A magnetic, magnetostrictive and Mössbauer study of Tb0.3Dy0.7−xPrx(Fe0.9Al0.1)1.95 alloys

The effect of Pr substitution for Dy on the magnetization, magnetostriction, anisotropy and spin reorientation of a series of Tb_0.3Dy_0.7−xPr_x(Fe_0.9Al_0.1)_1.95 alloys (x=0, 0.1, 0.20, 0.25, 0.30, 0.35) at room temperature has been investigated. It was found that the magnetization and magnetostriction of the homogenized Tb_0.3Dy_0.7−xPr_x(Fe_0.9Al_0.1)_1.95 alloys decreases drastically with increasing x and the magnetostrictive effect disappears for x>0.2, but the spontaneous magnetostriction λ₁₁₁ increases approximately linearly with increasing x. Moreover, the magnetostriction exhibits slightly bigger value at x=0.1 than the free alloys and is saturated more easily with the magnetic field H, showing that a small amount of Pr substitution is beneficial to a decrease in the magnetocrystalline anisotropy. The analysis of the Mössbauer spectra indicated that the easy magnetization direction in the {1 1 0} plane deviates slightly from the main axis of symmetry with Pr concentration x, namely spin reorientation. Comparing with the Al substitution, the effect of Pr substitution for Dy on the spin reorientation is smaller.     

Medium range ordering and some magnetic properties of amorphous Fe90Zr7B3 alloy

High-resolution electron microscopy (HREM) reveals in the as-quenched Fe₉₀Zr₇B₃ alloy the existence of medium range ordered (MRO) regions 1-2 nm in size. Transmission Mössbauer spectroscopy confirms that these regions are α-Fe MRO ones. Above the Curie point of the amorphous phase (T_C=(257±2)K) they behave like non-interacting superparamagnetic particles with the magnetization decreasing linearly with the temperature. For these particles the average magnetic moment of 390μ_B and the average size of 1.7 nm, in excellent agreement with HREM observations, were estimated. The maximum of the isothermal magnetic entropy change at the maximum magnetizing field induction of 2 T occurs at the Curie temperature of the amorphous phase and equals to 1.05 Jkg⁻¹ K⁻¹. The magnetic entropy changes exhibit the linear dependence on the maximum magnetizing field induction in the range 0.5-2 T below, near and above T_C. Such correlations are attributed to superparamagnetic behavior of α-Fe MRO regions.     

Magnetization behavior and magnetocaloric effect in bulk amorphous Fe60Co5Zr8Mo5W2B20 alloy

Microstructure by X-ray diffraction and Mössbauer spectroscopy, and isothermal magnetic entropy changes in the bulk amorphous Fe₆₀Co₅Zr₈Mo₅W₂B₂₀ alloy in the as-quenched state and after annealing at 720 K for 15 min are studied. The as-cast and heat treated alloy is paramagnetic at room temperature. The quadrupole splitting distribution is unimodal after annealing indicating the more homogenous structure in comparison with that for the as-cast alloy. Curie temperature slightly increases after annealing from 265±2 K in the as-quenched state to 272±2 K and the alloy exhibits the second order magnetic phase transition. The maximum of isothermal magnetic entropy changes appears at the Curie points and is equal to 0.30 and 0.42 J/(kg·K) for the alloy in the as-quenched state and after annealing, respectively. In the paramagnetic region the material behaves as a Curie-Weiss paramagnet.     

Concerning the cation distribution in MnFe2O4 synthesized through the thermal decomposition of oxalates

