| 1. |
- Aslibeiki, Bagher, et al.
(författare)
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Co-doped MnFe2O4 nanoparticles : magnetic anisotropy and interparticle interactions
- 2019
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Ingår i: Beilstein Journal of Nanotechnology. - : Beilstein Institut. - 2190-4286. ; 10, s. 856-865
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The effect of cobalt doping on the magnetic properties of Mn1−xCoxFe2O4 nanoparticles was investigated. All samples consist of ensembles of nanoparticles with a spherical shape and average diameter of about 10 nm, showing small structural changes due to the substitution. Besides having the same morpho-structural properties, the effect of the chemical composition, i.e., the amount of Co doping, produces marked differences on the magnetic properties, especially on the magnetic anisotropy, with evident large changes in the coercive field. Moreover, Co substitution has a profound effect on the interparticle interactions, too. A dipolar-based interaction regime is detected for all samples; in addition, the intensity of the interactions shows a possible relation with the single particle anisotropy. Finally, the sample with the strongest interaction regime shows a superspin glass state confirmed by memory effect dynamics.
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| 2. |
- Baričić, Miran, et al.
(författare)
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Chemical engineering of cationic distribution in spinel ferrite nanoparticles : the effect on the magnetic properties
- 2024
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Ingår i: Physical Chemistry, Chemical Physics - PCCP. - : Royal Society of Chemistry. - 1463-9076 .- 1463-9084. ; 26:7, s. 6325-6334
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A set of ∼9 nm CoFe2O4 nanoparticles substituted with Zn2+ and Ni2+ was prepared by thermal decomposition of metallic acetylacetonate precursors to correlate the effects of replacement of Co2+ with the resulting magnetic properties. Due to the distinct selectivity of these cations for the spinel ferrite crystal sites, we show that it is possible to tailor the magnetic anisotropy, saturation magnetization, and interparticle interactions of the nanoparticles during the synthesis stage. This approach unlocks new possibilities for enhancing the performance of spinel ferrite nanoparticles in specific applications. Particularly, our study shows that the replacement of Co2+ by 48% of Zn2+ ions led to an increase in saturation magnetization of approximately 40% from ∼103 A m2 kg−1 to ∼143 A m2 kg−1, whereas the addition of Ni2+ at a similar percentage led to an ∼30% decrease in saturation magnetization to 68–72 A m2 kg−1. The results of calculations based on the two-sublattice Néel model of magnetization match the experimental findings, demonstrating the model's effectiveness in the strategic design of spinel ferrite nanoparticles with targeted magnetic properties through doping/inversion degree engineering.
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| 3. |
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| 4. |
- Datt, Gopal, et al.
(författare)
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Combined Bottom-Up and Top-Down Approach for Highly Ordered One-Dimensional Composite Nanostructures for Spin Insulatronics
- 2021
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Ingår i: ACS Applied Materials and Interfaces. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 1944-8244 .- 1944-8252. ; 13:31, s. 37490-37499
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Engineering magnetic proximity effects-based devices requires developing efficient magnetic insulators. In particular, insulators, where magnetic phases show dramatic changes in texture on the nanometric level, could allow us to tune the proximity-induced exchange splitting at such distances. In this paper, we report the fabrication and characterization of highly ordered two-dimensional arrays of LaFeO3 (LFO)-CoFe2O4 (CFO) biphasic magnetic nanowires, grown on silicon substrates using a unique combination of bottom-up and top-down synthesis approaches. The regularity of the patterns was confirmed using atomic force microscopy and scanning electron microscopy techniques, whereas magnetic force microscopy images established the magnetic homogeneity of the patterned nanowires and absence of any magnetic debris between the wires. Transmission electron microscopy shows a close spatial correlation between the LFO and CFO phases, indicating strong grain-to-grain interfacial coupling, intrinsically different from the usual core-shell structures. Magnetic hysteresis loops reveal the ferrimagnetic nature of the composites up to room temperature and the presence of a strong magnetic coupling between the two phases, and electrical transport measurements demonstrate the strong insulating behavior of the LFO-CFO composite, which is found to be governed by Mottvariable range hopping conduction mechanisms. A shift in the Raman modes in the composite sample compared to those of pure CFO suggests the existence of strain-mediated elastic coupling between the two phases in the composite sample. Our work offers ordered composite nanowires with strong interfacial coupling between the two phases that can be directly integrated for developing multiphase spin insulatronic devices and emergent magnetic interfaces.
