Kuldeep Chand Verma

By Kuldeep Chand Verma, Ashish Sharma, Navdeep Goyal and Ravinder Kumar Kotnala

Multiferroic magnetoelectric material has significance for new design nano-scale spintronic devices. In single-phase multiferroic BaTiO3, the magnetism occurs with doping of transition metals, TM ions, which has partially filled d-orbitals. Interestingly, the magnetic ordering is strongly related with oxygen vacancies, and thus, it is thought to be a source of ferromagnetism of TM:BaTiO3. The nanostructural MFe2O4 (M = Mn, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, etc.) ferrite has an inverse spinel structure, for which M2+ ions in octahedral site and Fe3+ ions are equally distributed between tetrahedral and octahedral sites. These antiparallel sub-lattices (cations M2+ and Fe3+ occupy either tetrahedral or octahedral sites) are coupled with O2- ion due to superexchange interaction to form ferrimagnetic structure. Moreover, the future spintronic technologies using diluted magnetic semiconductors, DMS materials might have realized ferromagnetic origin. A simultaneous doping from TM and rare earth ions in ZnO nanoparticles could increase the antiferromagnetic ordering to achieve high-Tc ferromagnetism. The role of the oxygen vacancies as the dominant defects in doped ZnO that must involve bound magnetic polarons as the origin of ferromagnetism.

Part of the book: Electromagnetic Materials and Devices

By Kuldeep Chand Verma

For advancement in future spintronics, the diluted magnetic semiconductors (DMSs) might be understood for their origin of ferromagnetic aptness. It not much clear to the ferromagnetism in DMS, that is intrinsic or via dopant clustering formation. For this, we have included a review study for the doping of transition metal and rare earth ions in ZnO. It is realized that the antiferromagnetic ordering is found in doped ZnO to achieve high-TC ferromagnetism. X-ray diffraction and Raman spectra techniques have been used to detect the wurtzite ZnO structure and lattice defects. Since ZnO has different types of morphology formation that is generally dependent on synthesis conditions and dopant level. The band gap energy of ZnO and lattice defect formation are shown by photoluminescence technique. The room temperature ferromagnetism is described with bound magnetic polaron (BMP) model in which oxygen vacancies play a major role. However, the temperature-dependent conditions are responsible for ferromagnetic ordering. The first principle calculation is used for dopant ions in ZnO for their replacement of Zn2+ atoms in the wurtzite structure as well as magnetic contribution.

Part of the book: Magnetic Materials and Magnetic Levitation

By Kuldeep Chand Verma

Multiferroic BiFeO3 deals with spintronic devices involved spin-charge processes and applicable in new non-volatile memory devices to store information for computing performance and the magnetic random access memories storage. Since multiferroic leads to the new generation memory devices for which the data can be written electrically and read magnetically. The main advantage of present study of multiferroic BiFeO3 is that to observe magnetoelectric effects at room temperature. The nanostructural growth (for both size and shape) of BiFeO3 may depend on the selection of appropriate synthesis route, reaction conditions and heating processes. In pure BiFeO3, the ferroelectricity is induced by 6s2 lone-pair electrons of Bi3+ ions and the G-type antiferromagnetic ordering resulting from Fe3+ spins order of cycloidal (62-64 nm wavelength) occurred below Neel temperature, TN = 640 K. The multiferroicity of BiFeO3 is disappeared due to factors such as impurity phases, leakage current and low value of magnetization. Therefore, to overcome such factors to get multiferroic enhancement in BiFeO3, there are different possible ways like changes dopant ions and their concentrations, BiFeO3 composites as well as thin films especially multilayers.

