Variation in structural and dielectric properties of co-precipitated nanoparticles strontium ferrites due to value of pH

Nanoparticles of strontium ferrites with nominal composition SrFe12O19 were prepared by co-precipitation method, by decreasing pH from 13 to 8 with a regular step of 1. The secondary phase of alpha-Fe2O3 was increased with the decrease in pH. The crystallite size estimated from X-rays diffraction data was in the range 52-70 nm, which is much smaller than that already reported. Most of the particles formed had hexagonal structure, as observed by the scanning electron microscopy. Particle size and dielectric loss were increased where as dc electrical resistivity and dielectric constant were decreased with decrease in pH. The results show that the material synthesized with higher pH is phase pure and is potentially more suitable for high frequency applications. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.