Crystallographic and low frequency conductivity studies of the spinel systems CuFe2O4 and Cu1−x Zn x Ga0.1Fe1.9O4; (0.0 ≤ x ≤ 0.5)

Spinel solid solutions of CuFe2O4 and Cu1−x Zn x Ga0.1Fe1.9O4 with (0.0 ≤ x ≤ 0.5) are synthesized. Crystallographic phase transformation from tetragonal-to-cubic occurred at x = 0.2. The derived structural parameters manifest that Zn occupies the tetrahedral A-site while Cu and Ga occupy the octahedral B-site and Fe distributes among A- and B-sites. Electrical conductivity measurements of these materials as a function of temperature and frequency revealed semiconducting behavior except CuFe2O4 sample, which has a metallic behavior at low frequency and at high frequency, semiconductor-to-metallic transition occurred as temperature increases. The metallic behavior in this sample is attributed to cation-cation interactions at B-site while, the semiconductor behavior in Cu1−x Zn x Ga0.1Fe1.9O4 compounds is due to the cation–anion–cation interactions at the same site in the spinel lattice. All compositions exhibit transition with change in the slope of conductivity versus temperature curve. This transition temperature (T c) decreases linearly with increasing Zn content x. The relation of the universal exponent s with temperature gives evidence that over large polaron OLP and correlated barrier hopping CBH conduction mechanisms are presented in CuFe2O4 and Cu1−x Zn x Ga0.1Fe1.9O4 compounds respectively.