Mössbauer studies and magnetic properties of spinel lead ferrite

In the present communication, we have reported the synthesis of nanocrystalline lead ferrite (PbFe₂O₄) by citrate mediated autocombustion method. X-ray diffraction pattern reveals the single phase formation in cubic (spinel) structure. The particle size and the surface morphology of the samples are characterized by TEM and SEM analysis. Magnetic studies are carried out using vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) shows a very high coercive field for the material. Mössbauer studies were performed to investigate the local symmetry i.e. Fe is in octahedral/tetrahedral site and the charge states of Fe ions.     

Mössbauer spectroscopy studies of the magnetic properties of ferrite nanoparticles

Studies of the ferrite nanoparticles prepared by the chemical decomposition of iron chlorides with a various ratio ξ = Fe³⁺/Fe²⁺ are herein presented. The microstructure and the magnetic properties have been studied by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and Mössbauer spectroscopy (MS). The TEM studies show that the nanoparticles have almost a spherical shape with the diameter of (12 ± 2) nm for all samples. The measured XRD pattern was mainly composed of lines which were indexed with a cubic spinel structure. The analysis of the Mössbauer data shows that the microstructure of the nanoparticles consists of the core formed by nonstoichiometric magnetite and maghemite shell. A small amount of hematite, probably on the surface of the nanoparticles with ξ = 1.75, 2.0, was detected. At temperatures T ≤ 150 K the spin canting of surface maghemite with ξ = 2.25 was observed while for the samples with ξ = 1.75, 2.0 such effect was suppressed by the presence of hematite on the surface of the nanoparticles. Infield Mössbauer spectra with ξ = 1.75, 2.0 show that magnetic moments of the magnetite/maghemite core are parallel while magnetic moments of the surface hematite are perpendicular to the direction of the external magnetic field.     

Mössbauer studies of heterobimetallic and heterotrimetallic compounds containing iron and tin

A series of ferrocene derivatives was prepared and studied by⁵⁷Fe and¹¹⁹Sn Mössbauer spectroscopy, as well as by other techniques such as NMR and IR spectroscopies. These complexes can be divided into three types: mercurated, organotin derivatives of ferrocene, and bi- and trimetallic derivatives of 1,1-bis(diphenylphosphino)ferrocene. Iron did not show great variation in its Mössbauer parameters in the compounds, in spite of their diversity; tin, however, gave important Mössbauer data for the elucidation of bonding and structural features of the complexes.     

Mössbauer spectroscopy and magnetic studies of orientated textured Fe3O4 ferrofluid

Nano scale magnetite based ferrofluid is synthesized by chemical co pre cipitation technique and stabilized with oleic acid. Magnetization and viscosity measurements were used to optimize for texturing purpose. The freeze-textured ferrofluid in two configurations, namely, (1) field texture system (FTS) and (2) zero field texture system (ZTS) are investigated by magnetization measurements at 298 K and Mössbauer spectroscopy measurements at 77 and 298 K. These results are analysed on the basis of the contributions from collective superparamagnetic reversal and the strength of the inter particle interactions.     

Mössbauer and magnetic characterization of TbRhSn

The intermetallic compound TbRhSn was investigated in detail by X-ray, magnetic susceptibility measurements and ¹¹⁹Sn Mössbauer spectroscopy. This compound undergoes a transition from a paramagnetic to an antiferromagnetic state at T _N = 20.8(2) K. The ¹¹⁹Sn Mössbauer spectrum recorded at 4.2 K can be well fitted as a composition of three subspectra with the same intensities, magnitudes of H _hf, ΔE _Q, and δ _is, in agreement with the model of triangular-like antiferromagnetic arrangements of equal magnetic Tb moments lying in the basal ab-plane deduced from neutron diffraction studies (Szytu?a et al., J Alloys Compd 244:94–98, 1996).     

Mössbauer studies of baotite and bafertisite

The Mössbauer effect was used to study silicate minerals of baotite and bafertisite at 298 K and 95 K. Each spectrum of baotite at 298 K and 95 K consists of two doublets, and they are contributed from Fe²⁺ and Fe³⁺ in the octahedral Tisites, respectively. Each spectrum of bafertisite at 298 K and 95 K is composed of two doublets, and they are mainly caused by Fe²⁺ in the octahedral Fe(I) and Fe(II)sites, respectively. The average effective ionic radii of the Ti sites in baotite and the Fe(I) and Fe(II)sites in bafertisite were estimated based on the correlation of the isomer shifts with the average effective ionic radii in silicates, and they are 0.56 , 0.73 and 0.73 , respectively.     

