Hyperfine field distributions in disordered Mn<Subscript>2</Subscript>CoSn and Mn<Subscript>2</Subscript>NiSn Heusler alloys

Heusler alloys, Mn₂CoSn and Mn₂NiSn, were prepared and characterized by X-ray studies. Mössbauer studies using Sn-119 were carried out to investigate the hyperfine fields present at the Sn site in these alloys. The hyperfine field distribution in these alloys as well as X-ray studies point to the chemical disorder present in both alloys. Co-existence of a paramagnetic portion along with the magnetic hyperfine part was observed in Mn₂CoSn even at low temperatures, while this was not found in Mn₂NiSn spectra. Hyperfine fields at Sn site were calculated using Blandin and Campbell model and compared with the experimental results.     

Compressive deformation behavior of ternary compound Cr<Subscript>2</Subscript>AlC

The compressive properties of ternary compound Cr₂AlC at different temperatures and strain rates were studied. When tested at a strain rate of 5.6 × 10⁻⁴ s⁻¹, the compressive strength decreases continuously from 997 ± 29 MPa at room temperature to 523 ± 7 MPa at 900 °C. The ductile-to-brittle transition temperature is measured to be in the range of 700 to 800 °C. When tested in the strain rate range of 5.6 × 10⁻⁵ to 5.6 × 10⁻³ s⁻¹, Cr₂AlC fails in a brittle mode at room temperature, whereas the deformation mode changes from a brittle to a ductile as the strain rate is lower than 5.6 × 10⁻⁴ s⁻¹ when compressed at 800 °C. The compressive strength increases slightly with increasing strain rate at room temperature and it is less dependent on strain rate when tested at 800 °C. The plastic deformation mechanism of Cr₂AlC was discussed in terms of dislocation-related activities, such as kink band formation, delamination, decohesion of grain boundary, and microcrack formation.     

Synthesis,tunable luminescence and thermal stability of Mg<Subscript>2</Subscript>Al<Subscript>4</Subscript>Si<Subscript>5</Subscript>O<Subscript>18</Subscript>:Ce<Superscript>3+</Superscript>/Mn<Superscript>2+</Superscript> phosphors

Ce³⁺/Mn²⁺ singly doped and codoped Mg₂Al₄Si₅O₁₈ phosphors were synthesized by a solid state reaction. The phase, luminescent properties and thermal stability of the synthesized phosphors were investigated. Ce³⁺ and Mn²⁺ singly doped Mg₂Al₄Si₅O₁₈ phosphors show emission bands locating in blue and yellow–red regions, respectively. In Ce³⁺ and Mn²⁺ codoped Mg₂Al₄Si₅O₁₈, tunable luminescence was obtained because of the energy transfer from Ce³⁺ to Mn²⁺. In Mg₂Al₄Si₅O₁₈:Ce³⁺/Mn²⁺ phosphors with a fixed Ce³⁺ concentration, energy transfer efficiency increases with the increasing Mn²⁺ concentration, which is confirmed by the continually decreasing intensity and shortening decay time of Ce³⁺ emission. Moreover, the luminescent properties and thermal stability provide a great significance on the applications in the field of light emitting diodes.     

Structure and luminescent properties of Cs<Subscript>2</Subscript>Sr(VO<Subscript>3</Subscript>)<Subscript>4</Subscript>:Mn<Superscript>2+</Superscript>

We have developed a procedure for thermally stimulated synthesis of a cesium strontium metavanadate, Cs₂Sr(VO₃)₄:Mn²⁺ (0.01, 0.50, 1.00, 5.00 at % Mn²⁺), using MnO-containing starting mixtures. The EPR spectrum of the material containing 0.01 at % Mn²⁺ shows a hyperfine structure due to the incorporation of a small amount of manganese into the diamagnetic double metavanadate host. The luminescent and optical properties of Cs₂Sr(VO₃)₄:Mn²⁺ depend on manganese content. In contrast to higher doping levels, doping with 0.01 at % Mn²⁺ increases the integrated emission intensity of the vanadate by 10% and improves its chromaticity characteristics (approaching them to those of white light). We assume that this is due to the reduction in the density of vacancy-type growth defects, such as oxygen vacancies.     

