Synchrotron X-Ray Absorption Spectroscopy Study of Self-Assembled Nanoparticles Synthesized from Fe(acac)3 and Pt(acac)2

The synchrotron X-ray absorption technique was used to complement electron microscopy in the investigation of nanoparticles synthesized from the coreduction of iron acetylacetonate, Fe(acac)3 and platinum acetylacetonate, Pt(acac)2. A much higher Pt composition than Fe leads to an extended X-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS) spectrum for the sample that differs from that of fcc FePt nanoparticles. Most importantly, X-ray absorption near-edge structure (XANES) spectra clearly indicate the existence of α-Fe2O3 and Pt metal. Since these monodisperse nanoparticles have a diameter of around 4 nm and tend to self-assemble into hexagonal arrangements, they can be modeled as Pt-rich cores with an α-Fe2O3 shell stabilized by organic surfactants

Lattice positions of Sn in Cu2ZnSnS4 nanoparticles and thin films studied by synchrotron X ray absorption near edge structure analysis

Lattice positions of Sn in kesterite Cu2ZnSnS4 and Cu2SnS3 nanoparticles and thin films were investigated by XANES x ray absorption near edge structure analysis at the S K edge. XANES spectra were analyzed by comparison with simulations taking into account anti site defects and vacancies. Annealing of Cu2ZnSnS4 nanoparticle thin films led to a decrease of Sn at its native and defect sites. The results show that XANES analysis at the S K edge is a sensitive tool for the investigation of defect sites, being critical in kesterite thin film solar cel

Magnetoelectric Effect in Ceramics Based on Bismuth Ferrite

Solid-state sintering method was used to prepare ceramic materials based on bismuth ferrite, i.e., (BiFeO3)1 − x–(BaTiO3)x and Bi1 − xNdxFeO3 solid solutions and the Aurivillius Bi5Ti3FeO15 compound. The structure of the materials was examined using X-ray diffraction, and the Rietveld method was applied to phase analysis and structure refinement. Magnetoelectric coupling was registered in all the materials using dynamic lock-in technique. The highest value of magnetoelectric coupling coefficient αME was obtained for the Bi5Ti3FeO15 compound (αME ~ 10 mVcm−1 Oe−1). In the case of (BiFeO3)1 − x–(BaTiO3)x and Bi1 − xNdxFeO3 solid solutions, the maximum αME is of the order of 1 and 2.7 mVcm−1 Oe−1, respectively. The magnitude of magnetoelectric coupling is accompanied with structural transformation in the studied solid solutions. The relatively high magnetoelectric effect in the Aurivillius Bi5Ti3FeO15 compound is surprising, especially since the material is paramagnetic at room temperature. When the materials were subjected to a preliminary electrical poling, the magnitude of the magnetoelectric coupling increased 2–3 times