Magnetic contributions in multiferroic gadolinium modified bismuth ferrite ceramics

Abstract Bi0.88Gd0.12FeO3 multiferroics are of interest for next-generation electronics and are shown with a remnant magnetization 0.2 emu·g−1, coercive field 8 kOe, Curie temperature 370 °C and magnetization of 0.7 emu·g−1 at magnetic fields 30 kOe. Scanning probe microscopy confirmed the intrinsic multiferroicity in the perovskite phase with coexistence of ferroelectric/ferroelastic and ferromagnetic domain structures. Strong magnetic hysteresis was produced by thermal cycling to 1000 °C due to degeneration of the perovskite phase into iron oxide inclusions, highlighting the importance of processing, thermal history and thermodynamic stability for minimizing the amount of parasitic magnetic secondary phases.