Synthesis and Magnetic Properties of Nano-sized Mn Ferrite Powder and Film

Nano-sized manganese ferrite powders and films, MnFe2O4, were fabricated by the sol-gel method, and the effects of annealing temperature on the crystallographic and magnetic properties were studied by using X-ray diffractometry, field emission scanning electron microscopy, Mossbauer spectroscopy, and vibrating sample magnetometry. X-ray diffraction spectroscopy of powder samples annealed above 523 K indicated the presence of spinel structure, and the film samples annealed above 773 K also had spinel structure. The particle size increased with the annealing temperature. For the powder samples, the Mossbauer spectra annealed above 573 K could be fitted as the superposition of two Zeeman sextets due to the tetrahedral and octahedral sites of Fe3+ ions. Using the Mossbauer subspectrum area ratio the cation distribution could be written as (Mn0.52Fe0.48) [Mn0.48Fe1.52] O-4. However the spectrum annealed at 523 K only showed as a doublet due to a superparamagnetic phase. As the annealing temperature was increased, the saturation magnetization and the corecivity of the powder samples increased, as did the coercivity of film samples.