Structural, Morphological and Ferromagnetic Properties of Pure and (Mn, Co) Codoped CuO Nanostructures

Abstract

Ferromagnetic oxide semiconductor of pure and (Mn, Co) codoped CuO nanocrystals were synthesized by a chemical coprecipitation method. The phase structure, morphology and room temperature ferromagnetism were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy, transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). Results of XRD demonstrated that both the undoped and (Mn, Co) codoped CuO samples have single phase of CuO monoclinic structure and no secondary phases were detected, suggesting the incorporation of Mn and Co dopants in CuO lattice. The FTIR spectra of all samples showed three main absorption bands attributed to stretching vibrations of Cu–O bond. The morphology of the pure CuO was found to change from nanoparticle to nanorod structure after codoping with Mn and Co ions. The diameter and length of the nanorods were nearly 28–60 and 130–550 nm, respectively. The obtained magnetic hysteresis loops at room temperature confirmed the ferromagnetic nature of all the prepared samples, which was enhanced after the incorporation of Mn and Co ions into CuO lattice. The effect of the codoped ions on the structure and ferromagnetism are discussed.