Tailored Optical, Magnetic and Photoluminescence properties of Fe/Cr-doped ZnO nanoparticles synthesized via solution combustion method

This research aims to examine the characterization of ZnO (Pure) and Fe/Cr-doped ZnO nanoparticles (NPs), including their structural, optical, magnetic, and photoluminescence properties for spintronic and opto-electronic device applications. These nanoparticles were synthesized via the solution combustion method (SCM) at a temperature of 500 °C, and then annealed at 600 °C. Various techniques such as XRD, SEM, TEM, and EDS were employed to analyze the structure, morphology, and composition of the nanoparticles. The UV-Vis reflection spectroscopy of Fe/Cr-doped ZnO nanoparticles revealed a lower bandgap value compared to Pure. Additionally, the photoluminescence intensity of ZnO nanoparticles was altered by the incorporation of Fe/Cr, which led to changes in the defect structure of the nanoparticles. All synthesized samples exhibited ferromagnetic behavior with doping of Fe/Cr ions, and therebyenhancing the ferromagnetic properties of the ZnO nanoparticles. Fe/Cr-doped ZnO(ZFCN-2) materials exhibited good magnetization properties such asmagnetic saturization, retentivity and co-ercevity (M_R= 00053 emu/g, M_S = 0.0026 emu/g & H_C = 266.76 G) values compared to others.As a result, Fe/Cr-doped ZnO has garnered significant interest in research areas such as spintronics, photo-electrochemistry, optics, optoelectronics, magneto-optics, and catalysis.