 at. %) amorphous metal alloys obtained by melt spinning. The optical characteristics of the alloys were determined by solving the inverse problem of ellipsometry. A correlation between the optical properties of the surface layers of amorphous alloys and their thermal stability was found.     

Induction and control of dielectric relaxation properties in Fe-doped nonstoichiometric SrTiO3 ceramics

The dielectric properties of Fe-doped Ti-rich SrTiO₃ ceramics at both A and B sites were investigated. For A site doping, we found one structural phase transition associated with the substitution of smaller Fe ions, and two sets of dielectric relaxations ascribed to oxygen vacancies and hopping conduction between Fe²⁺ and Fe³⁺, respectively. Cole-Cole relation shows that both thermally activated dielectric relaxation behaviors mainly originate from the grain boundary. However, for B site doping, they are not observed in the measured temperature range since both the short-range diffusion of oxygen vacancies and electron conduction become the long-range migration, which indicates that the additional conductive channels are opened when Fe ion doping changes from A to B site. The results provide an experimental basis for adjusting dielectric properties in paraelectric materials.