Mössbauer and magnetic studies of nanocomposites containing iron oxides and humic acids

A sample of volcanic ashes emanated from the Osorno volcano, southern Chile, was characterized with X-ray fluorescence, X-ray diffraction and ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy, in an attempt to identify the iron-bearing minerals of that geologically recent magmatic deposit. X-ray patterns indicated that the sample is mainly constituted of anorthite, Fe-diopside-type and Ca-magnetite. The crystallographic structures of these dominant iron minerals are proposed on basis of their chemical composition and corresponding Mössbauer data to support models refined by fitting powder X-ray diffraction data with the Rietveld algorithm.     

Temperature dependence of atomic clusters and magnetic properties of α-phase Fe-V alloy by Mössbauer and VSM studies

In this work, α-phase Fe-12 V alloy (at.%) with high total magnetostriction is selected to perform Mössbauer and Vibrating Sample Magnetometer (VSM) measurements to investigate the temperature dependence of atomic clusters and the magnetic properties. The results show that with increasing temperature, the ferromagnetism firstly drops and then slightly increases, and finally decreases severely, which is mainly determined by the variations of the three kinds of atomic clusters (Fe-rich, V-rich and free-Fe) in the alloy. The hyperfine magnetic field, which decreases with temperature, is always dominated by the Fe-rich clusters. The atomic combination of the free-Fe clusters also determines the magnetic properties in the temperature range from room temperature to 600 °C; however, the free-Fe clusters contribution to the hyperfine magnetic fields tends to become zero above 600 °C, whereas that of the V-rich becomes obvious. When the temperature is high enough, the hyperfine magnetic field decreases sharply due to the destruction of the ordered Fe-rich state. VSM was selected to understand the relationship between the magnetic moment and the heating temperature, and the Curie temperature (T_C=836.36 °C) of the Fe-12 V alloy was obtained as well. Finally, the formula reflecting the magnetic moment of the α-phase Fe-12 V alloy varying with temperature is also successfully derived.     

Determination of magnetic anisotropy of complex rare-earth compounds from Mössbauer and NMR spectra

Experimental data and theoretical papers on the magnetic anisotropy (MA) of rare-earth-transition metal intermetallic compounds are reviewed. Discrepancies between the experimental data obtained by different authors, as well as between these data and the theoretical calculations of the MA constants, are indicated. A technique is proposed for determining the crystal-field parameters and the effective charges Q _i ^* of ions in intermetallic compounds. Using experimental Mössbauer and NMR spectroscopic data, possible values of Q _i ^* are determined for R ₂T_17?x and R ₂T_17?x Ti_x compounds, which allow one to find the MA constants of these systems with different R and T in a unified way. The problem of the sign of the contribution from the rare-earth metal sublattice to the MA is discussed. The heavy x dependence of this contribution in the R ₂T_17?x Ti_x system is explained to be due to the contribution to the crystal field from Ti ions in the dumbbells.     

Mössbauer studies of the H2 reduction effects on magnetic properties of Ba–Sr hexagonal ferrite

Hyperfine Interactions - The concept of composite magnets with hard materials and soft materials have been applied for increasing specific saturation magnetization (σs) of M-type hexagonal...     

Mössbauer and PAC studies of nanocrystalline Fe

High-purity Fe powder was mechanically milled under argon at ambient temperature using an SPEX 8000 mill. The local atomic and magnetic structure was studied using⁵⁷Co/Fe Mössbauer and¹¹¹In/Cd perturbed angular correlations (PAC) spectroscopies. After 32 hours of milling, X-ray diffraction revealed effective grain diameters of 18 nm and energy-dispersive X-ray analysis indicated a Cr impurity concentration of 5%, presumably introduced by mechanical attrition of steel ball bearings used for milling. In addition to a spectral component very similar to bulk iron metal, the Mössbauer spectra exhibited hyperfine field shifts attributed to the Cr impurities. PAC spectra on Fe milled for 5 h, with no contamination, exhibited two components: (1) A slightly broadened magnetic interaction attributed to interior, defect-free sites of In/Cd probes with a mean hyperfine field slightly greater than in macroscopic grains. The defect-free site fraction grew appreciably during milling, even though In is essentially insoluble in Fe. (2) An indistinct signal due to mixed magnetic and quadrupole interactions attributed to probes at surface or other defect sites.     

Mössbauer and X-Ray studies of MgO-Fe nanocomposite

XRD phase analysis and Mössbauer spectroscopy are used to study the structure of magnesiowustite (Mg_0.9Fe_0.1) obtained via the decomposition of mixed iron-magnesium oxalate in different atmospheres, the structure of MgO-α-Fe composite after reduction by hydrogen in Ar + 5% H₂ gas mixture at 800°C and 1000°C, and the structure of iron at every stage. It was shown that fine particles of α-Fe are obtained upon the decomposition of iron-magnesium oxalate in vacuum at 1000°C. If a precursor is decomposed in high purity Ar, α-Fe particles form during reduction at lower temperature (800°C) due to the partial decomposition of one of the phase components—magnetite.     