Synthesis and characterization of Cd-doped ZnMn<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>4</Subscript> microspheres as supercapacitor electrodes

In this paper, we demonstrate the effects of Cd-doping ZnMn₂O₄ on structural and electrochemical performance. Cd-doped ZnMn₂O₄ spheres with diameters of about 2 μm were successfully synthesized by a facile hydrothermal method at 200 °C for 18 h. The fabricated Cd-doped ZnMn₂O₄ samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, Brunauer Emmett Teller surface area analyzer and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The electrochemical performance was investigated by cyclic voltammetry and electrochemical impedance spectrometry. The experimental results show that the synthesized spherical Cd-doped ZnMn₂O₄ exhibit far better rate capability and cyclic stability than that of pure spinel porous ZnMn₂O₄ microspheres. The result of cyclic voltammetry measurement indicates that the obtained Cd-doped ZnMn₂O₄ microspheres exhibited the high specific capacitance of 364 Fg^?1 at 2 mV/s.     

Nano-domain structure of Li<Subscript>4</Subscript>Mn<Subscript>5</Subscript>O<Subscript>12</Subscript> spinel

XRD-pure Li₄Mn₅O₁₂ spinels are obtained below 600 °C from oxalate and acetate precursors. The morphology consists of nanometric particles (about 25 nm) with a narrow particle size distribution. HRTEM and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectroscopy of Mn⁴⁺ are employed for local structure analysis. The HRTEM images recorded on nano-domains in Li₄Mn₅O₁₂ reveal its complex structure. HRTEM shows one-dimensional structure images, which are compatible with the (111) plane of the cubic spinel structure and the (001) plane of monoclinic Li₂MnO₃. For Li₄Mn₅O₁₂ compositions annealed between 400 and 800 °C, EPR spectroscopy shows the appearance of two types of Mn⁴⁺ ions having different metal environments: (i) Mn⁴⁺ ions surrounded by Li⁺ and Mn⁴⁺ and (ii) Mn⁴⁺ ions in Mn⁴⁺-rich environment. The composition of the Li⁺, Mn⁴⁺-shell around Mn⁴⁺ mimics the local environment of Mn⁴⁺ in monoclinic Li₂MnO₃, while the Mn⁴⁺-rich environment is related with that of the spinel phase. The structure of XRD-pure Li₄Mn₅O₁₂ comprises nano-domains with a Li₂MnO₃-like and a Li_4/3−x Mn_5/3+x O₄ composition rather than a single spinel phase with Li in tetrahedral and Li_1/3Mn_5/3 in octahedral spinel sites. The annealing of Li₄Mn₅O₁₂ at temperature higher than 600 °C leads to its decomposition into monoclinic Li₂MnO₃ and spinel Li_4/3−x Mn_5/3+x O₄.     

Synthesis and microwave absorption property of ternary composites: polyaniline/CoFe<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>4</Subscript>/Ba<Subscript>3</Subscript>Co<Subscript>2</Subscript>Fe<Subscript>24</Subscript>O<Subscript>41</Subscript>

Polyaniline (PANI)/CoFe₂O₄/Ba₃Co₂Fe₂₄O₄₁ composite was prepared by an in-situ polymerization method. The phase structure, morphology and magnetic properties of the as-prepared PANI/CoFe₂O₄/Ba₃Co₂Fe₂₄O₄₁ composite were characterized by XRD, FT-IR, SEM, TEM, and VSM, respectively. The microwave absorption properties of the composite were investigated by using a vector network analyzer in the 2–18 GHz frequency range. The results show that the maximum reflection loss value of the PANI/CoFe₂O₄/Ba₃Co₂Fe₂₄O₄₁ composite reaches ?30.5 dB at 10.5 GHz with a thickness of 3 mm and the bandwidth of reflection loss below ?10 dB reaches up to 1.2 GHz. The excellent microwave absorption properties of the as-prepared PANI/CoFe₂O₄/Ba₃Co₂Fe₂₄O₄₁ composite due to the enhanced impedance match between dielectric loss and magnetic loss.     

