Development of multifunctional lutetium ferrite nanoparticles: Structural characterization and properties

Modified Pechini method has been employed for the synthesis of single phase LuFeO3 nanoparticles. Powder X-ray diffraction technique indicates well crystalline and monophasic LuFeO3 nanoparticles without any secondary phases. Using TEM, SAED, EDAX and BET surface area techniques, the particle size, morphology, chemical composition and surface area of LuFeO3 nanoparticles have been characterized. The TEM analysis suggests that the synthesized nanoparticles are in the uniform manner with an average particle size of 90 nm. It shows that the large value of surface area of 214 m(2)g(-1) and the optical band gap value of 2.1 eV were found for the as-prepared nanoparticles. The electrical characterization indicates that the dielectric constant and dielectric losses varies with temperature and frequency. Furthermore, the butterfly shaped ferromagnetic loop and room temperature ferroelectricity was observed for the multiferroic characteristics in LuFeO3 nanoparticles. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.