Structural and electrical properties of La3+ ions substituted MnFe2O4 ferrite nanoparticles synthesized via cost-effective reverse micelles strategy

Abstract

La ^3+ ions substituted manganese ferrite (MnFe _2- _x La _x O _4 ) nanoparticles via reverse micelles strategy were synthesized and their structural and electrical properties are discussed in this article. Using low-cost precursors, mono-dispersed, and well crystalline MnFe _2- _x La _x O _4 nanoparticles were prepared at low temperature. X-ray diffraction (XRD) explored cubic spinel structure with minute secondary phase as LaFeO _3 . The crystallite size of MnFe _2- _x La _x O _4 was found to increase from 12.82 nm to 15.95 nm with increased La ^3+ ions contents. The room temperature Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectra were recorded in the wavenumber range 1000–400 cm ^−1 that showed the vibrational bands of octahedral and tetrahedral complexes. These bands are the fingerprints of spinel ferrites. Surface morphology characterized by field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM) revealed the relative spherical morphology of prepared spinel ferrite particles. The elemental composition analysis from Energy-dispersive x-ray (EDX) spectroscopy confirmed the presence of expected elements in the samples. The modification in resistivity and the enhancement in the dielectric parameters suggested the possible utilization of these soft ferrite nanoparticles in advanced electronics, especially the devices that are required to operate at high frequencies.

Keywords

• MnFe2-xLaxO4
• Rare earth substitution
• Reverse-Micelle strategy
• XRD
• Dielectric properties