Structural analysis of La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 manganite synthesized by sol-gel and solid-state route

Abstract

In this study, the structural properties of La0.7Sr0.3MnO3 (LSMO) manganite synthesized in bulk and nano form have been analyzed in detail. The bulk LSMO was synthesized by the solid-state method whereas the LSMO nanoparticles was prepared using the sol-gel route. The structural properties of the prepared samples were examined using X-Ray diffraction (XRD). Rietveld refinement confirmed that all the samples crystallize in R-3c space group with a rhombohedral structure. Williamson-Hall (WH) Analysis using Uniform deformation model and Size strain plots (SSP) were employed to determine the average crystallite size and microstrain in the synthesized samples. SEM and TEM measurements have also been taken to analyse their size distribution.