Room-temperature ferromagnetism in Sn1−xMnxO2 nanocrystalline thin films prepared by ultrasonic spray pyrolysis

Sn_1−xMn_xO₂ (x=0.01-0.05) thin films were synthesized on quartz substrate using an inexpensive ultrasonic spray pyrolysis technique. The influence of doping concentration and substrate temperature on structural and magnetic properties of Sn_1−xMn_xO₂ thin films was systematically investigated. X-ray diffraction (XRD) studies of these films reflect that the Mn³⁺ ions have substituted Sn⁴⁺ ions without changing the tetragonal rutile structure of pure SnO₂. A linear increase in c-axis lattice constant has been observed with corresponding increase in Mn concentration. No impurity phase was detected in XRD patterns even after doping 5 at% of Mn. A systematic change in magnetic behavior from ferromagnetic to paramagnetic was observed with increase in substrate temperature from 500 to 700 °C for Sn_1−xMn_xO₂ (x=0.01) films. Magnetic studies reveal room-temperature ferromagnetism (RTFM) with 3.61×10⁻⁴ emu saturation magnetization and 92 Oe coercivity in case of Sn_1−xMn_xO₂ (x=0.01) films deposited at 500 °C. However, paramagnetic behavior was observed for the films deposited at a higher substrate temperature of 700 °C. The presence of room-temperature ferromagnetism in these films was observed to have an intrinsic origin and could be obtained by controlling the substrate temperature and Mn doping concentration.     

Microstructural, optical and photocatalytic properties of CdS doped TiO2 thin films

CdS doped TiO₂ thin films (with CdS content=0, 3, 6, 9 and 12 at%) were grown on glass substrates. The X-ray diffraction analysis revealed that the films are polycrystalline of monoclinic TiO₂ structure. The microstructure parameters of the films such as crystallite size (D_ν) and microstrain (e) are calculated. Both the crystallites size and the microstrain are decreased with increasing CdS content. The optical constants have been determined in terms of Murmann's exact equations. The refractive index and extinction coefficient are increased with increasing CdS content. The optical band gap is calculated in the strong absorption region. The possible optical transition in these films is found to be an allowed direct transition. The values of E_g^opt are found to decrease as the CdS content increased. The films with 3 at% CdS content have better decomposition efficiency than undoped TiO₂. The films with 6 at% and 9 at% CdS content have decomposition efficiency comparable to that of undoped TiO₂, although they have lower band gap. The CdS doped TiO₂ could have a better impact on the decomposing of organic wastes.     

Sensitisation of erbium emission by silicon nanocrystals-doped SnO2

SnO₂ thin films undoped and doped with antimony (Sb), erbium (Er) and Si nanocrystals (Si-nc) have been grown on silicon (Si) substrate using sol-gel method. Room-temperature photoluminescence (PL) measurement of undoped SnO₂, under excitation at 280 nm, shows only one broad emission at 395 nm, which is related to oxygen vacancies. The PL of Er³⁺ ions was found to be enhanced after doping SnO₂ with Sb and Si-nc. The excitation process of Er is studied and discussed. The calculation of cross-section suggests a sensitisation of Er PL by Si-nc.     

The multiferroic properties of Bi(Fe0.95Co0.05)O3 films

Bi(Fe_0.95Co_0.05)O₃ films were prepared on conductive indium tin oxide (ITO)/glass substrates by chemical solution deposition. Well saturated polarization hysteresis loop has been observed with a remnant polarization value of about 22 μC/cm² at room temperature. Weak ferromagnetism with saturation magnetization of about 3 emu/cm³ was observed at room temperature. The clear observation of both room temperature ferroelectric and ferromagnetic properties suggests the potential multiferroic applications of Bi(Fe_0.95Co_0.05)O₃.     

Characterization of AgInS2 thin films prepared by vacuum evaporation

We characterized AgInS₂ thin films prepared by vacuum evaporation. In the case of thin films annealed at 400 °C, diffraction peaks were observed only for the chalcopyrite AgInS₂ phase. The chemical composition of the thin films annealed at 400 °C was 26.5 at% Ag, 23.8 at% In, and 49.7 at% S. PL spectra of the AgInS₂ thin films at 10.7 K showed peaks at 1.70, 1.80, and 1.83 eV. The PL peak at1.80 eV was attributed to sulfur deficiency.     

