Magnetite Tailoring the Magnetic Properties of Mn0.5Cu0.5Fe2O4 Ferrites by Ni Substitution

Ni substituted Mn0.5Cu0.5Fe2O4 with general formula Mn0.5Cu0.5-xNixFe2O4 with x = 0, 0.1, 0.2, 0.3, 0.4 and 0.5 were prepared using sol-gel auto-combustion technique. Single phase polycrystalline samples were confirmed to spinel structure by using X-ray diffraction. The structural parameters have been evaluated and subsequently confirmed by the software CELL. The lattice parameters did not show any consistent decreasing or increasing trend but crystallite size was decreased due to the incorporation of Ni contents at Cu-sites in the structure. It was observed that with increasing nickel concentration, saturation magnetization increased but coercivity decreased, which could be attributed to the substitution of soft ferromagnetic Ni2+ ions at diamagnetic Cu2+ sites.