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| 5. |
- De Toro, José A., et al.
(författare)
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Remanence Plots as a Probe of Spin Disorder in Magnetic Nanoparticles
- 2017
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Ingår i: Chemistry of Materials. - Washington, D.C., USA : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 0897-4756 .- 1520-5002. ; 29:19, s. 8258-8268
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Remanence magnetization plots (e.g., Henkel or delta M plots) have been extensively used as a straightforward way to determine the presence and intensity of dipolar and exchange interactions in assemblies of magnetic nanoparticles or single domain grains. Their evaluation is particularly important in functional materials whose performance is strongly affected by the intensity of interparticle interactions, such as patterned recording media and nanostructured permanent magnets, as well as in applications such as hyperthermia and magnetic resonance imaging. Here, we demonstrate that delta M plots may be misleading when the nanoparticles do not have a homogeneous internal magnetic configuration. Substantial dips in the delta M plots of gamma-Fe2O3 nanoparticles isolated by thick SiO2 shells indicate the presence of demagnetizing interactions, usually identified as dipolar interactions. results, however, demonstrate that it is the inhomogeneous spin structure of the nanoparticles, as most clearly evidenced by Mossbauer measurements, that has a pronounced effect on the delta M plots, leading to features remarkably similar to those produced by dipolar interactions. X-ray diffraction results combined with magnetic characterization indicate that this inhomogeneity is due to the presence of surface structural (and spin) disorder. Monte Carlo simulations unambiguously corroborate the critical role of the internal magnetic structure in the delta M plots. Our findings constitute a cautionary tale on the widespread use of remanence plots to assess interparticle interactions as well as offer new perspectives in the use of Henkel and delta M plots to quantify the rather elusive inhomogeneous magnetization states in nanoparticles.
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| 6. |
- Kumar, P. Anil, et al.
(författare)
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Superspin glass state and exchange bias in amorphous Fe/Fe-O core/shell nanoparticles
- 2014
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Ingår i: Materials Research Express. - : IOP Publishing. - 2053-1591. ; 1:3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Nanoparticles of iron and iron oxide are widely explored in several biomedical and technological applications. We report on the magnetic properties of amorphous Fe/Fe-O core/shell nanoparticles compared to those of a reference system with crystalline Fe-O nanoparticles. These nanoparticles are prepared by thermal decomposition of iron precursor, where the amorphous and crystalline nature of core and shell is determined by the choice and concentration of the ligand. The crystalline system exhibits a blocking temperature higher than 300K and negligible exchange bias effect. In contrast, the amorphous systems display large exchange bias, and collective magnetic behavior at low temperatures, with features of magnetic frustration and disorder reminiscent of those observed in spin glass and superspin glass systems. We discuss the origin of the dynamical magnetic behavior of the amorphous particles and study the dependence of the exchange bias field on the cooling field.
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| 7. |
- Maltoni, Pierfrancesco, et al.
(författare)
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Complex correlations between microstructure and magnetic behavior in SrFe12O19 hexaferrite nanoparticles
- 2021
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Ingår i: Scientific Reports. - : Springer Nature. - 2045-2322. ; 11:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The magnetic properties of SrFe12O19 (SFO) hard hexaferrites are governed by the complex relation to its microstructure, determining their relevance for permanent magnets ' applications. A set of SFO nanoparticles obtained by sol-gel self-combustion synthesis was selected for an in-depth structural X-Rays powder diffraction (XRPD) characterization by means of G(L) line-profile analysis. The obtained crystallites ' size distribution reveal a clear dependence of the size along the [001] direction on the synthesis approach, resulting in the formation of platelet-like crystallites. In addition, the size of the SFO nanoparticles was determined by transmission electron microscopy (TEM) analysis and the average number of crystallites within a particle was estimated. These results have been evaluated to illustrate the formation of single-domain state below a critical value, and the activation volume was derived from time dependent magnetization measurements, aiming to clarify the reversal magnetization process of hard magnetic materials.