Raman scattering and room temperature ferromagnetism in Co-doped SrTiO3 particles

Raman scattering has been used to study the influence of cobalt, an effective dopant to obtain SrTiO₃ magnetic oxide, on the lattice dynamics of SrTiO₃. It is found that Co doping increases the lattice defects and induces a Raman vibration mode of 690 cm⁻¹. On the other hand, the ferromagnetism dependence on the x and annealing temperature was clearly and coherently observed in SrTi_1−xCo_xO₃ (x = 0, 0.01, 0.03 and 0.05) nanoparticles. It is found that the ferromagnetism of SrTi_1−xCo_xO₃ nanoparticles is weakly related to crystal deformation and oxygen vacancies in SrTiO₃. So, F-center model can explain the origin of the ferromagnetism in the prepared Co-doped SrTiO₃ samples. At the same time, the finding of large room-temperature ferromagnetism (1.6 emu/g) in this system would stimulate further interest in the area of more complicated ternary oxides.     

Synthesis of (Mg0.476Mn0.448Zn0.007)(Fe1.997Ti0.002)O4 powder and sintered ferrites by high energy ball-milling process

(Mg_0.476Mn_0.448Zn_0.007)(Fe_1.997Ti_0.002)O₄ nanocrystalline powder prepared by high energy ball-milling process were consolidated by microwave and conventional sintering processes. Phases, microstructure and magnetic properties of the ferrites prepared by different processes were investigated. The (Mg_0.476Mn_0.448Zn_0.007)(Fe_1.997Ti_0.002)O₄ nanocrystalline powder could be prepared by high energy ball-milling process of raw Fe₃O₄, MnO₂, ZnO, TiO₂ and MgO powders. Prefired and microwave sintered ferrites could achieve the maximum density (4.86 g/cm⁻³), the average grain size (15 μm) was larger than that (10 μm) prepared by prefired and conventionally sintered ferrites with pure ferrite phase, and the saturation magnetization (66.77 emu/g) was lower than that of prefired and conventionally sintered ferrites (88.25 emu/g), the remanent magnetization (0.7367 emu/g) was higher than that of prefired and conventionally sintered ferrites (0.0731 emu/g). Although the microwave sintering process could increase the density of ferrites, the saturation magnetization of ferrites was decreased and the remanent magnetization of ferrites was also increased.     

The investigation of room temperature ferromagnetism in (1 0 0) oriented BaNb2O6 PLD films on LaAlO3 (1 0 0) substrate

(1 0 0) oriented BaNb₂O₆ films have been successfully grown on LaAlO₃ (1 0 0) substrate at 750 °C or 450 °C in vacuum by pulsed laser deposition. The deposited BaNb₂O₆ PLD films exhibit room-temperature ferromagnetism. Ab initio calculations demonstrate that stoichiometric BaNb₂O₆ and that with barium vacancy are nonmagnetic, while oxygen and niobium vacancy can induce magnetism due to the spin-polarization of Nb s electrons and O p electrons respectively. Moreover, ferromagnetic coupling is energetically more favorable when two Nb/O vacancies are located third-nearest-neighbored. The observed room temperature ferromagnetism in BaNb₂O₆ films should be mainly induced by oxygen vacancies introduced during vacuum deposition, with certain contribution by Nb vacancies.     

The coexistence of ferroelectricity and ferromagnetism in Mn-doped BaTiO3 thin films

Due to the fault of the first author, this article entitled “The coexistence of ferroelectricity and ferromagnetism in Mn-doped BaTiO3 thin films”, published in “Chinese Physics B”, 2011,Vol.20, Issue 12, Article No. 127701, has been found to copy from the article entitled“Decisive role of oxygen vacancy in ferroelectric versus ferromagnetic Mn-doped BaTiO3 thin films”, published in “Journal of Applied Physics”, 2011,Vol.109, Issue 8, article No. 084105. So the above article in “Chinese Physics B” has been withdrawn from the publication.<     

High temperature ferromagnetism in cubic Mn-doped ZrO2 thin films

Theory has predicted that high temperature ferromagnetism (FM) should be found in cubic fake-diamonds, Mn-doped ZrO₂. Experimentally, it is shown that Mn-doped ZrO₂ ceramics are not ferromagnetic, but the nanosized Mn-doped ZrO₂ thin films grown on LaAlO₃ substrates can be ferromagnets with T_C above 400 K. The largest saturated magnetic moment (M_s) is huge as of about 230 emu/cm³ for the Mn_0.05Zr_0.95O₂ films, and it decreases as the Mn content increases. The intrinsic FM is strongly associated with the cubic structure of Mn-doped ZrO₂, and the Mn–Mn interactions via oxygen intermediates are important. No electrical conductivity is observed. Mn-doped ZrO₂ thin films can be truly considered as excellent candidates for spintronic applications.     

