Mössbauer spectroscopic study of 57Fe metabolic transformations in the rhizobacterium Azospirillum brasilense Sp245

Preliminary ⁵⁷Fe transmission Mössbauer spectroscopic data were obtained for the first time for live cells of the plant-growth-promoting rhizobacterium Azospirillum brasilense (wild-type strain Sp245) grown aerobically with ⁵⁷Fe^III–nitrilotriacetate (NTA) complex as a sole source of iron. The results obtained have shown that live cells actively reduce part of the assimilated iron(III) to iron(II), the latter amounting up to 33 % of total cellular iron after 18 h of growth, and 48 % after additional 3 days of storage of the dense wet cell suspension in nutrient-free saline solution in air at room temperature (measured at 80 K). The cellular iron(II) was found to be represented by two quadrupole doublets of different high-spin forms, while the parameters of the cellular iron(III) were close to those typical for bacterioferritins.     

Iron nano-clusters in ytterbium films: a 57Fe Mössbauer spectroscopic study

We have performed a Mössbauer study on iron clusters that are formed in ytterbium films prepared by vapor co-deposition onto kapton substrates kept at room temperature. The film thicknesses were chosen in a range between 2.5 and 2.8 $\upmu$ m. XRD of the films reveals a mixture of fcc- and hcp-like ytterbium. Iron concentrations were between 0.3 and 5 at %. All samples reveal hyperfine spectra attributed to only two types of iron clusters with well defined hyperfine parameters. The clusters are supposed to be formed at boundaries of hcp- and fcc-like grains. In addition there is found a small contribution from monomeric iron. Spectra taken at 4.2 K reveal a complex distribution of magnetic hyperfine fields. The dynamic origin of the spectral shape is supported by susceptibility data revealing spin-freezing at temperatures below ca. 10 K. This proves that the iron clusters have sizes on the order of nm.     

Mössbauer emission spectroscopy of pure and doped MgO:57Co

Mössbauer emission studies on ⁵⁷Co embedded in pure and doped MgO have been carried out. The appearance of anomalous ⁵⁷Fe+³ in the Mössbauer spectra is related to the concentration and ionization degree of the electron acceptor levels existing in the energy gap. The temperature dependence of isomer shift of both ferrous and ferric lines agrees well with the Debye model.     

Iron-57 Mössbauer spectroscopic study of fluorinated strontium orthoferrite

A nuclear spin maser of a new type, that employs a feedback scheme based on optical nuclear spin detection, has been fabricated. The spin maser is operated at a low static field of 30 mG by using the optical detection method. The frequency stability and precision of the spin maser have been improved by a highly stabilized current source for the static magnetic field. An experimental setup to search for an electric dipole moment (EDM) in ¹²⁹Xe atom is being developed.     

57Fe Mössbauer spectroscopic study of nanostructured zinc ferrite

Nanosize zinc ferrite particles, prepared by nitrate method, were investigated by XRD, TEM, ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy and VSM. The average particle size in this system varies from 10 to 62 nm as the sintering temperature increases from 300°C to 1,000°C. The lattice parameters in this system are almost constant at a value of ～8.41 Å. The Mössbauer spectra of all the sintered samples show a single doublet. The Mössbauer hyperfine parameters show little change with the change of sintering temperature. The doublets are ascribed to the presence of superparamagnetism in this system, which is also corroborated by the VSM measurements.     

Gamma-X-ray coincidence Mössbauer emission spectroscopy on57Co/CoO

The time integral Mössbauer emission spectrum of a⁵⁷Co/Co_1–x O source (x 10^–5) at RT consists of two single Lorentzian lines of an Fe²⁺ (76%) charge state and an Fe³⁺ (24%) aliovalent charge state. The spectrum measured by -X-ray coincidence spectrpscopy shows the same fraction of the aliovalent charge state, contrary to the expectation derived from the competing acceptor model as successfully applied by Tejada and Parak [1], who could explain the dependence of the formation of aliovalent charge states after the nuclear transformation on the stoichiometric parameterx. The consequences of this unexpected behaviour for the competing acceptor model are discussed.     

Mössbauer spectroscopic study of FeAl1−x Co x

We report the results of a Mössbauer study of the alloy sytem FeAl_1?x Co _x forx ≥ 0.3 at temperatures down to 83 K. Magnetic splitting is observed forx ≥ 0.35 at all temperatures. However, forx=0.3, no splitting is observed at room temperature, and superparamagnetic behavior occurs at LN₂ temperature. The magnetically split spectra are fitted each with a distribution of hyperfine fields and the average hyperfine field \(\bar B_{hf} \) as a function of temperature is obtained. The variation of \(\bar B_{hf} \) withT is explained using the model of magnetic clusters with collective magnetic excitations from which the saturation hyperfine field and the magnetic anisotropy energy for these clusters are obtained. Also, the results are discussed using the model of random atomic distributions, and the agreement between the calculated and the experimentally obtained distributions of hyperfine fields is found improve asx increases.     

