57Fe Mössbauer study of La0.67Ca0.33Mn1 − x Fe x O3 CMR system

The structural changes of near-equiatomic α-FeCr alloys, ground in a vibratory mill in vacuum and in argon, were followed as a function of milling time. An amorphous phase forms in both cases but at a much faster rate when milling in argon than when milling in vacuum. Amorphisation by ball-milling of α-FeCr alloys is deduced to be an intrinsic phenomenon which is however speeded-up by oxygen. The amorphous phase crystallizes into a bcc Cr-rich phase and a bcc Fe-rich phase when annealed for short times.     

57Fe Mössbauer and infrared studies of the system Co1−x Cd x Fe2O4

Mössbauer and infrared studies were made on samples of the ferrite system Co_1–xCd_xFe₂O₄ x=0.0, 0.1, 0.3, 0.5, 0.7, 0.9 and 1. Mössbauer spectra were taken at room temperature. The spectra of the samples withx0.7 showed well defined Zeeman patterns and they have been analyzed with two components, one due to A-site Fe³⁺ ions, and the other due to B-site Fe³⁺ and Fe²⁺ ions. The pattern due to B-site appeared to be composite and an explanation is given. The spectra withx=0.9 and 1 showed only a quadrupole splitting. The effect of cadmium substitution on the various hyperfine interactions has been discussed and the cationic distribution has been deduced for all values ofx. Far infrared spectra of the ferrite samples in the range 200–700 cm^–1 were reported. Four bands were observed: the high frequency bandv ₁ is assigned to tetrahedral complexes, and the low frequency bandv ₂ to octahedral complexes, a small bandv ₃ is due to Co²⁺-O^2– complexes andv ₄ is assigned to the lattice vibration of the system. The splitting occurred in thev ₁ andv ₂ bands atx=0.9 and inv ₂ atx=1, indicating the presence of Fe²⁺ ions in octahedral sites.     

57Fe Mössbauer study of amorphous and nanocrystalline Fe73.5Nb3Cu1Si13.5B9 after neutron irradiation

⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy is used to study neutron irradiation induced changes in the short-range order of Fe_73.5Nb₃Cu₁Si_13.5B₉ alloy. The samples are investigated in both amorphous and nanocrystalline states. Neutron irradiation leads to an increase of the standard deviation of a hyperfine field distribution (HFD), implying rearrangement of the atoms towards disordering. Simultaneously, changes in the average value of the hyperfine field and a net magnetic moment position occur as a consequence of a spin reorientation, atom mixing and microscopic stress centres which are introduced by neutron irradiation.     

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.     

Complementary 57Fe and 119Sn M?ssbauer study of mechanochemical redox reaction

A non-thermal route to oxide nanocomposites by mechanochemical redox reactions in the ??-Fe₂O₃ + SnO system is presented. The important impact of the work, from the methodology point of view, is the combined application of ⁵⁷Fe and ¹¹⁹Sn Mössbauer spectroscopies to the study of the mechanically induced redox processes, resulting in the reduction of ??-Fe₂O₃ and the oxidation of SnO. In addition, the obtained product was characterized by X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy.     

57Fe Mössbauer spectra study of coated α-Fe2O3 nanoparticles

Nano-sized -Fe₂O₃ particles coated with polar organic molecules have been studied using the Mössbauer spectroscopy method. The -Fe₂O₃ nanoparticles were prepared by the microemulsion method. The average particle size of the Fe₂O₃ particles is about 24 Å. Because the particle size is so small that the Mössbauer spectra of the -Fe₂O₃ samples only consist of a quadrupole-split central line. It was proved that the Isomer Shifts (DIS) and the Quadrupole Splitting (DQS) changed as the refluxing time prolongs and the refluxing temperature increases during the preparation of the Fe₂O₃ nanoparticles, which implied an enhancement of the surface electrofield gradient formed by the surface coated polar molecules during the refluxing process.     

Mössbauer study of Fe in 3C-SiC following 57Mn implantation

Our investigations on substitutional and interstitial Fe in the group IV semiconductors, from ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer measurements following ⁵⁷Mn implantation, have been continued with investigations in 3C-SiC. Mössbauer spectra were collected after implantation and measurement at temperatures from 300 to 905 K. Following comparison with Mössbauer parameters for Fe in Si, diamond and Ge, four Fe species are identified: two due to Fe in tetrahedral interstitial sites surrounded, respectively, by four C atoms (Fe_i.C) or four Si atoms (Fe_i,Si) and two to Fe in (or close to) defect free or implantation damaged substitutional sites. An annealing stage at 300–500 K is evident. Above 600 K the Fe_i,Si fraction decreases markedly, reaching close to zero intensity at 905 K. This is accompanied by a corresponding increase in the Fe_i,C fraction.     

