Magnetic and conducting particles: preparation of polypyrrole layer on Fe 3O 4 nanospheres

Abstract

We reported here the preparation of Fe 3O 4–polypyrrole (PPy) nanocomposites with both magnetic and conducting properties. The magnetic properties of the resulting composites were investigated by vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). The Fe 3O 4–PPy nanocomposites had coercive force from 98.4 to 116.3 Oe and saturation magnetization from 0.268 to 9.23 emu/g with the increasing Fe 3O 4 content. The electrical conductivities ranged from 10 −5 to 10 −2 S/cm, depending on the Fe 3O 4 content. The average size of Fe 3O 4–PPy nanocomposites with core-shell structure was about 50 nm. Structural characterizations by Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) proved the interaction between Fe 3O 4 and PPy chains.