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| 8. |
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| 9. |
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| 10. |
- Maltoni, Pierfrancesco, et al.
(författare)
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Time and temperature dependent magnetic viscosity experiments on Sr/Co nanoferrite particles
- 2023
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Ingår i: Journal of Applied Physics. - : AIP Publishing. - 0021-8979 .- 1089-7550. ; 133:16
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Magnetic viscosity experiments have been performed in order to investigate the magnetization reversal in Sr nanoferrite particles (nanoscale SrFe12O19) and interacting Sr/Co nanoferrite particles (SrFe12O19-CoFe2O4 nanocomposites). The magnetic viscosity S = dM(t)/dln(t), where M(t) is the magnetization as a function of time, has been collected. For Sr nanoferrite S shows a maximum close to the coercive field, reflecting the relation between S and the energy barrier distribution. We evidence that magnetic viscosity experiments on Sr nanoferrite and interacting Sr/Co nanoferrite particles provide reliable qualitative results for the different magnetic field sweep rate and saturating field Hsat considered. In addition, the activation volumes extracted from the magnetic viscosity experiments performed at different temperatures on Sr nanoferrite are quantitatively correlated to anisotropy changes.
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| 11. |
- Maltoni, Pierfrancesco, et al.
(författare)
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Towards bi-magnetic nanocomposites as permanent magnets through the optimization of the synthesis and magnetic properties of SrFe12O19 nanocrystallites
- 2021
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Ingår i: Journal of Physics D. - : Institute of Physics Publishing (IOPP). - 0022-3727 .- 1361-6463. ; 54:12
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Sol-gel synthesis was used in order to obtain nanocrystallites of the SrFe12O19 (SFO) hexaferrite in an efficient and reliable way. By optimizing the initial synthetic conditions, we were able to control the size of the nanoparticles (NPs), at lower annealing temperature. The x-ray powder diffraction, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and magnetic measurements have demonstrated a significant relation between the morphology, size, and magnetic properties of the nanoscale SFO, revealing a definite dependence on the crystallite size along the c-axis. The obtained NPs appear almost isotropic, in the form of platelets and exhibit similar magnetic performance, in terms of the energy product (BH)(MAX), thus, demonstrating the suitability of reducing the annealing temperature without any deterioration in the magnetic properties. Additionally, this work illustrates the feasibility of the sol-gel bottom-up approach to employ magnetic NPs as building-blocks for designing hard/soft exchange-coupled bi-magnetic nanocomposites, combining the high coercivity of a hard phase (SFO) and the high saturation magnetization of a soft phase (CoFe2O4); in this regard, we discuss the tunability of the magnetic anisotropy by symbiotically restricting the growth of both phases.
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| 12. |
- Maltoni, Pierfrancesco, et al.
(författare)
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Tunable particle-agglomeration and magnetic coupling in bi-magnetic nanocomposites
- 2023
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Ingår i: Physical Chemistry, Chemical Physics - PCCP. - : Royal Society of Chemistry. - 1463-9076 .- 1463-9084. ; 25:40, s. 27817-27828
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A set of non-stoichiometric Zn–Co-ferrite nanoparticles (NPs) was prepared by thermal decomposition of metallic complexes, in the presence of oleic acid, and, after a ligand-exchange process, was coated by a hydrophilic surfactant: these NPs were used as seeds in a sol–gel self-combustion synthesis to prepare nanocomposites (NCs) with a fixed weight ratio. Our focus here is the development of an efficient synthetic approach to control the magnetic coupling between a hard-magnetic matrix (Sr-ferrite) and NPs. The physico-chemical synthetic conditions (temperature, pH, colloidal stability) were optimized in order to tune their effect on the final particles’ agglomeration in the matrix. We demonstrate that our synthetic approach is a novel way to produce strongly magnetically coupled NCs, where the final extrinsic properties could be tuned by controlling (i) the agglomeration of seeds in the matrix and (ii) their elemental doping.
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| 13. |
- Maltoni, Pierfrancesco, et al.