Magnetic properties of CuGa<Subscript>0.94</Subscript>Mn<Subscript>0.06</Subscript>Te<Subscript>2</Subscript>

As part of a search for new spintronic materials, we have studied the magnetic properties of the CuGa_0.94Mn_0.06Te₂ chalcopyrite solid solution in the range 2–400 K in weak and strong magnetic fields. Magnetization isotherms, σ(H), were obtained in magnetic fields of up to 3980 kA/m. σ(T) data were collected in two ways: the sample was cooled in a magnetic field or in zero field. The experimental data were analyzed by fitting to the Langevin function. The data are adequately represented by this relation in the case when the magnetic moment of the clusters is μ_cl = 23.4μ_B and the concentrations of magnetic clusters and noninteracting Mn²⁺ ions are n _cl = 2.4 × 10²⁵ m^?3 and n _pm = 5.7 × 10²⁵ m^?3, respectively. The calculated average cluster size is d _cl = 33 Å, the number of Mn²⁺ ions per cluster is z = 21 atoms per cluster, and the magnetic moment per Mn²⁺ ion in the clusters is μ_Mn = 1.1μ_B. This μ_Mn value is far below the theoretical magnetic moment of the Mn²⁺ ion in the electronic configuration d ⁵(5.9μ_B), suggesting antiferromagnetic exchange interaction.     

Facile synthesis,characterization and BET study of neodymium-doped spinel Mn<Subscript>3</Subscript>O<Subscript>4</Subscript> nanomaterial with enhanced photocatalytic activity

In this study, bare Mn₃O₄ and Neodymium (Nd)-doped Mn₃O₄ were prepared via a facile hydrothermal strategy. These materials were characterized by X-ray powder diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, transmission electron microscopy, UV spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and the Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) method. XRD pattern displays that the particles were well crystallized and corresponds to a spinel structure of Mn₃O₄. The BET specific surface area and pore volume of mesoporous Mn₃O₄ greatly exceeds that of Nd-doped Mn₃O₄ samples. The sonophotocatalytic activity of Nd-doped Mn₃O₄ nanoparticles was evaluated by monitoring the decolorization of Reactive Red 43 in aqueous solution under sono-photocatalytic process. 4% Nd-doped Mn₃O₄ nanoparticles showed the highest decolorization efficiency among the different amounts of dopant agent used. The Nd-doped Mn₃O₄ could be a promising candidate material for high-capacity, low-cost, and environmentally friendly catalyst for wastewater remediation.     

Magnetic properties of Er<Subscript>2</Subscript>Mn<Subscript>2/3</Subscript>Re<Subscript>4/3</Subscript>O<Subscript>7</Subscript>, a new zirkelite-structure oxide

We have studied the magnetic properties of the new compound Er₂Mn_2/3Re_4/3O₇ prepared by reacting Er₃ReO₈, ReO₂, MnO, and metallic Re at 1020°C in silica tubes sealed off under vacuum. The compound is shown to have the zirkelite structure with hexagonal cell parameters a = 7.3174(6) Å and c = 17.365(1) Å (sp. gr. P3₁21₁, Z = 6). Magnetization data obtained in the range 2–300 K demonstrate that, above ～150 K, its magnetic susceptibility exhibits Curie-Weiss behavior with an effective magnetic moment of 9.50μ_B. Dynamic magnetic susceptibility measurements point to spin-glass behavior of this compound at low temperatures.     

