Studies on the Magneto-structural Properties and Initial Permittivity of Chemically Produced Nanoscale Nickel-substituted Zinc Manganese Mixed Ferrites

Abstract

The objective of this work was to study in more detail the dielectric permittivity and dielectric losses at different frequencies. It is well known that adding ions increases the dielectric constant and increases the dielectric loss as well as conductivity. Furthermore, the real part of the dielectric constant decreases with increasing frequency. Dielectrics are used as a capacitor for storing energy and a transformer for insulating and cooling agents. To enhance the performance of a semiconductor device, high-permittivity dielectric materials are used. Another aim of this study was to gain a better understanding of how frequency influences the dielectric and electrical properties and what are the mathematical forms of these dependencies. With this aim, magnetic mixed metal oxide systems ZnMn1-xNixFexO4 (x=0.0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, and 1.0) have been synthesized in this work using wet chemical approaches. The prepared mixed-metal oxide nanomaterials have been characterized using analytical techniques, viz., XRD, FT-IR, SEM, TEM, VSM, TGA/DTA, etc. Spinel ferrite nanoparticles have caught the attention of researchers recently. Ferrites also feature a distinctive surface area, a porous structure, and great magnetic sensitivity. Nanoparticles of ZnMn1-xNixFexO4 (x = 0.0, 0.25, 0.5, 0.75, and 1.0) have been synthesized using the lucrative as well as eco-friendly chemical sol-gel technique. According to the Debye-Scherrer equation, the generated nanoparticles had an average crystallite size of 34 nm, and the ferrite sample showed a cubic structure. Two absorption bands at 411-455 and 595 cm-1 in FT-IR spectroscopy have evidenced the aforementioned structure to exist in the manufactured samples. The magnetic curves demonstrated that after nickel replacement, the values of coercivity and saturation magnetization altered. Between 20 Hz and 1 MHz, a dielectric behavior demonstrated conductivity and dielectric dispersion owing to interfacial polarization, as well as the interior of grain boundaries. In the present case, it has been observed that the dielectric behavior decreased with increasing Ni concentration in the above-synthesized compositions. Such change may be due to the increase in resistivity of Zn-Mn ferrite with the substitution of nickel concentration and it has indicated the dielectric behavior to be directly proportional to the square root of conductivity. Current research has demonstrated that ferrite nanoparticles have sparked substantial interest due to their high surface-to-volume ratio, distinctive tunable capabilities, hydrophilic nature, biocompatibility, and exceptional magnetic properties. The samples' structural, microstructural, magnetic, and electrical characteristics, have also been examined.