Synthesis of single-crystalline alpha-FeOOH nanorods with semi-hard magnetic property

Abstract Goethite (α-FeOOH) nanorods were synthesized via hydrothermal method. The experimental results indicate that the uniform α-FeOOH nanorods, with length up to nearly 1 μm and diameter of ca. 50 nm, demonstrate perfect crystallinity and the growth direction of [001]. Owing to the characteristics of single-crystalline structure and high purity, the hysteresis loop of the resulting products shows semi-hard magnetic behavior compared to antiferromagnetic bulk with high-coercivity in nature.