Rare-earth based double perovskite Gd2MnFeO6 (GMFO) ceramic was successfully synthesised through a modified sol-gel reaction technique involving calcination at 400 °C and sintering at 800 °C under ambient pressure conditions. X-Ray Diffraction analysis and Rietveld refinement confirmed pure orthorhombic crystal structure with space group Pbnm and lattice parameters a = 5.3274 Å, b = 5.6528 Å, c = 7.5797 Å, with orthorhombicity of 0.057. Scanning Electron Micrographs (SEM) revealed heterogeneous grain morphology with predominant plate-like macro structures alongside more massive crystallites, exhibiting well-defined edges and visible porosity. X-Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy (XPS) confirmed the presence of Gd3+, Mn3+, and mixed Fe2+/Fe3+ oxidation states with binding energies of 147.97/141.69 eV, 641.51/653.08 eV, and 710.40–725.23 eV, respectively. Comprehensive impedance spectroscopy analysis (1 kHz–1 MHz, 30 °C–120 °C) revealed distinct grain boundary contributions above 50 °C, with bulk resistance decreasing from 511.5 Ω to 175 Ω (30 °C–80 °C), exhibiting negative temperature coefficient of resistance behaviour. The dielectric constant maxima of ∼800 with excellent thermal stability below 100 °C was seen. AC conductivity analysis yielded activation energy for conduction of 0.286 eV, while electrical modulus analysis revealed enhanced short-range carrier mobility at higher frequencies. Variable Range Hopping (VRH) analysis confirmed polaron-dominated charge transport with hopping lengths ranging from 11.5 to 13 Å: a characteristic of small polaron transport in rare-earth double perovskites. The observed transport mechanisms demonstrate strong correlation between synthesis-induced microstructural features and electrical properties, positioning GMFO as a promising candidate for next-generation electronic applications.
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