Structural, Optical, Magnetic and Dielectric Properties of Ce-Doped MgFe ₂ O ₄ Prepared by Microwave Hydrothermal Method

The microwave hydrothermal method has been used to synthesize MgFe _{2- x} Ce _x O ₄ ( x = 0.0 – 0.10) nanoparticles, which have been characterized using X-ray diffraction (XRD), fourier transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FE-SEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), UV–vis spectrometer, vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) and dielectric properties. XRD investigation confirms the cubic spinel structure, and the Debye–Scherrer formula was used to determine the crystallite size, showing values of 19 – 108 nm. FTIR confirms the presence of all functional groups and FE-SEM displays particle-like morphology. The UV-visible analysis was used to explain the variation of the optical bandgap as Ce ³⁺ doping increased. VSM analysis of MgFe _{2- x} Ce _x O ₄ showed ferromagnetic behaviour. The samples exhibit low magnetization values ranging from 8.83 emu g ⁻¹ to 18.91 emu g ⁻¹ . The values of the dielectric constant ( ε ′) and the dielectric loss (tan δ ) decreased with frequency due to the influence of space-charge polarization and showed a dispersive behaviour at higher frequencies.