Characteristics of FeCo nano-particles synthesized using plasma focus

Abstract

In our recent investigation, a 3.3 kJ Mather type plasma focus was used to synthesize FeCo nano-particles. The tops of the anodes normally used were replaced by the materials to be synthesized using different numbers of focus shots. It is observed that the characteristics of the nano-particles depend not only on the numbers of focus shots but also on the angular position of the mounted sample. SEM results show that the size of the nano-particles is smaller when the sample is mounted at a bigger angular position. The size of the particles increases linearly with the increase in the number of focus shots. EDX shows that the FeCo nano-particles are stoichiometric. The magnetic properties measured using a vibrating sample magnetometer identify the soft magnetic nature of the FeCo nano-particles. The saturation magnetization has been found to increase in samples prepared with a higher number of focus shots using repetitive plasma focus NX2.