Structural, electrical and magnetic characterizations of Ni–Cu–Zn ferrite synthesized by citrate precursor method

Fine powders of NiCuZn ferrite with composition Ni(0.7−x)CuxZn0.3Fe2O4 (where x=0, 0.2, 0.4 and 0.6) were prepared by the citrate precursor method. X-ray diffraction measurements confirm the formation of single-phase cubic spinel structure. The grain size was estimated by SEM micrograph which increases with Cu content. Dielectric constant (έ) and loss tangent (tan δ) were measured as a function of frequency. The έ and tan δ show a decreasing trend with increase of frequency for all the samples. The DC resistivity was measured as a function of temperature. The temperature-dependent DC resistivity measurements show that the room-temperature DC resistivity of NiCuZn ferrite with x=0.2 is of the order of 109 Ω cm. The AC conductivity (σAC) was studied as a function of frequency. The hysteresis data indicate that the maximum saturation magnetization of 38.66 emu/g is obtained for the composition with x=0.2.