Effect depositions parameters on the characteristics of Ni0.5Co0.5Fe2O4 nanocomposite films prepared by DC reactive magnetron Co-Sputtering technique

In this work, spinel ferrites (NiCoFe2O4) were prepared as thin films by dc reactive dual-magnetron co-sputtering technique. Effects of some operation parameters, such as inter-electrode distance, and preparation conditions such as mixing ratio of argon and oxygen in the gas mixture, on the structural and spectroscopic characteristics of the prepared samples were studied. For samples prepared at inter-electrode distance of 5 cm, only one functional group of OH- was observed in the FTIR spectra as all bands belonging to the metal-oxygen vibration were observed. Similarly, the XRD results showed that decreasing the pressure of oxygen in the gas mixture lead to grow more crystal planes in the samples prepared at inter-electrode distance of 5 cm. The energy band gap was determined for the sample prepared with mixing ratio of 65:35 and found to be 2.7, 2 and 3.35 eV for direct allowed, direct forbidden and indirect allowed transitions, respectively. The high structural purity was confirmed as no traces for any elements other than Co, Ni, Fe and O were found in the final samples.