Structural and magnetic study of zinc-doped magnetite nanoparticles and ferrofluids for hyperthermia applications

P MENDOZA ZÉLIS; G A PASQUEVICH; S J STEWART; M B FERNÁNDEZ VAN RAAP; J APHESTEGUY; I J BRUVERA; C LABORDE; B PIANCIOLA; S JACOBO; F H SÁNCHEZ

JOURNAL OF PHYSICS - D (APPLIED PHYSICS)

IOP PUBLISHING LTD

Lugar: Londres; Año: 2013 vol. 46 p. 125006 - 125018

0022-3727

Cubic-like shaped Zn x Fe 3− x O 4 particles with crystallite mean sizes D between 15 and 117 nm were obtained by co-precipitation. Particle size effects and preferential occupation of spinel tetrahedral site by Zn 2+ ions led to noticeable changes of physical properties. D ⩾ 30 nm particles displayed nearly bulk properties, which were dominated by Zn concentration. For D ⩽ 30 nm, dominant magnetic relaxation effects were observed by Mössbauer spectroscopy, with the mean blocking size D B  ∼ 13 to 15 nm. Saturation magnetization increased with x up to x ∼ 0.1–0.3 and decreased for larger x . Power absorbed by water and chitosan-based ferrofluids from a 260 kHz radio frequency field was measured as a function of x , field amplitude H 0 and ferrofluid concentration. For H 0 = 41 kA m −1 the maximum specific absorption rate was 367 W g −1 for D = 16 nm and x = 0.1. Absorption results are interpreted within the framework of the linear response theory for H 0 ⩽ 41 kA m −1 . A departure towards a saturation regime was observed for higher fields. Simulations based on a two-level description of nanoparticle magnetic moment relaxation qualitatively agree with these observations. The frequency factor of the susceptibility dissipative component, derived from experimental results, showed a sharp maximum at D ∼ 16 nm. This behaviour was satisfactorily described by simulations based on moment relaxation processes, which furthermore indicated a crossover from Néel to Brown mechanisms at D ∼ 18 nm. Hints for further improvement of magnetite particles as nanocalefactors for magnetic hyperthermia are discussed.