Experimental and theoretical investigation of cubic FeCo nanoparticles for magnetic hyperthermia

Magnetic nanoparticles have great potential as heating elements for use in magnetic hyperthermia for cancer therapy and drug release. A problem with widely used magnetite and mag-hematite nanoparticles is the relatively low magnetization, which results in low heating efficiency. Here high-magnetic-moment Fe70Co30 nanoparticles with a cubic shape were synthesized using a gas condensation sputtering technique for potential magnetic hyperthermia application. The mean size of nanoparticles was 12 nm with 13.6% standard deviation. Micromagnetic simulation of particles’ experimental hysteresis loop suggests that their behavior is dominated by a uniaxial anisotropy.