Investigation of Structural and Optical Properties of Pr 3+ -Substituted M-Type Ba–Ni Nano-Ferrites

In this study, a series of Ba0.8Ni0.2Fe(12–x)PrxO19 (0 ≤ x ≤ 0.4) ferrites was synthesized by co-precipitation route. The powder X-ray diffraction studies confirmed the formation of M-type hexaferrite structure. XRD results were used to determine the crystallite size and lattice constants of the prepared powders. The average crystallite size was found in the range of 19.88–29.19 nm and increased with increase in Pr3+ content. The FT-IR and Raman spectroscopy further confirmed the formation of M-type hexagonal structure. The optical bandgap was determined by UV-vis spectroscopy and it was found in the range of 2.80–3.44 eV. It was also observed that optical bandgap decreased when Pr3+ content increased until x = 0.3. With further increase in Pr3+ content, optical bandgap started to increase. This study demonstrates the potential of Pr-substituted Ba–Ni M-type hexagonal nanoferrites to be used in magneto-optical devices.