Effect of neodymium substitutions on electromagnetic properties in low temperature sintered NiCuZn ferrite

Nd3+ ions substituted Ni0.37Cu0.14Zn0.52Fe2O4 (Nd3+ ions content=0, 0.01, 0.04, 0.6, 1.5 wt%) were prepared by the usual standard ceramic method at 1030 °C sintering temperature, and the composition dependence of the physical and magnetic properties has been investigated. SEM micrographs and EDX analysis revealed that it is no obvious impurities up to Nd3+ ions content wt%=0.04. For higher Nd3+ ions content samples (0.6 and 1.5 wt%), there are two kind of impurities Cu-rich and Nd-rich iron oxide phase. The saturation magnetization of the 0.01 wt% Nd3+ions content sample is higher as result of that the A–B sites distance and YK-angles are shorter and smaller. The saturation magnetization of 0.04–1.5 wt% Nd3+ ion content sample are reduced, since the total magnetic moments of the AB site are decreased. For the 0.6 wt% sample, the Curie temperature increasing is as result of the Cu-rich iron oxide separating out. The maximum enhancements of permeability μ′ are improved to 11.2% (0.04 wt%) and 29.2% (0.6 wt%) at the 6.7 and 13.8 MHz, respectively. However, it is notice that small amount substitutions of Nd3+ increase the high frequency electromagnetic characteristics, can be applied to NFC technology and WPT technologies.