Mössbauer and susceptibility studies of FeMoVO7

The oxidic phase FeMoVO₇ of the Fe₂O₃-V₂O₅-MoO₃ system has been synthesized. Susceptibility measurements from 4.2 K to room temperature display an antiferromagnetic behaviour with an effective magnetic moment of 5.80 _b . This value, and the measured Mössbauer isomer shift of 0.40±0.02 mm/s, are characteristic of high-spin Fe(III). The lowT _n value of 15 K suggests a weak interaction among the Fe-O polyhedra. The relative small QS=0.28±0.02 mm/s found in this compound shows that the Fe-O polyhedra symmetry is close to octahedral and almost undistorted.     

Mössbauer studies of the surface and bulk magnetic structure of scandium-substituted Ba-M-type hexaferrites

A direct comparison of the magnetic structures of a surface layer and of the bulk of Ba-M-type hexagonal ferrites with iron ions partially replaced by Sc diamagnetic ions (BaFe_12?x Sc_xO₁₉) has been made by simultaneous Mössbauer spectroscopy with detection of gamma rays, characteristic x-ray emission, and electrons. It has been found that, if the magnetic lattice of a Ba-M-type hexagonal ferrite is weakly diluted by Sc diamagnetic ions, a ～300-nm thick macroscopic layer forms on the surface of a BaFe_11.4Sc_0.6O₁₉ crystal, in which the iron-ion magnetic moments are noncollinear with the moments in the bulk. The noncollinear magnetic structure forms in the near-surface layer of BaFe_12?x Sc_xO₁₉ crystals because the exchange interaction energy is additionally reduced by the presence of such a “defect” as the surface. This is the first observation in ferromagnetic crystals of an anisotropic surface layer whose magnetic properties, as predicted by Néel, differ from those of the bulk.     

Mössbauer study on surface magnetic properties in magnetic fluids

The presence of m=0 lines of the Mössbauer spectra of small Fe₃O₄ particles coated with an organic surfactant in an applied field of 7 T at 5 K shows a non-collinear magnetic structure in the surface layer of these particles. From the temperature dependence of the hyperfine field, the anisotropy constantK was calculated.Projects supported by the Science Fund of the Chinese Academy of SciencesNow working at the Shanghai Institute of Education     

Magnetic and Mössbauer characterization of the magnetic properties of single-crystalline sub-micron sized Bi2Fe4O9 cubes

Magnetic and Mössbauer characterization of single crystalline, sub-micron sized Bi₂Fe₄O₉ cubes has been performed using SQUID magnetometry and transmission Mössbauer spectroscopy in the temperature range of 4.2 K ≤ T ≤ 300 K. A broad magnetic phase transition from the paramagnetic to the anti-ferromagnetic state is observed below 250 K, with the Mössbauer spectra exhibiting a superposition of magnetic, collapsed and quadrupolar spectra in the transition region of 200 K < T < 245 K. Room temperature Mössbauer spectra obtained in transmission geometry are identical to those recorded in back-scattering geometry via conversion electron Mössbauer spectroscopy, indicating the absence of strain at the surface. A small hysteresis loop is observed in SQUID measurements at 5 K, attributable to the presence of weak-ferromagnetism arising from the canting of Fe³⁺ ion sublattices in the antiferromagnetic matrix.     

Microwave absorption and Mössbauer studies of Fe3O4 nanoparticles

Materials consisting of nanometer-sized magnetic particles are currently the subject of intensive research activities. Especially, much attention has been paid to their promising features for microwave magnetic properties. Well dispersed Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles of 30 nm have been synthesized by oxidization method with NaNO₂, and the microwave magnetic properties of the composites have been studied. The real and imaginary part of relative permittivity remained low and nearly constant in the region of 0.1–18 GHz, respectively. As a result, the resin composites having a thickness of 2.0–3.2 mm, and containing 20 vol% Fe₃O₄ in the form of nanoparticles with an average diameter of 30 nm, exhibited excellent electromagnetic wave absorption properties in the frequency range of 4.5–12.0 GHz.     

Mössbauer and magnetic studies on nanocrystalline NiFe2O4 particles prepared by ethylene glycol route

NiFe₂O₄ nanoparticles have been synthesized by co-precipitation method at 145°C in N₂ atmosphere using ethylene glycol as solvent and capping agent. This gives the promising synthesis route for nanoparticles at low temperature. The as-synthesized NiFe₂O₄ is subsequently heated at 400°C, 500°C, 700°C and 800°C. Crystallite size increases with the heat treatment temperature. The heat treatment temperature has direct effect on the electron paramagnetic resonance and intrinsic magnetic properties. The room temperature Mössbauer spectrum of the 800°C heated sample shows the two sextets pattern indicating that the sample is ferrimagnetic and Fe^3?+? ions occupy both tetrahedral and octahedral sites of spinel structure.