A single phase manganese ferrite powder have been synthesized through the thermal decomposition reaction of MnC₂O₄·2H₂O-FeC₂O₄·2H₂O (1:2 mole ratio) mixture in air. DTA-TG, XRD, Mössbauer spectroscopy, FT-IR and SEM techniques were used to investigate the effect of calcination temperature on the mixture. Firing of the mixture in the range 300-500 °C produce ultra-fine particles of α-Fe₂O₃ having paramagnetic properties. XRD, Mössbauer spectroscopy as well as SEM experiments showed the progressive increase in the particle size of α-Fe₂O₃ up to 500 °C. DTA study reveals an exothermic phase transition at 550 °C attributed to the formation of a Fe₂O₃-Mn₂O₃ solid solution which persists to appear up to 1000 °C. At 1100 °C, the single phase MnFe₂O₄ with a cubic structure predominated. The Mössbauer effect spectrum of the produced ferrite exhibits normal Zeeman split sextets due to Fe³⁺ions at tetrahedral (A) and octahedral (B) sites. The obtained cation distribution from Mössbauer spectroscopy is (Fe_0.92Mn_0.08)[Fe_1.08Mn_0.92]O₄.     

Recoilless fraction, structural, magnetic and thermal properties of Fe73.5Cu1Nb3Si13.5B9 alloy

Differential scanning calorimetry, X-ray diffraction and room temperature Mössbauer spectrum measurements of Fe_73.5Cu₁Nb₃Si_13.5B₉ (Finemet) alloy have been carried out in order to study its structural and magnetic properties as a function of annealing temperature. The DSC profile of as-quenched Finemet showed two exothermic peaks at 530 and 702 °C, corresponding to two crystallization processes. The Finemet alloy remains amorphous at 450 °C with one broad peak in XRD pattern and one broad sextet in Mössbauer spectrum. When the Finemet alloy was annealed at 550 °C, only well indexed body-center-cubic phase was detected. After being annealed at 650 and 750 °C, the XRD patterns showed the coexistence of α-Fe(Si) and Fe-B intermetallic phases with the increase in XRD peak intensities, indicating the growth of crystallites and the decomposition of Fe_73.5Cu₁Nb₃Si_13.5B₉ alloy at elevated temperatures. The Mössbauer spectra of annealed Finemet alloy could be fitted with 4 or 5 sextets and one doublet at higher annealing temperatures, revealing the appearance of different crystalline phases corresponding to the different Fe sites above the crystallization temperature. The appearance of the nanocrystalline phases at different annealing temperatures was further confirmed by the recoilless fraction measurements.     

Effect of La doping in the multiferroic compound BiFeO3

We have performed magnetization and magnetocapacitance measurements on ceramic samples of the multiferroic series Bi_1−xLa_xFeO₃ for 0≤x≤.0.25. We show that doping with La reduces the transition magnetic field from the spatially modulated state to a homogenous one and increases the magnetocapacitance, these effects being the strongest for x=0.15, which is the highest concentration for maintaining the non-centrosymmetric rhomboedral structure (R3c) of BiFeO₃. For highest La content (x≥0.17), analysis of the XRD patterns shows that the lattice symmetry gradually changes to orthorhombic (C222), giving rise to an enhancement of the latent magnetization and to a drop of the magnetodielectric constant.     

On tuning the spectroscopic properties of LaAlO3:Pr nanocrystallites

In this study we report the preparation and spectroscopic properties of nanosized crystallites LaAlO₃ doped with Pr³⁺ (1 mol%) and traces of Cr³⁺ ions, produced by the precipitation method. A new material has been obtained whose spectroscopic properties differ nominally from the same bulk of LaAlO₃:Pr³⁺.It was observed that with increase in the nano-LaAlO₃ sample diameter above 110 nm the perovskite structure changes from cubic to rhombohedral. As a result, the bigger samples have two orders of magnitudes of higher emission intensity when compared to the smaller ones.     

Low temperature study of micrometric powder of melted Fe50Mn10Al40 alloy

Melted Fe₅₀Mn₁₀Al₄₀ alloy powder with particle size less than 40 μm was characterized at room temperature by XRD, SEM and XPS; and at low temperatures by Mössbauer spectrometry, ac susceptibility, and magnetization analysis. The results show that the sample is BCC ferromagnetic but with a big contribution of paramagnetic sites, and presents super-paramagnetic and re-entrant spin-glass phases with critical temperatures of 265 and 35 K, respectively. The presence of the different phases detected is due to the disordered character of the sample and the competitive magnetic interactions. The obtained values of the saturation magnetization and the coercive field as a function of temperature present a behavior which indicates a ferromagnetic phase. However, the behavior of the FC curve and that of the coercive field as a function of temperature suggest that the dipolar magnetic interaction between particles contributes to the internal magnetic field in the same way as was reported for nanoparticulate powders.     

