Physical and magnetic properties of biosynthesized ZnO/Fe2O3, ZnO/ZnFe2O4, and ZnFe2O4 nanoparticles

Abstract

For the first time, the physical and magnetic properties of biosynthesized ZnO/Fe2O3, ZnO/ZnFe2O4, and ZnFe2O4 nanoparticles (NPs) from aqueous extract of rosemary leaves extract are reported. The findings demonstrated the green approach as environmentally benign to generate bimetallic alloy NPs from immiscible metals. The crystallographic analyses in line with microscopic observations revealed crystalline, well-agglomerated NPs with hexagonal structures confirming the presence of ZnO. The chemical bonds of Fe–O and Zn–O were detected as well as Fe, Zn, and O elements, showing their existence within the samples. Besides, the magnetic properties portrayed the same paramagnetic behavior due to similar average size distribution whereas the defects coming from oxygen vacancies agreed with the photoluminescence spectroscopy. Overall, the annealing temperature significantly influenced the final structure of generated NPs amongst other parameters.