Effects of vanadium doping on structure and electrical properties of SrBi4Ti4O15 thin films

The effects of vanadium(V) doping into SrBi₄Ti₄O₁₅ (SBTi) thin films on the structure, ferroelectric, leakage current, dielectric, and fatigue properties have been studied. X-ray diffraction result showed that the crystal structure of the SBTi thin films with and without vanadium is the same. Enhanced ferroelectricity was observed in the V-doped SrBi₄Ti₄O₁₅ (SrBi_4−x/3Ti_4−xV_xO₁₅, SBTiV-x (x = 0.03, 0.06, and 0.09)) thin films compared to the pure SrBi₄Ti₄O₁₅ thin film. The values of remnant polarization (2P_r) and coercive field (2E_c) of the SBTiV-0.09 thin film capacitor were 40.9 μC/cm² and 105.6 kV/cm at an applied electric field of 187.5 kV/cm, respectively. The 2P_r value is over five times larger than that of the pure SBTi thin film capacitor. At 100 kHz, the values of dielectric constant and dielectric loss were 449 and 0.04, and 214 and 0.06 for the SBTiV-0.09 and the pure SBTi thin film capacitors, respectively. The leakage current density of the SBTiV-0.09 thin film capacitor measured at 100 kV/cm was 6.8 × 10⁻⁹ A/cm², which is more than two and a half orders of magnitude lower than that of the pure SBTi thin film capacitor. Furthermore, the SBTiV-0.09 thin film exhibited good fatigue endurance up to 10¹⁰ switching cycles. The improved electrical properties may be related to the reduction of internal defects such as bismuth and oxygen vacancies with changes in the grain size by doping of vanadium into SBTi.     

Effect of Sr concentration on microstructure and magnetic properties of (Ba1−xSrx)(Ti0.3Fe0.7)O3 ceramics

Fe-doped (Ba_1−xSr_x)TiO₃ ceramics were prepared by solid-state reaction, and ferromagnetism was realized at room temperature. The microstructure and magnetism were modified by the Sr concentration control (0≤x≤75 at%) at a fixed Fe concentration, and the relevant magnetic exchange mechanism was discussed. All the samples are shown to have a single perovskite structure. When increasing the Sr concentration, the phase structure is transformed from a hexagonal perovskite into a cubic perovskite, with a monotonic decrease in lattice parameters induced by ionic size effect. The room-temperature ferromagnetism is expected to originate from the super-exchange interactions between Fe³⁺ on pentahedral and octahedral Ti sites mediated by the O²⁻ ions. The increase in Sr addition modifies two main influencing factors in magnetic properties: the ratio of pentahedral to octahedral Fe³⁺ and the concentration of oxygen vacancies, leading to a gradually enhanced saturation magnetization. The highest value, obtained for Fe-doped (Ba_0.25Sr_0.75)TiO₃, is an order of magnitude higher than that of the Fe-doped BaTiO₃ system with similar Fe concentration and preparation conditions, which may indicate (Ba_1−xSr_x)TiO₃ as a more suitable matrix material for multiferroic research.     

Microstructures and multiferroic properties of textured Bi0.8La0.2FeO3 thin films

La-substituted BiFeO₃, Bi_0.8La_0.2FeO₃, thin films were fabricated on Pt/Ti/SiO₂/Si substrates by pulsed laser deposition. X-ray diffraction and high-resolution transmission electron microscope were used to analyze the structures of the films. The results show the films fabricated under optimized growth condition are (0 1 2) textured. X-ray photoemission spectroscopy results indicate that the oxidation state of Fe ion is Fe³⁺ in the films without detectable Fe²⁺. The films show low leakage current and excellent dielectric characters. Multiferroic properties with a remnant ferroelectric polarization of 5.2 μC/cm² and a remanent magnetization of 0.02 μ_B/Fe were established. These results have some implications for further research.     

Preparation and magnetic properties of BaFe12O19/Ni0.8Zn0.2Fe2O4 nanocomposite ferrite

Nanocomposite of hard (BaFe₁₂O₁₉)/soft ferrite (Ni_0.8Zn_0.2Fe₂O₄) have been prepared by the sol–gel process. The nanocomposite ferrite are formed when the calcining temperature is above 800 °C. It is found that the magnetic properties strongly depend on the presintering treatment and calcining temperature. The “bee waist” type hysteresis loops for samples disappear when the presintering temperature is 400 °C and the calcination temperature reaches 1100 °C owing to the exchange-coupling interaction. The remanence of BaFe₁₂O₁₉/Ni_0.8Zn_0.2Fe₂O₄ nanocomposite ferrite with the mass ratio of 5:1 is higher than a single phase ferrite. The specific saturation magnetization, remanence magnetization and coercivity are 63 emu/g, 36 emu/g and 2750 G, respectively. The exchange-coupling interaction in the BaFe₁₂O₁₉/Ni_0.8Zn_0.2Fe₂O₄ nanocomposite ferrite is discussed.     