M?ssbauer spectroscopic study of spin reorientation in Mn-substituted yttrium orthoferrite

The first-order spin-reorientation transition in the Mn-substituted yttrium orthoferrites, YFe(1-x)Mn(x)O(3) (x = 0.1, 0.15 and 0.2), has been investigated using (57)Fe M?ssbauer spectroscopy. Owing to its large anisotropy, substitution of Mn(3+) ions in YFeO(3) induces a spin-reorientation transition from the low-temperature antiferromagnetic state to a high-temperature weak ferromagnetic state. With increasing x, the spin-reorientation transition temperature (T(SR)) increases whereas the Néel temperature (T(N)) decreases. Analysis of the M?ssbauer spectra unambiguously confirms the occurrence of spin reorientation relative to crystal axes. At a given temperature, the mean hyperfine field decreases with the increasing Mn concentration. The variation of canting angle with temperature for YFe(0.85)Mn(0.15)O(3) has been estimated.     

57Fe Mössbauer study of new multiferroic AgFeO2

The present work reports results of the ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer measurements on AgFeO₂ powder sample recorded at various temperatures including the points of both magnetic phase transitions. The ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectra of AgFeO₂ measured in the paramagnetic range (T > T _N1) consist of one quadrupole doublet with rather high quadrupole splitting of Δ_300K = 0.66 ± 0.01 mm/s for Fe³⁺ ions. In order to predict the sign of electric field gradient (EFG) at ⁵⁷Fe nuclei, we calculated the lattice contribution to the electric field gradient (EFG) at ⁵⁷Fe nuclei, which emphasized the importance of the dipolar contributions, with resultant oxygen polarizabilities in the range of α _O = 0.83 ų, in agreement with the results obtained previously for other delafossite-like oxides. In the temperature range of T _N2 < T < T _N1, Mössbauer spectra gave clear evidence for the existence of a distribution of the hyperfine magnetic fields H _hf at ⁵⁷Fe nuclei. We present the results of a model fitting of the spectra based on an assumption of the cycloid magnetic structure of AgFeO₂ at T < T _N2. The obtained data were analysed in comparison with published data on Mössbauer studies of oxide multiferroics.     

M?ssbauer study of peroxynitrito complex formation with FeIII-chelates

The reaction of the μ-oxo-diiron(III)-L complex (L = EDTA, ethylene diamine tetraacetate, HEDTA, hydroxyethyl ethylene diamine triacetate, and CyDTA, cyclohexane diamine tetraacetate) with peroxynitrite in alkaline solution was studied by M?ssbauer spectroscopy using rapid-freezing technique. These complexes yield an (L)Fe^III(η ²-O $_{2})^{3-}$ complex ion when they react with hydrogen peroxide and the formation of the peroxide adduct results in a deep purple coloration of the solution. The same color appears when the reaction occurs with peroxinitrite. Although spectrophotometry indicated some difference between the molar extinction coefficients of the peroxo and the peroxinitrito adducts, the M?ssbauer parameters proved to be the same within experimental error. It is concluded that the peroxynitrite ion decomposes when reacting with Fe^III(L) and the peroxo adduct forms.     

In-beam Mössbauer study of 57Mn implanted into a low-temperature xenon

The in-beam Mössbauer spectrum of ⁵⁷Mn implanted into a Xe solid at 14 K was measured. Four singlets were observed in the spectrum, assigned to ⁵⁷Fe^?+? (3d⁷), ⁵⁷Fe^?+? (3d⁶4s¹), ⁵⁷Fe⁰ (3d⁶4s²), and ⁵⁷Fe⁰ (3d⁷4s¹). The assignments were in agreement with calculated electron densities at nuclei reported in the literature. The β-decay of ⁵⁷Mn did not disturb the surrounding Xe lattice, showing a singlet peak, and the excited states were stabilized in the time range of the Mössbauer measurements of ~100 ns. The production mechanism was explained in terms of the reduction of ⁵⁷Mn ^x?+? and ⁵⁷Fe ^y?+? ions by free electrons in the Xe matrix.     

Mössbauer study of hyperfine field distribution in Co2TiSn

The Co₂TiSn Heusler-type alloy (crystal structure L2₁, ferromagnetic with T_C=364(4)K) was investigated by means of magnetometric and 119-Sn Mössbauer techniques in the temperature range from 4.2K to 370K. The study was supplemented by similar examination of off-stoichiometric samples: Co_2±1Ti₁₁Sn. The temperature evolution of the shape of hyperfine field distribution leads to the conclusion that the process of demagnetization takes place in a non-uniform fashion within the sample volume. It is further claimed that local, short-range interactions are dominant both in magnetic and hyperfine couplings in this Heusler-type Co-based alloy.     