(författare)
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Tuning the Magnetic Properties of Hard-Soft SrFe12O19/CoFe2O4 Nanostructures via Composition/Interphase Coupling
- 2021
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Ingår i: The Journal of Physical Chemistry C. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 1932-7447 .- 1932-7455. ; 125:10, s. 5927-5936
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Magnetic nanocomposites (NCs) are extremely appealing for a wide range of energy-related technological applications, specifically as building blocks for next-generation permanent magnets. The design of such nanostructures requires precise chemical synthesis methods, which will permit the fine-tuning of the magnetic properties. Here we present an in-depth structural, morphological and magnetic characterization of ferrite-based nanostructures obtained through a bottom-up sol-gel approach. The combination of the high coercivity of a hard phase SrFe12O19 (SFO) and the high saturation magnetization of a soft phase, CoFe2O4 (CFO), allowed us to develop exchange-coupled bimagnetic NCs. A symbiotic effect is observed in a SFO/CFO nanocomposite, as the unique oriented growth of SFO prevents grain growth of the CFO, thus restricting the crystallite size of both. Through X-ray powder diffraction (XRPD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and magnetic measurements we clarify the relationship between the distribution and size of hard/soft particles, the optimization of interfaces and the obtained uniform magnetic response. This study allowed us to establish the potentiality of hard/soft SFO/CFO nanostructures in current permanent magnet technology.
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| 14. |
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| 15. |
- McDonagh, Birgitte Hjelmeland, et al.
(författare)
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L-DOPA-Coated Manganese Oxide Nanoparticles as Dual MRI Contrast Agents and Drug-Delivery Vehicles
- 2016
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Ingår i: Small. - : Wiley. - 1613-6810 .- 1613-6829. ; 12:3, s. 301-306
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Manganese oxide nanoparticles (MONPs) are capable of time-dependent magnetic resonance imaging contrast switching as well as releasing a surface-bound drug. MONPs give T2/T2* contrast, but dissolve and release T1-active Mn2+ and l-3,4-dihydroxyphenylalanine. Complementary images are acquired with a single contrast agent, and applications toward Parkinson's disease are suggested.
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| 16. |
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| 17. |
- Omelyanchik, Alexander, et al.
(författare)
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Boosting Magnetoelectric Effect in Polymer-Based Nanocomposites
- 2021
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Ingår i: Nanomaterials. - : MDPI. - 2079-4991. ; 11:5
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Polymer-based magnetoelectric composite materials have attracted a lot of attention due to their high potential in various types of applications as magnetic field sensors, energy harvesting, and biomedical devices. Current researches are focused on the increase in the efficiency of magnetoelectric transformation. In this work, a new strategy of arrangement of clusters of magnetic nanoparticles by an external magnetic field in PVDF and PFVD-TrFE matrixes is proposed to increase the voltage coefficient (alpha ME) of the magnetoelectric effect. Another strategy is the use of 3-component composites through the inclusion of piezoelectric BaTiO3 particles. Developed strategies allow us to increase the alpha ME value from similar to 5 mV/cm.Oe for the composite of randomly distributed CoFe2O4 nanoparticles in PVDF matrix to similar to 18.5 mV/cm.Oe for a composite of magnetic particles in PVDF-TrFE matrix with 5%wt of piezoelectric particles. The applicability of such materials as bioactive surface is demonstrated on neural crest stem cell cultures.
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| 18. |
- Omelyanchik, Alexander, et al.
(författare)
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High-Moment FeCo Magnetic Nanoparticles Obtained by Topochemical H-2 Reduction of Co-Ferrites
- 2022
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Ingår i: Applied Sciences. - : MDPI AG. - 2076-3417. ; 12:4
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Featured Application Metallic nanoparticles with a high value of magnetization have potential interest for application in biomedicine, catalysis, composite permanent magnets, and other fields. Cobalt ferrite nanoparticles of different stoichiometries synthesized by a sol-gel autocombustion method were used as a starting material to obtain high-moment Fe50Co50 and Fe66Co34 metal nanoparticles by topochemical hydrogen reduction. Structural and magnetic investigations confirmed the formation of FeCo nanoparticles with crystallite sizes of about 30 nm and magnetization at 0.5 T of ~265 Am-2/kg (0 K), which was larger than the expected bulk value, likely because of the incorporation in the body-centered cubic (bcc) FeCo structure of the residual C atoms present on the surface of the oxide particles. Temperature-dependent magnetization measurements in the H-2 atmosphere were also performed to investigate in detail the reduction mechanism and the effect of an external magnetic field on the process efficiency.