Effect of W co-doping on the optical,magnetic and electrical properties of Fe-doped BaSnO3

The effect of W co-doping on the optical, magnetic and electrical properties of Fe-doped BaSnO₃ has been studied. Polycrystalline BaSnO₃, BaSn_0.96Fe_0.04O₃ and BaSn_0.95Fe_0.04W_0.01O₃ samples were prepared using solid state reaction. In the analysis of powder X-ray diffraction patterns, the samples were found to be free of secondary phases. Diffuse reflectance spectra evidenced the substitution of Fe and W for Sn in the host BaSnO₃. Micro-Raman spectra confirmed the existence of oxygen vacancies in the samples. Upon W-1% co-doping, the ferromagnetic character of Fe-4% doped BaSnO₃ is suppressed drastically and its Curie temperature is reduced to 310 K from 462 K. The existence of F-centers and ferromagnetic interactions at room temperature is evidenced by the electron paramagnetic resonance and ferromagnetic resonance signals observed in the electron spin resonance spectra of the undoped and Fe-4% doped, (Fe-4% and W-1%) co-doped BaSnO₃ samples respectively. Suppression of ferromagnetism upon W co-doping is due to the fact that each W⁶⁺ ion donates two electrons to the host lattice and it reduces the number of oxygen vacancies that are essential for ferromagnetism to exist in the Fe-doped BaSnO₃ samples.     

Structural transformations and magnetic properties of Fe60Pt15B25 and Fe60Pt25B15 nanocomposite alloys

Structural and magnetic properties of two rapidly solidified and post-annealed Fe₆₀Pt₁₅B₂₅ and Fe₆₀Pt₂₅B₁₅ alloys are compared. The as-quenched Fe₆₀Pt₁₅B₂₅ ribbon was fully amorphous whereas in the Fe₆₀Pt₂₅B₁₅ alloy the amorphous phase coexists with an fcc FePt disordered solid solution. Differential scanning calorimetry curves of both alloys reveal a single exothermal peak with onset temperatures of 873 and 847 K for Fe₆₀Pt₁₅B₂₅ and Fe₆₀Pt₂₅B₁₅, respectively. Magnetically hard, tetragonal ordered L1₀ FePt and magnetically soft Fe₂B nanocrystalline phases were formed due to the annealing of the alloys, as indicated by X-ray diffraction and Mössbauer spectroscopy measurements. Two-phase behavior was detected in the temperature dependence of magnetization of the annealed samples. A magnetic hardening was observed for all annealed ribbons. Magnetic properties of the annealed alloys, studied by hysteresis loop measurements, were related to the differences in the relative fractions of the hard and soft magnetic phases calculated from Mössbauer spectra. The alloy with 25 at% Pt exhibits better hard magnetic properties (H_c=437 kA/m, M_r/M_s=0.74) than the alloy with smaller Pt content (H_c=270 kA/m, M_r/M_s=0.73) mainly due to the larger abundance of the ordered tetragonal FePt phase.     

Structural and magnetic properties of MnxCo1−xFe2O4 ferrite nanoparticles

We report on the structural and magnetic properties of nanoparticles of Mn_xCo_1−xFe₂O₄ (x=0.1, 0.5) ferrites produced by the glycothermal reaction. From the analysis of XRD spectra and TEM micrographs, particle sizes of the samples have been found to be about 8 nm (for x=0.1) and 13 nm (for x=0.5). The samples were characterized by DC magnetization in the temperature range 5-380 K and in magnetic fields of up to 40 kOe using a SQUID magnetometer. Mössbauer spectroscopy results show that the sample with higher Mn content has enhanced hyperfine fields after thermal annealing at 700 °C. There is a corresponding small reduction in hyperfine fields for the sample with lower Mn content. The variations of saturation magnetization, remnant magnetization and coercive fields as functions of temperature are also presented. Our results show evidence of superparamagnetic behaviour associated with the nanosized particles. Particle sizes appear to be critical in explaining the observed properties.     

