Multiferroic, Magnetoelectric Nanoparticles: Lanthanum-substituted Bismuth Ferrite

Abstract

In this report, 10 at% lanthanum was introduced to the perovskite structure of bismuth ferrite at the expense of bismuth through a modified Pechini wet chemical method. Green body powders were calcined at several temperatures, and the lattice parameters for each size were found by Rietveld refinement of X-ray powder diffraction data. The parameters displayed strong size-dependent properties, and the rhombohedral distortion from the cubic structure was reduced by decreased particle size. With decreasing crystallite size, the Néel temperature decreased and the cooperative cationic displacement (s - t) showed size dependence at crystallite sizes below 30 nm. A size-dependency was also observed in the Curie temperature.