Effect of Sm3+ and Zr4+ codoping on the magnetic, ferroelectric and magnetodielectric properties of sonochemically synthesized BiFeO3 nanorods

The practical application of the existing multiferroic materials is crucially dependent on research aimed at improving their multiferroic and magnetodielectric properties. Here we explore the effect of Sm3+ and Zr4+ codoping on the magnetic, ferroelectric and magnetodielectric properties of nanocrystalline BiFeO3. The formation of phase pure undoped and Sm3+/Zr4+ doped BiFeO3 via sonochemical synthesis has been confirmed using powder X ray diffraction (XRD). The morphology of the samples has been verified using electron microscopy techniques like SEM and TEM. The presence of the dopant ions has been established from energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Room temperature ferromagnetism has been observed in Sm3+/Zr4+ doped BiFeO3 which is a marked advancement from the antiferromagnetic behaviour displayed by bulk BiFeO3. This has been attributed to size effects and lattice distortions in the sample. Doping of Sm3+/Zr4+ also decreases the leakage current and considerably improves its ferroelectric properties. Careful evaluation of the results obtained suggest that the suppression of oxygen vacancy related defects is more effective with Sm3+ doping in Bi3+ site compared to acceptor doping of Zr4+ in Fe3+ site of BiFeO3. The observation of enhanced magnetodielectric properties in the Sm3+/Zr4+ doped BiFeO3 suggests potential application of these types of material in memory storage devices in future. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.