Crystal structure and magnetic properties of cerium-doped YIG: Effect of doping concentration and annealing temperature

We present a study of the effect of the substitution of Y3+ by Ce3+ on the crystal structure and magnetic properties of cerium-doped yttrium iron garnet (YIG), CexY3-xFe5O12 (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.5), which was synthesized using high-energy ball milling. In particular, we aimed to study the effect of the cerium concentration and the annealing temperature on the crystal structure and magnetic properties of the Ce-doped YIG. Fe2O3, Y2O3, and Ce2(CO3)3 were mixed in a stoichiometric ratio, milled for 5 h, and annealed at different temperatures, from 1000 to 1400 °C. The X-ray diffraction pattern confirmed the presence of CeO2 as a secondary phase, together with the formation of the YIG structure, at all studied temperatures and compositions. A complete solid solution of Ce3+ in the garnet structure was obtained for the samples annealed at 1400 °C. Increasing the Ce3+ content resulted in a consistent decrease in the saturation magnetization and a slight decrease in the coercivity, resulting from the insertion of Ce3+ into the YIG structure and the presence of CeO2 as a secondary phase.