Sintering temperature dependent electrical properties of sol–gel grown nanostructured Bi0.95Nd0.05FeO3 multiferroics.

In the present communication, nanostructured Bi_0.9Nd_0.1FeO₃ (BNFO) multiferroics have been successfully synthesized by sol–gel method and finally sintered at different temperatures. In order to investigate the structural properties, X-ray diffraction (XRD) measurement was carried out at room temperature that reveals the single phase of BNFO samples. For microstructural behaviors and granular morphology of nanostructures, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was performed. It is observed that grain morphology gets improved with increase in sintering temperature. For elemental analysis, energy dispersive X-ray analysis (EDAX) was carried out for all BNFO samples, which reveal appropriate doping of Nd at Bi site in BNFO samples. Frequency dependent dielectric measurements show that the dielectric constant increases with increase in sintering temperature, which has been understood on the basis granular morphology of the samples. Frequency dependent dielectric behavior follows the universal dielectric response (UDR) model for all BNFO samples. Magnetodielectric (MD) effect has been investigated in the frequency range of 20 Hz–2 MHz, which shows a strong dependence of sintering temperature and granular morphology of the samples. AC conductivity was found to obey the Jonscher's universal power law, which suggests the correlated barrier hopping (CBH) process as a responsible mechanism for charge conduction across the BNFO lattices. Highlights: Multiferroic Bi_0.9Nd_0.1FeO₃ (BNFO) nanoparticles were prepared by low cost sol–gel method. Different particle sizes were obtained by varying sintering temperature (700, 750, and 800 °C). Effect of sintering temperature on the structural, microstructural, and dielectric properties has been discussed. Strong magnetoelectric coupling effect observed for BNFO nanoparticle at room temperature. Magnetic field tunable dielectric relaxation process in BNFO nanoparticles. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]