Electrical properties of Ni<Subscript>0.93</Subscript>Co<Subscript>0.02</Subscript>Mn<Subscript>0.05</Subscript>Fe<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>4</Subscript> + BaTiO<Subscript>3</Subscript> ME composites

Polycrystalline samples of mixed composites of Ni_0.93Co_0.02Mn_0.05Fe₂O₄ + BaTiO₃ were prepared by conventional double sintering ceramic method. The phase analysis was carried out by using X-ray diffraction technique. Variation of dc resistivity and thermo emf was studied as a function of temperature. AC conductivity (σ_ac) was investigated in the frequency range 100 Hz–1 MHz. The loss tangent (tan δ) measurements conclude that the conduction mechanism in these samples is due to small polaron hopping. The magnetoelectric conversion factor, i.e. dc(ME) _H was studied as a function of intensity of magnetic field and the maximum value 407 μV/cm/Oe was observed at a field of 0.8 kOe in a composite with 85% BaTiO₃ and 15% Ni_0.93Co_0.02Mn_0.05Fe₂O₄ phase.     

Synthesis and thermoluminescence properties of CdB<Subscript>4</Subscript>O<Subscript>7</Subscript>:Tb<Superscript>3+</Superscript> and CdB<Subscript>4</Subscript>O<Subscript>7</Subscript>:Mn<Superscript>2+</Superscript>

Polycrystalline samples of undoped, terbium-doped (CdB₄O₇:Tb³⁺), and manganese-doped (CdB₄O₇:Mn²⁺) cadmium tetraborate have been prepared by solid-state reactions at 850°C. Using differential scanning calorimetry and X-ray diffraction, we have determined the melting point of CdB₄O₇ (t _m = 976°C) and shown that this compound melts incongruently. The observed monotonic decrease in the orthorhombic cell parameters of the doped materials indicates the formation of substitutional solid solutions (sp. gr. Pbca). The thermoluminescence intensity of the doped materials has been shown to depend on the nature and concentration of the activators and the irradiation time.     

Thermodynamic properties of the SnSb<Subscript>2</Subscript>Te<Subscript>4</Subscript> compound

The SnTe–Sb₂Te₃–Te system has been studied in the temperature range 300–430 K using emf measurements on reversible concentration cells of the type (–)SnTe(s) | liquid electrolyte, Sn²⁺ |(Sn–Sb–Te)(s)(+). The system has been shown to consist of two three-phase regions, separated by the SnSb₂Te₄–Te tie line. The best fit equation for the temperature-dependent emf data has been used to evaluate the partial thermodynamic functions of the SnTe and Sn in the alloys. Using these data, subsolidus phase diagram data for the SnTe–Sb₂Te₃–Te system, and relevant thermodynamic functions for SnTe and Sb₂Te₃, we calculated the standard Gibbs energy of formation, standard enthalpy of formation, and standard entropy of the SnSb₂Te₄ compound.     

Synthesis of MgAl<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>4</Subscript> nanopowders

A procedure has been developed for the synthesis of MgAl₂O₄ nanopowders with a characteristic particle size of 10–40 nm. Translucent hydrous xerogels have been synthesized as precursors to MgAl₂O₄. The synthesized magnesium aluminum spinel nanopowders are promising for the fabrication of optical ceramics.     

Synthesis and electrochemical characterization of LiCo<Subscript>1/3</Subscript>Ni<Subscript>1/3</Subscript>Mn<Subscript>1/3</Subscript>O<Subscript>2</Subscript> by radiated polymer gel method

Layered LiCo_1/3Ni_1/3Mn_1/3O₂ as a lithium insertion positive-electrode material was prepared by a radiated polymer gel method. The synthesis conditions and microstructure, morphology and electrochemical properties of the products were investigated by XRD, SEM and electrochemical cell cycling. It was found that the positive-electrode material annealed at 950 °C showed the best electrochemical property with the first specific discharge capacity of 178 mAh/g at C/6 and stable cycling ability between 2.8 and 4.5 V versus Li/Li⁺. The optimized LiCo_1/3Ni_1/3Mn_1/3O₂ exhibited rather good rate capability with the specific capacity of 173 mAh/g at 0.2C and 116 mAh/g at 4C under a fast charge and discharge mode in rate performance test.     

