Magnetic Attributes of NiFe2O4 Nanoparticles: Influence of Dysprosium Ions (Dy3+) Substitution

This paper reports the influence of dysprosium ion (Dy3+) substitution on the structural and magnetic properties of NiDyxFe2-xO4 (0.0 <= x <= 0.1) nanoparticles (NPs) prepared using a hydrothermal method. The structure and morphology of the as-synthesized NPs were characterized via X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning and transmission electron microscope (SEM, and TEM) analyses. Fe-57 Mossbauer spectra were recorded to determine the Dy3+ content dependent variation in the line width, isomer shift, quadrupole splitting, and hyperfine magnetic fields. Furthermore, the magnetic properties of the prepared NPs were also investigated by zero-field cooled (ZFC) and field cooled (FC) magnetizations and AC susceptibility measurements. The M-ZFC (T) results showed a blocking temperature (T-B). Below T-B, the products behave as ferromagnetic (FM) and act superparamagnetic (SPM) above T-B. The M-FC (T) curves indicated the existence of super-spin glass (SSG) behavior below T-s (spin-glass freezing temperature). The AC susceptibility measurements confirmed the existence of the two transition temperatures (i.e., T-B and T-s). Numerous models, e.g., Neel-Arrhenius (N-A), Vogel-Fulcher (V-F), and critical slowing down (CSD), were used to investigate the dynamics of the systems. It was found that the Dy substitution enhanced the magnetic interactions.