Mössbauer effect investigations of Co83Fe17/Au/Co/Au multilayers

[Co₈₃Fe₁₇/Au/Co/Au]_N sputter deposited multilayers displaying a giant magnetoresistance have been investigated. Complementary magnetic measurements were conducted in order to characterize a spin reorientation transition in Co₈₃Fe₁₇ layers sandwiched between Au spacers. The transition from a perpendicular magnetic anisotropy to easy-plane one takes place at the thickness of about 1 nm.     

Effect of Nb addition on the structure and soft magnetic properties of melt-spun Co69Fe7Si14B10 alloy

Melt-spun ribbons of Co₆₉Fe₇Si_14−xNb_xB₁₀ alloys with x=0, 2 and 4 have been prepared and characterized for structure and soft magnetic properties. Ribbons with x=0 and x=2 are found to be completely amorphous whereas the ribbon with x=4 contains irregular shaped faulted Co₂Si orthorhombic phase with grain size of about 100 nm. Nb addition is found to decrease the degree of amorphicity and induce perpendicular anisotropy, deteriorating the soft magnetic and magnetoimpedance properties.     

Effects of annealing temperature on structure and magnetic properties of CoAl0.2Fe1.8O4/SiO2 nanocomposites

CoAl_0.2Fe_1.8O₄/SiO₂ nanocomposites were prepared by sol–gel method. The effects of annealing temperature on the structure and magnetic properties of the samples were studied by X-ray diffraction, transmission electron microscopy, vibrating sample magnetometer and Mössbauer spectroscopy. The results show that the CoAl_0.2Fe_1.8O₄ in the samples exhibits a spinel structure after being annealed. As annealing temperature increases from 800 to 1200 °C, the average grain size of CoAl_0.2Fe_1.8O₄ in the nanocomposites increases from 5 to 41 nm while the lattice constant decreases from 0.8397 to 0.8391 nm, the saturation magnetization increases from 21.96 to 41.53 emu/g. Coercivity reaches a maximum of 1082 Oe for the sample annealed at 1100 °C, and thereafter decreases with further increasing annealing temperature. Mössbauer spectra show that the isomer shift decreases, hyperfine field increases and the samples transfer from mixed state of superparamagnetic and magnetic order to the completely magnetic order with annealing temperature increasing from 800 to 1200 °C.     

Vibrational and Fe-Mössbauer spectra of LaFeGe2O7 and NdFeGe2O7

The infrared, Raman and ⁵⁷Fe-Mössbauer spectra of LaFeGe₂O₇ and NdFeGe₂O₇ were recorded and analysed on the basis of their structural characteristics. Some comparisons with the stoichiometrically related materials containing the heavier lanthanides are made, showing that it is possible to differentiate spectroscopically both groups of materials. The Mössbauer parameters clearly reflect the small structural differences in the FeO₅-polyhedra present in these compounds.     

Sol-gel derived nanoparticles of Zn substituted lithium ferrite (Li0.32Zn0.36Fe2.32O4): magnetic and Mössbauer effect measurements and their theoretical analysis

