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Saturation magnetisation, coercivity and lattice parameter changes in the system Fe3O4-γFe2O3, and their relationship to structure

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Abstract

This study has characterised the oxidation products of a fine-grained single domain magnetite which was made synthetically by a colloidal method. Changes in the intrinsic magnetic properties (saturation magnetisation, saturation remanence, and coercive force) during progressive oxidation are correlated with lattice parameter changes and an oxidation mechanism. It is proposed that magnetite oxidises to hematite via at least two metastable maghemites. The first of these, formed on low temperature oxidation by the formation of a magnetite/maghemite solid solution, is a face centered maghemite with lattice parameter a= 8.3419±0.0006 Å. A second maghemite, produced on oxidation at higher temperatures, has a primitive cubic structure and a lattice parameter a = 8.3505±0.0005 Å. Maghemite cation distributions are derived to explain the reduced saturation magnetisations of between 56 and 74 Am2 kg-1 observed, and a maghemite structure containing an increase in tetrahedral Fe3+ ions and up to 3 octahedral vacancies per 32 oxygen unit cell is proposed.

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  1. Department of Earth Sciences, University of Cambridge, Downing St., CB2 3EQ, Cambridge, UK

    C. J. Goss

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  1. C. J. Goss
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Goss, C.J. Saturation magnetisation, coercivity and lattice parameter changes in the system Fe3O4-γFe2O3, and their relationship to structure. Phys Chem Minerals 16, 164–171 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00203200

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00203200

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