Magnetization and Mössbauer studies of 57Fe doped SrCoO3

⁵⁷Fe (1%) doped SrCoO₃ obtained by high-pressure method, has been investigated by magnetization and Mössbauer spectroscopy studies (MS) in the temperature range 4.2 K to 300 K. The ferromagnetic ordering temperature T _C obtained is 272(2) K. Isothermal magnetization curves have been measured at various temperatures, from which the saturation moments (M _sat) have been deduced. The ⁵⁷Fe MS spectra display standard six-line patterns with an isomer shift typical of Fe^3?+? and a very small quadrupole splitting (QS = 0.14(1) mm/s above T _C). The magnetic hyperfine field at 4.2 K is 276(1) kOe. The temperature dependencies of the iron hyperfine field and M _sat (1.83 µ _B at 5 K) are almost identical. This shows that the Fe^3?+? is replacing Co^4?+?, both of the same electronic configuration. They also interact similarly, namely the Fe–Co exchange is almost identical to the Co–Co exchange.     

57Fe Mössbauer study of sol–gel synthesized Sn1 − x − y Fe x Sb y O2 − δ powders

Samples of SnO₂ doped with different amount of Fe (10–20%) and Sb (5–25%) were prepared by sol–gel method. Room temperature ferromagnetism was found to increase as a result of co-doping with Sb, as compared to SnO₂ doped only with Fe. ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectra of almost all samples exhibited two paramagnetic doublets and a small subspectrum referring to magnetic relaxation at room temperature. Only the samples Sn_0.65Fe_0.2Sb_0.15O_2???δ and Sn_0.85Fe_0.1Sb_0.05O_2???δ with 4 h long annealing time showed well developed sextets and larger magnetic coercivity compared to that of the other samples. The sextet observed was considered to be due to precipitates like Sn doped α-Fe₂O₃. The results suggest that the origin of the magnetic interactions is enhanced by the presence of magnetic defects, which can interact with the iron ions by free carrier electrons. For the sample with precipitates, the grain boundary defects may play an important role of enhanced ferromagnetism.     

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.     

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.     

Iron-based nanocrystalline alloys investigated by 57Fe Mössbauer spectrometry

Soft magnetic nanocrystalline alloys have attracted great fundamental interest in recent years due to their two-phase structural and magnetic behaviour. We review first the reliability of the fitting procedures of spectra obtained by ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectrometry which is a very efficient tool to investigate such materials. Then, we report the common features which characterise the temperature dependence of Mössbauer spectra; the hyperfine field temperature dependence of both the crystalline grains and the intergranular phase is discussed for different crystalline fractions in order to model the magnetic behaviour of the nanocrystalline alloys.     

Mössbauer study of 57Fe in GaAs and GaP following 57Mn+ implantation

Ion implantation provides a precise method of incorporating dopant atoms in semiconductors, provided lattice damage due to the implantation process can be annealed and the dopant atoms located on regular lattice sites. We have undertaken ⁵⁷Fe emission Mössbauer spectroscopy measurements on GaAs and GaP single crystals following implantation of radioactive ⁵⁷Mn^?+? ions, to study the lattice sites of the implanted ions, the annealing of implantation induced damage and impurity–vacancy complexes formed. The Mössbauer spectra were analyzed with four spectral components: an asymmetric doublet (D1) attributed to Fe atoms in distorted environments due to implantation damage, two single lines, S1 assigned to Fe on substitutional Ga sites, and S2 to Fe on interstitial sites, and a low intensity symmetric doublet (D2) assigned to impurity–vacancy complexes. The variations in the extracted hyperfine parameters of D1 for both materials at high temperatures (T?> 400 K) suggests changes in the immediate environment of the Fe impurity atoms and different bonding mechanism to the Mössbauer probe atom. The results show that the annealing of the radiation induced damage is more prominent in GaAs compared to GaP.     

57 Fe Mössbauer and X-ray characterisation of sandstones

Sandstones from the Free State province in South Africa have been mined and processed mainly by small scale and artisanal miners in the rural areas. In the present investigation basic fire proof and water absorption tests, X-ray and γ-ray based characterisation techniques were used to study the sandstones. The collected samples were grouped according to their apparent colour in day light conditions and the elemental analysis showed the presence of a high amount of oxygen (>52%) and silicon (>38%) with Mn, Al, Fe and Ca as major elements in proportions related to the colour distribution of the various sandstones. The uniaxial compressive stress was found to be the highest (56 MPa) for the greyish sandstone and the lowest (8 MPa) for the white sandstone sample, also associated with the lowest (Al+Fe)/Si value of 0.082. The humidity test showed that the 6 % water absorption was lower than the recommended ASTM value of 8 %. The sandstone samples were also subjected to various high temperatures to simulate possible fire conditions and it was found that the non alteration of the mineral species might be one of the reasons why the sandstones are regarded as the most refractory amongst the building materials typically used. Mössbauer spectroscopy revealed that iron is present in all the sandstones, mainly as Fe^3?+? with the black sandstone showing an additional presence of 3 % Fe^2?+? indicating that a higher iron content coupled to higher silicon content, contributes to an increase in the uniaxial compressive strength.     