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| 19. |
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| 20. |
- Sánchez, Elena H., et al.
(författare)
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Crossover From Individual to Collective Magnetism in Dense Nanoparticle Systems: Local Anisotropy Versus Dipolar Interactions
- 2022
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Ingår i: Small. - : Wiley. - 1613-6810 .- 1613-6829. ; 18:28
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Dense systems of magnetic nanoparticles may exhibit dipolar collective behavior. However, two fundamental questions remain unsolved: i) whether the transition temperature may be affected by the particle anisotropy or it is essentially determined by the intensity of the interparticle dipolar interactions, and ii) what is the minimum ratio of dipole–dipole interaction (Edd) to nanoparticle anisotropy (KefV, anisotropy⋅volume) energies necessary to crossover from individual to collective behavior. A series of particle assemblies with similarly intense dipolar interactions but widely varying anisotropy is studied. The Kef is tuned through different degrees of cobalt-doping in maghemite nanoparticles, resulting in a variation of nearly an order of magnitude. All the bare particle compacts display collective behavior, except the one made with the highest anisotropy particles, which presents “marginal” features. Thus, a threshold of KefV/Edd ≈ 130 to suppress collective behavior is derived, in good agreement with Monte Carlo simulations. This translates into a crossover value of ≈1.7 for the easily accessible parameter TMAX(interacting)/TMAX(non-interacting) (ratio of the peak temperatures of the zero-field-cooled magnetization curves of interacting and dilute particle systems), which is successfully tested against the literature to predict the individual-like/collective behavior of any given interacting particle assembly comprising relatively uniform particles.
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| 21. |
- Sanchez, Elena H., et al.
(författare)
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Simultaneous Individual and Dipolar Collective Properties in Binary Assemblies of Magnetic Nanoparticles
- 2020
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Ingår i: Chemistry of Materials. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 1520-5002 .- 0897-4756. ; 32:3, s. 969-981
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Applications based on aggregates of magnetic nanoparticles are becoming increasingly widespread, ranging from hyperthermia to magnetic recording. However, although some uses require collective behavior, others need a more individual-like response, the conditions leading to either of these behaviors are still poorly understood. Here, we use nanoscale-uniform binary random dense mixtures with different proportions of oxide magnetic nanoparticles with low/high anisotropy as a valuable tool to explore the crossover from individual to collective behavior. Two different anisotropy scenarios have been studied in two series of binary compacts: M1, comprising maghemite (gamma-Fe2O3) nanoparticles of different sizes (9.0 nm/11.5 nm) with barely a factor of 2 between their anisotropy energies, and M2, mixing equally sized pure maghemite (low-anisotropy) and Co-doped maghemite (high-anisotropy) nanoparticles with a large difference in anisotropy energy (ratio > 8). Interestingly, while the M1 series exhibits collective behavior typical of strongly coupled dipolar systems, the M2 series presents a more complex scenario where different magnetic properties resemble either "individual-like" or "collective", crucially emphasizing that the collective character must be ascribed to specific properties and not to the system as a whole. The strong differences between the two series offer new insight (systematically ratified by simulations) into the subtle interplay between dipolar interactions, local anisotropy and sample heterogeneity to determine the behavior of dense assemblies of magnetic nanoparticles.
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| 22. |
- Sayed, Fatima, et al.
(författare)
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Synthesis of BaTiO3-CoFe2O4 nanocomposites using a one-pot technique
- 2021
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Ingår i: Inorganica Chimica Acta. - : Elsevier. - 0020-1693 .- 1873-3255. ; 520
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Low-cost and scalable sol?gel chemistry was employed to obtain ferroelectric-ferrimagnetic BaTiO3-CoFe2O4 nanocomposites. In a novel one-pot synthesis method, both the constituent phases of nanocomposites are formed during the same time and symbiotically participate to each other?s growth. X-ray powder diffraction evidences the phase purity of the systems, with average crystallite sizes in the order of 20 nm for the BaTiO3 phase. The optimization of the synthesis conditions, precursors, and chemical agents for nanoscale BaTiO3 and BaTiO3CoFe2O4 nanocomposites is presented, together with the magnetic and/or dielectric properties of the obtained materials. BaTiO3-CoFe2O4 nanocomposites with up to 20% CoFe2O4 volume fractions were found to display ferrimagnetic properties at room temperature akin to those of CoFe2O4, while preserving a dielectric behavior reminiscent of BaTiO3. Preliminary results describing the spin coating of BaTiO3 and BaTiO3-CoFe2O4 nanocomposites as thin films are also reported.