Role of oxygen impurity in growth and magnetic properties of Ni83Fe17 permalloy thin films

To study the influence of oxygen impurities in the sputtering atmosphere on microstructure, and the magnetic and magnetotransport properties, thin films of Ni₈₃Fe₁₇ were deposited under dc magnetron sputtering technique into which regulated oxygen gas was introduced. The partial pressure of oxygen was varied from 2×10⁻⁷ to 3×10⁻⁶ mbar. X-ray diffraction patterns indicate the reduction of grain growth with increasing the oxygen partial pressure. The grain microstructure and the composition were confirmed through high resolution transmission electron microscopy attached with Scanning Transmission Electron Microscopy (STEM). Transition from canted to rectangular magnetic hysteresis loop was observed through magnetization measurements for samples prepared under higher oxygen partial pressure which implies the structural changes in the magnetic domain formation. These observations were further confirmed through the measurements of anisotropic magnetoresistance properties.     

Synthesis and characterization of Ni-doped ZnO: A transparent magnetic semiconductor

We report synthesis of a transparent magnetic semiconductor by incorporating Ni in zinc oxide (ZnO) matrix. ZnO and nickel-doped zinc oxide (ZnO:Ni) thin films (∼60 nm) are prepared by fast atom beam (FAB) sputtering. Both undoped and doped films show the presence of ZnO phase only. The Ni concentration (in at%) as determined by energy dispersive X-ray (EDX) technique is ∼12±2%. Magnetisation measurement using a SQUID magnetometer shows that the Ni-doped films are ferromagnetic, having coercivity (H_c) values 192, 310 and 100 Oe and saturation magnetization (M_s) values of 6.22, 5.32 and 4.73 emu/g at 5, 15 and 300 K, respectively. The Ni-doped film is transparent (>80%) across visible wavelength range. Resistivity of the ZnO:Ni film is ∼2.5×10⁻³ Ω cm, which is almost two orders of magnitude lower than the resistivity (∼4.5×10⁻¹ Ω cm) of its undoped counterpart. Impurity d-band splitting is considered to be the cause of increase in conductivity. Interaction between free charges generated by doping and localized d spins of Ni is discussed as the reason for ferromagnetism in the ZnO:Ni film.     

Structural, electrical and optical properties of TiO2 doped WO3 thin films

TiO₂ doped WO₃ thin films were deposited onto glass substrates and fluorine doped tin oxide (FTO) coated conducting glass substrates, maintained at 500 °C by pyrolytic decomposition of adequate precursor solution. Equimolar ammonium tungstate ((NH₄)₂WO₄) and titanyl acetyl acetonate (TiAcAc) solutions were mixed together at pH 9 in volume proportions and used as a precursor solution for the deposition of TiO₂ doped WO₃ thin films. Doping concentrations were varied between 4 and 38%. The effect of TiO₂ doping concentration on structural, electrical and optical properties of TiO₂ doped WO₃ thin films were studied. Values of room temperature electrical resistivity, thermoelectric power and band gap energy (E_g) were estimated. The films with 38% TiO₂ doping in WO₃ exhibited lowest resistivity, n-type electrical conductivity and improved electrochromic performance among all the samples. The values of thermoelectric power (TEP) were in the range of 23-56 μV/K and the direct band gap energy varied between 2.72 and 2.86 eV.     

Ferromagnetism in carbon-doped In2O3 thin films

Carbon-doped In₂O₃ thin films exhibiting ferromagnetism at room temperature were prepared on Si (100) substrates by the rf-magnetron co-sputtering technique. The effects of carbon concentration as well as oxygen atmosphere on the ferromagnetic property of the thin films were investigated. The saturated magnetizations of thin films varied from 1.23 to 4.86 emu/cm³ with different carbon concentrations. The ferromagnetic signal was found stronger in samples with higher oxygen vacancy concentrations. In addition, deposition temperature and different types of substrates also affect the ferromagnetic properties of carbon-doped In₂O₃ thin films. This may be related to the oxygen vacancies in the thin film system. The experiment suggests that oxygen vacancies play an important role in introducing ferromagnetism in thin films.     

N掺杂SiO2纳米薄膜的制备及其磁性

利用射频磁控反应溅射技术,制备了氮掺杂的SiO₂纳米薄膜.发现N掺杂SiO₂体系纳米薄膜具有铁磁性.较小的氮化硅颗粒均匀分布在氧化硅基质中有利于磁有序的形成.基底温度为400℃时,样品薄膜具有最大的饱和磁化强度和矫顽力,分别为35 emu/cm³和75 Oe.薄膜的磁性可能产生于氮化硅和氧化硅的界面.理论计算表明,N掺杂SiO₂体系具有净自旋.同时,由氮化硅和氧化硅界面之间的电荷转移导致的轨道磁矩也会对样品的磁性有贡献 关键词： 2薄膜')" href="#">N掺杂SiO₂薄膜 射频磁控反应溅射 界面磁性 基底温度