Nanoparticles of Zn substituted lithium ferrite (Li_0.32Zn_0.36Fe_2.32O₄) have been prepared by a sol-gel method where the ultra-sonication technique has been adopted to reduce the agglomeration effect among the nanoparticles. The samples were heat-treated at three different temperatures and the formation of the nanocrystalline phase was confirmed by X-ray diffractograms (XRD). The average particle size of each sample has been estimated from the (311) peak of the XRD pattern using the Debye-Scherrer formula and the average sizes are in the range of 10-21 nm. The average particle size, crystallographic phase, etc. of some selected samples obtained from the high-resolution transmission electron microscopy are in agreement with those estimated from the XRD patterns. Static magnetic measurements viz., hysteresis loops, field cooled and zero field cooled magnetization versus temperature curves of some samples carried out by SQUID in the temperature range of 300 to 5 K clearly indicate the presence of superparamagnetic (SPM) relaxation of the nanoparticles in the samples. The maximum magnetization of the SPM sample annealed at 500 °C is quite high (68 Am²/Kg) and the hysteresis loops are almost square shaped with very low value of coercive field at room temperature (827.8 A/m). The particle size, magneto-crystalline anisotropy, etc. have been estimated from the detailed theoretical analysis of the static magnetic data. The dynamic magnetic behavior of the samples was also investigated by observing the ac hysteresis loops and magnetization versus field curves with different time windows at room temperatures. The different soft magnetic quantities viz., coercive field, magnetization, remanance, hysteresis losses, etc. were extracted from dynamic measurements. Dynamic measurements confirmed that the samples are in their mixed state of SPM and ordered ferrimagnetic particles, which is in good agreement with the results of static magnetic measurements. Mössbauer spectra of the samples recorded at room temperature (300 K) and at different temperatures down to 20 K confirmed the presence of the SPM relaxation of the nanoparticles of the samples.     

The magnetic behaviour of the magnetically diluted spinel compound Fe0.6Mg1.6Ni0.1Ti0.7O4 studied by Mössbauer spectroscopy

From a new magnetically diluted spinel oxide with composition Fe_0.6Mg_1.6Ni_0.1Ti_0.7O₄ an as-prepared sample and one after reheating three times have been investigated with Mössbauer spectroscopy. The spectra of the as-prepared sample clearly show a typical superparamagnetic behaviour of magnetic clusters with diverging sizes. On the other hand, the reheated sample exhibits a sharp magnetic transition at 16 K. External-field Mössbauer measurements of the latter reveal spin canting to be exclusively present on the octahedral sites which disappears at the magnetic transition temperature. These results show that this spinel compound exhibits a transition to a spin-glass for which the random freezing only occurs on the octahedral sites.     

Electrical and magnetic characterization of a molecular material {[Ru(bpy)3][Fe(dca)3]2}n

Electrical and magnetic properties of {[Ru(bpy)₃][Fe(dca)₃]₂}_n (bpy=2,2′-bipyridine, dca=dicyanamide) have been studied. The compound is a non-extrinsic type of semiconductor and paramagnetic in nature. Mössbauer spectroscopy has established the presence of high spin Fe(II) as one major species in this compound, and no high spin-low spin transition of Fe(II) was detected down to 80 K under dark. The photo-response of electrical conductivity with time shows interesting behavior with repeated exposure.     

Spectroscopic and magnetic properties of Fe3Fe4(AsO4)6

The infrared (IR) and ⁵⁷Fe-Mössbauer spectra of Fe₃^IIFe₄^III(AsO₄)₆ were recorded and analyzed on the basis of its structural characteristics. The IR spectrum presents a high complexity, showing an important number of bands and splittings, as a consequence of the presence of three structurally independent AsO₄³⁻ groups. The analysis of the four quadrupole signals shown by the Mössbauer spectrum allowed to attain a detailed insight into the cation distribution over the available crystallographic sites. The alternating current susceptibility measurements indicate a paramagnetic to ferrimagnetic transition in the material at about 59 K.     

The effect of annealing on the room temperature ferromagnetism in co-sputtered In2O3: C thin films

In this paper, we report investigation of room temperature (RT) ferromagnetism in In₂O₃ (InO) thin films doped with carbon prepared by the co-sputtering method. InO thin films both undoped and C doped with varied thicknesses in the range of 45 to 80 nm were synthesized on Si substrates with varied C concentrations. The carbon concentration was varied from 1.6 to 9.3 at%. The undoped InO films showed no trace of ferromagnetism. Carbon doped films (InO:C) exhibited ferromagnetism at RT, which was of the orders of 10⁻⁵ emu and varied strongly with C concentrations. It is observed that the magnetization reached a maximum value of 5.7 emu/cm³ at 4 at% C. Annealing of the InO:C films in an oxygen environment resulted in a decrease in the magnetization, indicating the crucial role of oxygen vacancies in the films. It is concluded that the oxygen vacancies were important and compete with C substitution for the RT ferromagnetism.