The structural, magnetic and optical performances of Ni0.2Zn0.2Co0.6Fe2O4 ferrites synthesized by sol-gel route

In this work, four complexing agents participated in the synthesis of Ni0.2Zn0.2Co0.6Fe2O4 ferrites by sol-gel route. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) pattern showed that samples had formed spinel phase. The Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectra of samples showed two absorption bands around 400 cm(-1) and 600 cm(-1), which are the characteristics of spinel ferrites. SEM micrographs showed that the prepared particles had different shape. Vibrating sample magnetometer was used to characterize magnetic performances. The prepared samples showed typical hysteresis behaviors at room temperature. The Ni0.2Zn0.2Co0.6Fe2O4 ferrite sample prepared with egg white as a complexing agent had high coercivity (1365.52 Oe) and remanent magnetization (23.95 emu/g), which indicated that the sample had a potential applications for magnetic storage devices. The sample prepared with egg white had a coercivity six times higher than coercivities (168.44-200.47 Oe) of other samples. These findings revealed that egg white is a suitable complexing agent to prepare Ni0.2Zn0.2Co0.6Fe2O4 hard ferrite by sol-gel route. The optical properties are characterized using PL emission spectra and UV-visible absorption spectrum. From the optical band gap (Eg) value, the sample has the characteristics of a semiconductor material.