Effects of the synthesis temperature on the crystalline structure and the magnetic properties of cobalt ferrite nanoparticles prepared via coprecipitation

The effects of the synthesis temperature on the crystalline structure and the magnetic properties of cobalt ferrite (CoFe 2 O 4 ) nanoparticles prepared via coprecipitation are discussed. The synthesis was conducted at temperatures of 75 °C, 85 °C and 95 °C. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy characterization related to a stretching vibration at a wavenumber of 590 cm −1 indicated the formation of a CoFe 2 O 4 metal oxide. In addition, powder X ray diffraction (XRD) characterization proved that the metal oxide was CoFe 2 O 4 . Crystallite sizes calculated using the Scherer formula at the strongest peak of the XRD spectra of the samples synthesized at 75 °C, 85 °C and 95 °C were 32 nm, 43 nm and 50.4 nm, respectively. Finally, the results of the vibrating sample magnetometer characterization showed that the saturation magnetization decreased with increasing synthesis temperature, which is related to the dominant preference of Co 2+ over Fe 3+ cations at the octahedral sites.