Tailoring the Structural, Magnetic, Mechanical, and Thermal Properties of CoFe2O4 by Varying Annealing Temperature for High-Density Storage Devices

Abstract

Nano-size particles of CoFe2O4 were synthesized by chemical co-preciptation method. Developed nano-particles were annealed at temperatures 300 °C, 500 °C, and 700 °C for 2 h to study the effect of annealing temperature on structural, mechanical, thermal, and magnetic properties of CoFe2O4 nanoparticles. For crystalline properties synthesized particles were characterized using powder X-ray diffraction (XRD) technique which confirms the formation of single-phase spherically shaped nanoparticles with crystallite size in the range from 13 to 32 nm. The micro-strain and dislocation-density decreased with increasing annealing temperature. The Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) absorption peaks experienced a blue shift with annealing temperature. The two-step decomposition process has been identified by the variation observed in thermal behavior. The saturation magnetization increased from 35.55 emu g−1 to 75.85 emu g−1 as we increase the annealing temperature from 300 °C to 700 °C. High coercivity and thermally stability of annealed CoFe2O4 nanoparticles make them suitable for high-density magnetic storage applications.