Modifications in the electronic structure of Rare-Earth doped BiFeO3 multiferroic

We report the modifications in the electronic structure of Rare Earth (RE) doped polycrystalline BiFeO3 (Bi0.9RE0.1FeO3 (RE= La, Pr, and Er)) synthesized using conventional solid state reaction method. Structural studies using XRD shows that all the samples possess rhombohedral symmetry. As compared to Er and Pr-doped BiFeO3, La-doping results in the improvement in P-E behavior. X-ray absorption studies at Fe L-edge shows the presence of mixed valence state of Fe ions in all the samples. Interestingly, O K-edge spectra of La-doped BiFeO3 shows enhancement in the intensity of the feature 'b' assigned to the hybridization of Bi 6s and O 2p orbital.