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| 23. |
- Sedrpooshan, Mehran, et al.
(författare)
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Template-free generation and integration of functional 1D magnetic nanostructures
- 2023
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Ingår i: Nanoscale. - : Royal Society of Chemistry. - 2040-3372 .- 2040-3364.
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The direct integration of 1D magnetic nanostructures into electronic circuits is crucial for realizing their great potential as components in magnetic storage, logical devices, and spintronic applications. Here, we present a novel template-free technique for producing magnetic nanochains and nanowires using directed self-assembly of gas-phase-generated metallic nanoparticles. The 1D nanostructures can be self-assembled along most substrate surfaces and can be freely suspended over micrometer distances, allowing for direct incorporation into different device architectures. The latter is demonstrated by a one-step integration of nanochains onto a pre-patterned Si chip and the fabrication of devices exhibiting magnetoresistance. Moreover, fusing the nanochains into nanowires by post-annealing significantly enhances the magnetic properties, with a 35% increase in the coercivity. Using magnetometry, X-ray microscopy, and micromagnetic simulations, we demonstrate how variations in the orientation of the magnetocrystalline anisotropy and the presence of larger multi-domain particles along the nanochains play a key role in the domain formation and magnetization reversal. Furthermore, it is shown that the increased coercivity in the nanowires can be attributed to the formation of a uniform magnetocrystalline anisotropy along the wires and the onset of exchange interactions.
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| 24. |
- Singh, Gurvinder, et al.
(författare)
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Synthesis of gadolinium oxide nanodisks and gadolinium doped iron oxide nanoparticles for MR contrast agents
- 2017
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Ingår i: Journal of materials chemistry. B. - : Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC). - 2050-750X .- 2050-7518. ; 5:3, s. 418-422
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Herein, we report the synthesis of differently sized gadolinium oxide nanodisks and gadolinium doped iron oxide spherical and cubic nanoparticles through the thermal decomposition of an oleate precursor. We also demonstrate that these nanoparticles are promising candidates for MR contrast agents.
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| 25. |
- Vasilakaki, Marianna, et al.
(författare)
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Effect of albumin mediated clustering on the magnetic behavior of MnFe2O4 nanoparticles : experimental and theoretical modeling study
- 2020
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Ingår i: Nanotechnology. - : IOP Publishing. - 0957-4484 .- 1361-6528. ; 31:2
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Over the last two decades, iron oxide based nanoparticles ferrofluids have attracted significant attention for a wide range of applications. For the successful use of these materials in biotechnology and energy, surface coating and specific functionalization is critical to achieve high dispersibility and colloidal stability of the nanoparticles in the ferrofluids. In view of this, the magnetic behavior of clusters of ultra-small MnFe2O4 nanoparticles covered by bovine serum albumin, which is known as a highly biocompatible and environmentally friendly surfactant, is investigated by magnetization measurements, and numerical simulations at an atomic and mesoscopic scale. The coating process with albumin produces a change in the structure, actual size and shape distribution of clusters of exchange coupled particles, giving rise to a distribution of blocking temperatures. The coated system exhibits a superspin glass (SSG) behavior with the SSG freezing temperatures similar to the uncoated ones, providing evidence that the strength of the dipolar interactions is not affected by the presence of the albumin. The DFT calculations show that the albumin coating reduces the surface anisotropy and the saturation magnetization in the nanoparticles leading to lower values of the coercive field in agreement with the experimental findings. Our results clearly demonstrate that the albumin coated clusters of MnFe2O4 particles are ideal systems for energy and biomedical applications since colloidal and thermal stability as well as biosafety is obtained through the albumin coating.
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