Enhancement of electrical properties due to Cr3+ substitution in Co-ferrite nanoparticles synthesized by two chemical techniques

Nanocrystalline cobalt ferrites with nominal composition CoCrxFe2−xO4 ranging from x=0.0 to 0.5 with step increment of 0.25 were prepared by sol–gel auto combustion and chemical co-precipitation techniques. A comparative study of structural, electrical and magnetic properties of these ferrites has been measured using different characterization techniques. Structural and micro-structural studies were measured using X-ray diffraction, Fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy (FTIR), scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy. Crystallite sizes of the series are within the range of 12–29±2 nm. Lattice parameters decrease by increasing Cr3+ concentration. FTIR confirms the presence of two lattice absorption bands. DC electrical resistivity increases to a value of ∼1010 Ω-cm with increase in Cr3+ concentration, but the most significant increase is in samples prepared by sol–gel combustion. Dielectric properties have been measured as a function of frequency at room temperature. Dielectric loss decreases to 0.1037 and 0.0108 at 5 MHz for chemical co-precipitation and sol–gel combustion, respectively. Impedance measurements further helped in analyzing the electrical properties and to separate the grain and grain boundary resistance effects using a complex impedance analysis. Magnetic parameters were studied using a vibrating sample magnetometer in the applied field of 10 kOe. The saturation magnetization decreased from 63 to 10.8 emu/gm with increase in Cr3+ concentration. Highlights: ► Particle size reduces to less than 30 nm. ► DC electrical resistivity increases with substitution of Cr3+. ► Dielectric constant decreases. ► Dielectric losses also decreases with substitution of Cr3+