Estimation of microstructural parameters by Williamson–Hall, Halder–Wagner, and size–strain plot methods and magnetic properties of (Cu/Mn) co-doped ZnO nanoparticles

Abstract

In this study, all ${\mathrm{Zn}}_{1-x}{{\mathrm{Cu}}_{0.05}\mathrm{Mn}}_{x}\mathrm{O}$ QUOTE ${\mathrm{Zn}}_{1-{x}}{{\mathrm{Cu}}_{0.05}\mathrm{Mn}}_{{x}}\mathrm{O}$ QUOTE polycrystalline nanoparticles were produced with various compositions $(0.01<x<0.05)$ QUOTE $(0.01<{x}<0.05)$ QUOTE by using sol–gel techniques. Zinc acetate dihydrate, manganese(II), and Cu(II) acetates were used as the precursors for the solutions. Methanol and acetylacetone were used as solvents while preparing the homogenous solutions. Halder–Wagner method (H–W), Williamson–Hall (W–H), and size–strain plot (SSP) were utilized in order to examine the crystal size and intrinsic strain by X-ray diffraction peak expansion analysis. In addition, different models were developed for the definition of microstructural and physical values including stress, strain, and energy density, in the W–H method. The average crystal sizes determined using W–H, SSP, and H–W methods were compared. The magnetic properties of Cu/Mn-doped zinc oxide nanoparticles were analyzed at room temperature. The highest saturation magnetization (M_s) value was found in the 5% wt Mn doping of ZnO and M_s increased with increasing the Mn doping due to the magnetic (paramagnetic) nature of manganese. In this study, XRD peak broadening analysis has been carried out by different models and X-ray peak profile analysis were used to estimate the physical parameters; different models are modified such as W–H plot, SSP method, and H–W method. D–S method, W–H plot, H–W plot, and SSP technique results were highly intercorrelated.