Structure, Morphology, Optical, Magnetic and Dielectric Properties of Ni1-xCdxFe2O4 Material Synthesized by Autocombustion Method

Materials with nanoscale dimensions have recently attracted attention due to their outstanding electrical, magnetic, and dielectric capabilities. Electromagnetic materials, known as spinel ferrite MFe2O4 (M = divalent ion), are essential in advanced technology. Cadmium-substituted ferrite spinel with composition Ni1-xCdxFe2O4 (x = 0, 0.1, 0.15, and 0.2) was synthesized by the autocombustion method using citric acid as a fuel agent. X-Ray Diffraction (XRD) confirms that the spinel structure is present in the prepared nanocrystalline ferrites. Fourier Transformed Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR) spectra showed intensive absorption bands in the 400-600 cm-¹ range corresponding to tetrahedral and octahedral sites. The absorption spectrum of FTIR shifts towards lower wave numbers as the Cd2+ ion concentration increases. Cd2+ ions doping is important for crystal growth, as evidenced by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) images. The band gap energy values of Ni1-xCdxFe2O4 samples are 1.53 eV, 1.46 eV, 1 43eV, 1.42 eV for x=0-0.2, which indicates the samples absorb in visible light. Analysis of magnetic properties with Vibrating Sample Magnetometer (VSM) shows a small hysteresis loop, so Ni1-xCdxFe2O4 is a soft magnetic material. The dielectric constant increases as the Cd2+ ion concentration increases. The characterization outcomes recommend that the compounds can be used for several applications such as memory, and energy storage devices.