Oxygen adsorption and electronic transport properties of Fe-substituted YBaCo4O7 compounds

• The conduction mechanism of YBaCo4O7 system was established.
• The effect of Fe substitution on the electronic transport was discussed.
• The effect of oxygen adsorption/desorption processes on the transport properties was investigated.

YBaCo4−xFexO7 (0.0 ≤ x ≤ 0.8) samples were prepared by the solid-state reaction method and the effect of Fe substitution and oxygen adsorption/desorption on the electronic transport properties was investigated from room temperature to 900 °C. Fe for Co substitution results in a slight decline in the oxygen storage capacity at lower temperature (200–400 °C) and an increase of the phase-decomposition temperature at higher temperature (700–900 °C). Both the hole concentration and mobility are reduced in the Fe-containing compositions. Electrical resistivity, Seebeck coefficient, and conduction activation energy increase with the increasing Fe content. A close correlativity between oxygen adsorption and electronic transport behavior was observed in YBaCo4−xFexO7 system. Oxygen adsorption decreases the electrical resistivity and Seebeck coefficients because of the increase of hole concentration at lower temperature and the phase decomposition at higher temperature.

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