Structural and magnetic characterization of copper ferrites prepared by using spray co-precipitation method

Crystal structure, cation distribution and magnetic properties of CuFe2O4 nanoparticles prepared by using spray co-precipitation method with different annealing temperature (Ta = 600, 700, 800 and 900 ° C) were studied systematically by synchrotron X-ray diffraction (SXRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM). The crystal structure symmetry of the samples was confirmed to be cubic (space group Fd3m). Mean particle size of the samples varies in the range of 10-300 nm. The lattice parameter, particle size and saturation magnetization were found to increase with increasing annealing temperature. Rietveld refinement performed on SXRD data reveals that the distribution of Cu2+ in crystallographic sites depends on annealing temperature. The variation of saturation magnetization and Curie temperature were discussed and explained based on cation distribution of Cu2+, surface and finite-size effects. © 2016 American Scientific Publishers. All rights reserved.