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Inert Gas Condensation of Iron and Iron-Oxide Nanoparticles

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 February 2011

C. Baker
Affiliation:
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, DE
S. Ismat Shah
Affiliation:
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Delaware, Newark, DE Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Delaware, Newark, DE Fraunhofer Center for Manufacturing and Advanced Materials, Newark, DE
S. K. Hasanain
Affiliation:
Department of Physics, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan
B. Ali
Affiliation:
Department of Physics, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan
L. Shah
Affiliation:
Department of Physics, Quaid-i-Azam University, Islamabad, Pakistan
G. Li
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Delaware, Newark, DE
T. Ekiert
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Delaware, Newark, DE
K. M. Unruh
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Delaware, Newark, DE
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Abstract

An inert gas condensation technique has been used to prepare nanometer-sized particles of metallic iron by evaporation and agglomeration in a flowing inert gas stream. The resulting Fe nanoparticles were protected from complete oxidation either by the formation of a thin Fe-oxide surface passivation layer or by immersion in an oil bath. X-ray diffraction and transmission electron microscopy measurements indicated that the nanoparticles were typically between 10 and 20 nm in size, that the thickness of the Fe-oxide surface passivation layer was between 3 and 4 nm, and that the oil immersed samples exhibited a significant smaller volume fraction of Fe-oxides than did the surface passivated samples. Room temperature magnetization measurements were also carried out and the coercivity and saturation magnetization of the surface passivated and oil immersed samples determined. Although the coercivities and saturation magnetization values of both samples were very similar, the Fe/Fe-oxide samples exhibited a single component hysteresis loop while the Fe/oil samples exhibited a two component loop.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 2003

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References

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