Preparation and magnetic property of the composite of nitrogen-doped carbon nanotubes decorated with nickel nanoparticles

A magnetic composite of nitrogen-doped carbon nanotubes (CNx) decorated with nickel nanoparticles was synthesized by a chemical precipitation and deoxidization method. The decorated CNx were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). The XRD pattern showed that CNx, nickel nanoparticles and little nickel oxides coexisted in the composite, TEM observation indicated that nickel nanoparticles were highly dispersed on the outer walls of CNx, Magnetic measurements by VSM demonstrated that the saturated magnetization and remanence of CNx were improved, while the coercivity was lowered after decorating with nickel nanoparticles.