Sintering characteristics of LiZn ferrites fabricated by a sol–gel process

Ultra-fine powders of LiZn ferrites with composition of Li0.4Zn0.2Fe2.4O4 were synthesized by a sol–gel process. X-ray diffraction pattern reflected that the synthesized powders were single spinel structure, with crystallite size of about 35 nm. Then the powders were granulated, pressed and sintered at different temperatures. The sintered samples were investigated by means of characterizing microstructures and magnetic properties by scanning electron microscope and B–H analyzer, respectively. The results indicate that when compared with a traditional ceramic process, the sol–gel process could slightly bring down the sintering temperature of LiZn ferrite whereas the microstructures are not homogeneous in the sintered samples. The sintering mechanisms of LiZn ferrites sintered at 1360 °C were studied, which reveal that during sintering, solid mass transfer is dominant in the LiZn ferrites fabricated by a traditional ceramic process while in the gel-derived ferrites, gas mass transfer is dominant.