A57Fe Mössbauer study of Nd(Fe0.5Co0.5)9Si2

A⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer study of Nd(Fe_0.5Co_0.5)₉Si₂ has been carried out over the temperature range 4.2–295 K. The analysis of the Mössbauer spectra, combined with X-ray diffraction on a magnetically aligned powder sample, shows that the easy-magnetization direction lies in the basal plane of this tetragonal BaCd₁₁ structure at 295 K, but is canted at an angle of 29(5) above the basal plane at 4.2 K. AC susceptibility measurements performed in the temperature range 77–295 K reveal a peak spanning the range 87–106 K, with the maximum occurring at 96 K. From these data, we conclude that there is a spin-reorientation from basal c-plane to a canted magnetic structure in this compound, with an onset at 96 K as the temperature decreases.     

57Fe Mössbauer study of a secondary phase in FeSe1−x with a large quadrupole splitting

We have studied the hyperfine interactions in samples belonging to the Fe-Se system. Several samples with various concentrations of selenium were synthesized and investigated. The objective was to find synthesis conditions increasing the concentration of a secondary Fe-Se phase with a rather large quadrupole splitting of ~1.7 mm/s. At T _m ≈ 104 K this secondary phase undergoes a magnetic ordering.     

Spatially modulated magnetic structure of AgFeO2: Mössbauer study on 57Fe nuclei

The results of the Mössbauer study of ferrite AgFeO₂ manifesting multiferroic properties (at T ≤ T _N2) have been presented. The hyperfine interaction parameters of ⁵⁷Fe nuclei have been analyzed in a wide temperature range including the points of two magnetic phase transitions (T _N2 ≈ 7–9 K and T _N1 ≈ 15–16 K). It has been shown that the Mössbauer spectra of the ⁵⁷Fe nuclei are sensitive to the variations of the character of the magnetic ordering of Fe³⁺ ions in the studied ferrite. The results of the model identification of a series of spectra (4.7 K ≤ T ≤ T _N2) under the assumption of the cycloid magnetic structure of ferrite AgFeO₂ have been presented. The analysis of the results has been performed in comparison with the literature data for other oxide multiferroics.     

Feasibility study to investigate diffusion of Fe in Si using a Mössbauer spectroscopic microscope

A prototype Mössbauer Spectroscopic Microscope is applied for the feasibility study of ⁵⁷Fe impurity diffusion in Si wafers. A 2nm- ⁵⁷Fe deposited Si wafer is annealed at 430 °C for 1 hour, and subsequently the 1/3 area of the wafer is further grinded with an angle of 6 degrees to the original surface to get a higher depth resolution for the mapping. Subsequently, the mapping images for Fe\(_{\text {sub}}^{\mathrm {0}}\), Fe\(_{\text {int}}^{\mathrm {0}}\), and Fe\(_{\text {int}}^{\mathrm {+}}\) states are measured separately for the two different areas: one area (A) along the grinded surface, and the other (B) along the original wafer surface crossing through the ⁵⁷Fe-deposition boundary. By integrating the mapping intensity the diffusivity of each Fe component along the two different directions can be evaluated and compared with an average Fe diffusivity in Si, which is measured by EDS mapping data obtained for the same area.     

Hyperfine interactions in icosahedral quasicrystals: a Mössbauer study

Icosahedral Al₆₅Cu₂₀Fe₁₅ and Al₄₀Cu_9.9Ge₂₅Mn₂₅ ⁵⁷Fe_0.1 quasicrystals are studied using⁵⁷Fe transmission Mössbauer experiments. The spectra are analyzed by distributions of electric-quadrupole interaction accounting for line asymmetries. Temperature dependences of the hyperfine parameters derived comprising average values ofP() distributions, corresponding standard deviations and center shifts are presented in a whole range from 8 to 300 K.     

57Fe Mössbauer study of a deposit in an industrial cooling circuit supplied with raw river water

In this work, the nature of the deposit found inside an industrial cooling circuit (which consists of a mixture of different iron containing phases) has been characterized in detail by ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy. Electron Paramagnetic Resonance spectroscopy was also used to check for the presence of other metals, mainly manganese and copper, detected by the Inductive Coupled Plasma method. We conclude that the deposit contains a large amount of Fe(III), probably consisiting of ferrihydrite nanoparticles and of goethite, either bulk or as large particles. It also contains traces of an Fe(II) species (about 3%), probably adsorbed on the iron oxides. Mn(II) and traces of Cu(II) are also present.