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Anomalous x-ray diffraction peak broadening and lattice strains in Zn(1-x)Co(x)O dilute magnetic semiconductors
Chandana Rath1, P Mallick, Dhananjai Pandey
1School of Materials Science and Technology, Institute of Technology, Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, 221 005, India.
Abstract:
Nanocrystalline powders of Zn(1-x)Co(x)O synthesized by the coprecipitation technique show anomalous anisotropic broadening for x>0.05. This peak broadening is shown to be not only due to a reduction in the particle size but also due to a significant strain contribution, as confirmed by Williamson-Hall analysis. The presence of grouped Co(2+) ions, revealing the presence of clusters of high spin Co(2+) with antiferromagnetically coupled spins, as indicated by magnetization studies, seems to be responsible for the strain.
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