Abstract
La1−xCr0.7xEu0.3xFeO3 nanoparticles were fabricated by micro-emulsion route. The value of x was kept in the range of 0.00 to 0.04. The synthesized nanoparticles were then characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infra-red spectroscopy (FTIR) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The XRD confirmed the orthorhombic phase and estimated the crystallite size in the range of 30–90nm. The nanoparticles estimated by SEM were in the range 60–100nm. The XRD data was further supported by FTIR spectrum. The main FTIR bands observed were: Fe–O (418cm−1), Cr–O (545cm−1), La–O (570cm−1) and Eu–O (416cm−1). After structural elucidation, the La1−xCr0.7xEu0.3xFeO3 nanoparticles were subjected to magnetic parameters and dielectric behavior evaluation. The replacement of La3+ ions, with Cr3+ and rare earth Eu3+ exhibited interesting magnetic and dielectric behavior. The LaFeO3 nanoparticles without any dopants showed the paramagnetic behavior. However as the La3+ was substituted by Cr3+ and Eu3+, the ferromagnetic behavior was observed. Similarly the dielectric parameters were reduced by the replacement of La3+ ions with Cr3+ and Eu3+ metal ions. The maximum magnetic parameters were observed for La0.6Cr0.28Eu0.12FeO3 (Coercivity~0.04T, Saturation magnetization ~0.728emug−1 and Retentivity ~0.0.6783emug−1). The maximum dielectric constant (23.52 at 1.5×10−2GHz) was observed for LaFeO3 nanoparticles, while the minimum value of dielectric constant (10.32 at 1.5×10−2GHz) was exhibited by La0.8Cr0.14Eu0.06FeO3 nanoparticles.