Structural, optical and magnetic properties of novel ZnFe2O4/ZrO2 mixed metal oxide nanocomposite synthesized by hydrothermal technique

Highlights: • ZnFe₂O₄/ZrO₂ nanocomposite was fabricated by a versatile hydrothermal method. • The structural, optical and magnetic properties was investigated. • Nanocomposite was successfully formed with particle size between 14 and 30 nm. • Combination of ZnFe₂O₄ with ZrO₂ dramatically reduced the band gap energy. • Superior magnetic behavior with high saturation magnetization was obtained. The main purpose of this study is to synthesize and investigate the structural, magnetic and optical features of ZnFe₂O₄-ZrO₂ mixed metal oxide nanocomposite. ZnFe₂O₄-ZrO₂ nanocomposite with different ratios was prepared by a simple and low cost hydrothermal method. The samples were characterized with the aid of Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-Ray Diffraction (XRD), Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), Dynamic Light Scattering (DLS), Inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES), BET measurements and UV–Vis spectroscopy. The X-ray diffraction study showed that the crystalline structure of ZnFe₂O₄ and ZrO₂ nanoparticles and ZnFe₂O₄-ZrO₂ nanocomposites were well-formed. FTIR Spectroscopy and SEM images further confirmed the complete formation of zinc ferrite and zirconium oxide crystalline structure with nano spherical morphology. Moreover, the particle size of the nanocomposites was between 14 and 30 nm, estimated by DLS analysis. The highest saturation magnetization (Ms) (27 emu/g) was achieved for ZnFe₂O₄-ZrO₂ nanocomposite with (3:1) ratio with M_r and H_c values of 0.17 (emu/g) and 3.02 (Oe), respectively. Moreover, optical studies indicated that addition of narrow band gap ZnFe₂O₄ nanoparticles could effectively reduce the band gap and shift the excitation wavelength of the nanocomposite to visible light.