Multiferroic and magnetoelectric properties of La0.1Ba0.9Fe12O19 ceramics

La0.1Ba0.9Fe12O19 powders with similar hexagonal crystal structure to BaFe12O19 have been successfully synthesized using polymer precursor method. The powders were suppressed into pellets, which were sintered into ceramics at 1,300 A degrees C for 1 h. The structure and morphology of the ceramics have been determined by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM). Clear electric hysteresis loops upon different amplitude of external fields indicates that La0.1Ba0.9Fe12O19 is a kind of possible ferroelectric compound. The maximum remnant polarization of La0.1Ba0.9Fe12O19 ceramic is estimated to be similar to 9.6 mu C/cm(2). The FeO6 octahedron in its perovskite-like hexagonal unit cell as well as the shift of Fe3+ off the center of octahedron are proposed to be the origin of electric polarization in La0.1Ba0.9Fe12O19. Simultaneous occurrence of large ferroelectricity and strong ferromagnetism has been observed in La0.1Ba0.9Fe12O19 ceramics. More interestingly, this compound demonstrates electronic polarization behavior being actuated by an applied magnetic field, indicating the existence of magnetoelectric (ME) coupling effect in the La0.1Ba0.9Fe12O19 ceramics. Our results may lead to new device applications such as magnetically recorded ferroelectric memory.