Dielectric,humidity behavior and conductivity mechanism of Mn<Subscript>0.2</Subscript>Ni<Subscript>0.3</Subscript>Zn<Subscript>0.5</Subscript>Fe<Subscript>2</Subscript>O<Subscript>4</Subscript> ferrite prepared by co-precipitation method

Mn–Ni–Zn ferrite with the chemical formula of Mn_0.2Ni_0.3Zn_0.5Fe₂O₄ was prepared by co-precipitation method. The X-ray diffraction (XRD) results show that the prepared sample crystallizes in the cubic spinel structure with the space group of Fm3m. The morphological analysis of the sample was investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The dielectric properties of Mn_0.2Ni_0.3Zn_0.5Fe₂O₄ ferrite were studied in a frequency range from 20 Hz to 10 MHz and at a temperature range from 293 to 733 K. The dielectric constant decreases with the increasing frequency for all the temperature values chosen. The AC conductivity mechanism was found the small polaron type of conductivity, and in addition to that, the DC conductivity can be explained by Arrhenius type conductivity. According to the dielectric results, relaxation process fits Cole–Cole model. Finally, the effect of the relative humidity upon the impedance of the sample was discussed for a frequency range between 20 Hz and 10 MHz. It is found that the impedance values decrease almost linearly with the increasing % RH (relative humidity) values at low frequencies, while the impedance of the sample is independent of % RH at high frequencies.     

Structural,electrical and magnetic properties of Mn<Subscript>3</Subscript>O<Subscript>4</Subscript>/MgO nanocomposite

The present paper deals with the synthesis of Mn₃O₄/MgO nanocomposite through a simple sol–gel route and their electrical and magnetic properties are discussed for electrode applications. The grain size and particle morphology of the synthesized nanocomposite are characterized using XRD and HRSEM. The elemental compositions of the synthesized samples were analyzed using EDAX spectra. The dielectric constant, dielectric loss and AC conductivity of the synthesized samples were studied in the frequency range of 100 Hz–5 MHz at different temperatures (303–573 K) using impedance spectra. The activation energy was calculated using Arrhenius plot. The vibrating sample magnetometry (VSM) study shows that the nanocomposites are found to be paramagnetic at room temperature.     

Synthesis and x-ray diffraction study of solid solutions in the Zn<Subscript>2</Subscript>SnO<Subscript>4</Subscript>-Zn<Subscript>2</Subscript>TiO<Subscript>4</Subscript>-Zn<Subscript>2</Subscript>ZrO<Subscript>4</Subscript> system

The multicomponent refractory oxide system Zn₂(Ti_aSn_b)_{1 ? x} Zr_xO₄ (a + b = 1; a: b = 1: 5, 1: 4, 1: 3, 1: 2, 1: 1, 1: 0, 2: 1, 3: 1, 4: 1; x = 0?1.0; Δx = 0.05) has been studied by x-ray diffraction, using samples prepared by melting appropriate oxide mixtures in a low-temperature hydrogen-oxygen plasma. Two phases, both with wide homogeneity ranges, have been identified: α-phase, with a cubic inverse spinel structure, and β-phase, with a tetragonal spinel structure. The phase boundaries in the system have been determined. Structural data are presented for about 100 solid solutions of different compositions.     

Synthesis,structure, and thermal expansion of M<Subscript>2</Subscript>Fe<Subscript>2</Subscript>Ti<Subscript>6</Subscript>O<Subscript>16</Subscript> and MFeTiO<Subscript>4</Subscript> compounds

Compounds that crystallize in four structure types in M₂O-Fe₂O₃-TiO₂ systems have been prepared by solid-state reactions. The M₂Fe₂Ti₆O₁₆ (M = Rb, Cs) compounds have been prepared for the first time. The thermal expansion coefficients of the MFeTiO₄ (M = Li, Na) and M₂Fe₂Ti₆O₁₆ (M = Na, K, Rb, Cs) compounds have been determined by high-temperature X-ray diffraction.