Part of the book: Bismuth

By Devinder Singh and Kuldeep Chand Verma

In this chapter, results of our recent investigations on the structural, microstructural and magnetic properties of Cu-based Heusler alloys and MFe2O4 (M = Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn) nanostructures will be discussed. The chapter is divided into two parts, the first part describes growth and different characterizations of Heusler alloys while in the second part magnetic properties of nano-ferrites are discussed. The Cu50Mn25Al25-xGax (x = 0, 2, 4, 8 and 10 at %) alloys have been synthesized in the form of ribbons. The alloys with x ≤ 8 show the formation of Heusler single phase of the Cu2MnAl structure. Further increase of Ga content gives rise to the formation of γ-Cu9Al4 type phase together with Cu2MnAl Heusler phase. The alloys are ferromagnetically ordered and the saturation magnetization (Ms) decreases slightly with increasing Ga concentration. Annealing of the ribbons significantly changes the magnetic properties of Cu50Mn25Al25-xGax alloys. The splitting in the zero field cooled (ZFC) and field cooled (FC) magnetization curves at low temperature has been observed for alloys. Another important class of material is Nanoferrites. The structural and magnetization behaviour of spinel MFe2O4 nanoferrites are quite different from that of bulk ferrites. X-ray diffraction study revealed spinel structure of MFe2O4 nanoparticles. The observed ferromagnetic behaviour of MFe2O4 depends on the nanostructural shape as well as ferrite inversion degree. The magnetic interactions in Ce doped CoFe2O4 are antiferromagnetic that was confirmed by zero field/field cooling measurements at 100 Oe. Log R (Ω) response measurement of MgFe2O4 thin film was taken for 10–90% relative humidity (% RH) change at 300 K.

Part of the book: Magnetic Skyrmions

By Kuldeep Chand Verma and Manpreet Singh

In this chapter, we have report a list of synthesis methods (including both synthesis steps & heating conditions) used for thin film fabrication of perovskite ABO3 (BiFeO3, BaTiO3, PbTiO3 and CaTiO3) based multiferroics (in both single-phase and composite materials). The processing of high quality multiferroic thin film have some features like epitaxial strain, physical phenomenon at atomic-level, interfacial coupling parameters to enhance device performance. Since these multiferroic thin films have ME properties such as electrical (dielectric, magnetoelectric coefficient & MC) and magnetic (ferromagnetic, magnetic susceptibility etc.) are heat sensitive, i.e. ME response at low as well as higher temperature might to enhance the device performance respect with long range ordering. The magnetoelectric coupling between ferromagnetism and ferroelectricity in multiferroic becomes suitable in the application of spintronics, memory and logic devices, and microelectronic memory or piezoelectric devices. In comparison with bulk multiferroic, the fabrication of multiferroic thin film with different structural geometries on substrate has reducible clamping effect. A brief procedure for multiferroic thin film fabrication in terms of their thermal conditions (temperature for film processing and annealing for crystallization) are described. Each synthesis methods have its own characteristic phenomenon in terms of film thickness, defects formation, crack free film, density, chip size, easier steps and availability etc. been described. A brief study towards phase structure and ME coupling for each multiferroic system of BiFeO3, BaTiO3, PbTiO3 and CaTiO3 is shown.

Part of the book: Thermoelectricity

By Kuldeep Chand Verma and Navdeep Goyal

Recently invented hydroelectric cell (HEC) is emerging as a better alternative for green electrical energy devices. HEC is fabricated as to generate electricity via splitting of water into H3O+ and OH− ions without releasing any toxic product. In iron oxides, Hematite (α-Fe2O3), magnetite (Fe3O4) and maghemite (γ-Fe2O3) nanoparticles HEC are recently reported for their remarkable electrical response by splitting water molecules. Fe3O4 HEC 4.8 cm2 surface size has delivered 50 mA short circuits current. Li ions into Fe3O4 stabilize electrical cell response to 44.91 mA with open-circuit voltage 0.68 V. Maghemite based HEC delivered a maximum short circuit current 19 mA with emf 0.85 V using water 200 μL. Maximum off-load output power 27.6 mW has been delivered by 4.84 cm2 area hematite-HEC which is 3.52 times higher with 7.84 mW power as generated by Li-Mg ferrite HEC. Maximum electrical power 16.15 mW delivered by maghemite HEC is 0.58, 0.42 times lower than respective magnetite, hematite HECs. In more applicability of iron oxides, the multiferroic nanocomposites of BaTiO3 with 85% CoFe2O4 has been shown maximum short circuit current 7.93 mA and 0.7 V emf by sprinkling few drops of water on HEC surface. Li0.3Ni0.4Fe2.3O4 and Mg0.8Li0.2Fe2O4 HECs also have some remarkable results for green energy generation.

Part of the book: Iron Oxide Nanoparticles