Structural and Magnetic Properties of Bismuth Ferrite Nanopowders Prepared via Sol-Gel Method

Abstract

Bismuth ferrite (BiFeO₃, short for BFO) powders were prepared at low temperature using sol-gel process. Single-phase BiFeO₃ powders with distorted perovskite structure were obtained after calcining at 600°C. According to the Scherrer formula the calculated crystallite size (D _XRD) is about 39 nm. The value of the average particle size (D _BET) is larger than that of D _XRD. A typical magnetic hysteresis loop was observed at room temperature, indicating that the BiFeO₃ nanoparticles show a weak ferromagnetic order. The remnant magnetization (2M _r) and coercive field (2H _C) are 0.033 emu/g and 395 Oe, respectively.

Keywords:

• Bismuth ferrite
• powder
• multiferroic
• sol-gel