57Fe Mössbauer study of Lu2Fe3Si5 iron silicide superconductor

With the advent of Fe–As based superconductivity it has become important to study how superconductivity manifests itself in details of ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy of conventional, Fe-bearing superconductors. To this end, the iron-based superconductor Lu₂Fe₃Si₅ has been studied by ⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy over the temperature range from 4.4 K to room temperature with particular attention to the region close to the superconducting transition temperature (T_c=6.1 K). Consistent with the two crystallographic sites for Fe in this structure, the observed spectra appear to have a pattern consisting of two doublets over the whole temperature range. The value of Debye temperature was estimated from temperature dependence of the isomer shift and the total spectral area and compared with the specific heat capacity data. Neither abnormal behavior of the hyperfine parameters at or near T_c, nor phonon softening were observed.     

57Fe Mössbauer spectroscopy and magnetization study of YFexAl12−x (4.4⩽x⩽5)

YFe_xAl_12−x in the composition range 4.4⩽x⩽5 was prepared by induction melting followed by annealing in vacuum at 1270 K. Magnetization data below 150 K show complex magnetic behaviour dependent on applied field, composition and temperature. The transition temperature T_c, corresponding to the main maximum of the magnetization vs. temperature curves and below which magnetic interactions are observed for a significant fraction of the Fe atoms in the Mössbauer spectra, decreases from 180 K for x=4 down to 100 K for 4.2⩽x⩽4.7 and rises again up to 160 K for x=5. The analysis of the spectra obtained at 5 K is consistent with full occupation of the 8f sites by Fe atoms and sharing of the 8j sites by Fe and Al as deduced from the Rietveld analysis of X-ray powder diffraction data. The Mössbauer spectra further show a dependence of magnetic hyperfine fields and isomer shifts on the crystallographic site and on the number of the Fe nearest neighbours similar to that observed in UFe_xAl_12−x (4⩽x⩽6) and RFe_xAl_12−x (R=Y, Lu, x=4, 4.2). The magnetic properties of the UFe_xAl_12−x and YFe_xAl_12−x series are compared and the magnetic interactions between the different Fe sublattices are discussed.     

57Fe Mössbauer study of FeNx (x=0.25≈0.91) alloys

⁵⁷Fe Mössbauer measurements have been perforned at the first time on iron nitrides, FeN_x(x>0.5), films prepared by rf sputtering and the measurements for γ-FeN_0.09, γ'-Fe₄N, ε-Fe_2–3N and ζ-Fe₂N have been also performed. Two new phases for x>0.5 have been identified: One has a ZnS-type structure denoted by γ" Another phase is denoted by γ''' in which iron atoms constitute a fcc lattice but the details of occupation sites of nitrogen atoms are not yet clear. The isomer shift of γ" relative to α-Fe at 300 K is rather small in comparison with that of other well known nitrides. The roam temperature Mössbauer spectra of γ''' consist of a sum of two doublets. Mössbauer spectra of γ" at 10 K do not indicate magnetically split pattern, but those of γ''' show magnetically split patterns at 10 K with the hyperfine fields of 30 T and 48 T, respectively. The component of 48 T is due to oxides, not due to nitrides.     

Magnetic and Mössbauer study of Mg0.9Mn0.1Cr x Fe2−x O4 ferrites

The ferrites Mg_0.9Mn_0.1Cr _x Fe_2?x O₄ ( The ferrites Mg_0.9Mn_0.1Cr _x Fe_2−x O₄ () were prepared using the conventional double sintering method. The XRD showed that the samples maintain a single spinel cubic phase. The M?ssbauer measurements were carried out at room and liquid nitrogen temperatures. From the area ratios of the A and B sites, it was found that the Fe cation population of the A and B sites decreases in proportion to Cr concentration. The contact hyperfine fields at the A and B sites were found to decrease with increasing Cr contents. This was found to be in approximate agreement with the results of magnetization measurement. The distributions of Mg and Mn cations versus Cr concentration were also determined using the M?ssbauer and magnetization results. The Curie temperatures were determined and found to agree with the reported values. As the Cr contents increases the relative magnetization, was found to increase at low temperatures and decreases at higher temperatures.     

Synthesis and magnetic properties of nanocrystalline Zn1–x Fe x O solid solutions

Bulletin of the Russian Academy of Sciences: Physics - Zn1–x Fe x O nanocrystalline solid solutions (x = 0, 0.025, 0.05) with wurtzite structure and ferromagnetic properties at room...