Hydrothermal Synthesis and Characterization of Pyrochlore Titanate R2Ti2O7(R=Gd3+, Tb3+, Dy3+)

Pyrochlore titanate oxides, R2Ti2O7(R=Gd3+, Tb3+, Dy3+), were synthesized under mild hydrothermal conditions. The crystal growth of pyrochlore titanate oxides and taking place of chemical reaction in the hydrothermal processing were sensitive to the alkalinity, temperature, reaction time, the nature of the rare earth ion and the composition of initial reaction mixture. The as-prepared samples were characterized by powder X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, Raman spectrum and variable temperature dc magnetic susceptibility(SQUIDS). The magnetic studies gave 7.29×10–23 A•m2/Gd3+ and –8.28 K, 8.75×10–23 A•m2 /Tb3+ and –19.7 K, and 8.85×10–23 A•m2/Dy3+ and 0.84 K effective moments and Weiss constants for Gd2Ti2O7, Tb2Ti2O7 and Dy2Ti2O7, respectively.