57Fe mössbauer, XRD, FT-IR, FE SEM analyses of natural goethite, hematite and siderite

Natural goethite, hematite and siderite were analysed with 57Fe Mössbauer, XRD and FT-IR. FE SEM images of samples were also taken. The Mössbauer spectra of limonite (α-FeOOH · nH2O) from Budapest (Hungary), Ljubija (Bosnia and Herzegovina) and Korçё (Albania) showed the same type of spectrum, indicating low crystallinity and broad particle size distribution. All goethite particles from these three locations were one-dimensional (1D), but with different nano/microstructures. A very early precursor of limonite from Budapest and Ljubija locations was assigned to FeS2 (pyrite and/or marcasite) which oxidised upon ventilation (oxygenation) under hydrogeothermal conditions, thus producing FeSO4 and Fe2(SO4)3. In the next step limonite deposits were formed. The similarity between this limonite formation under hydrogeothermal conditions and the chemical precipitation of goethite from FeSO4 or Fe2(SO4)3 solutions at laboratory level was briefly discussed. The deposition of lateritic goethite at the Korçë location is presumed to be due to the chemical weathering (tropical conditions) of ultramafic rocks. Under the same conditions and a proper pH the transformation of goethite to hematite is possible. Alternatively, the oxidation of Fe2+ in magnetite and its transformation to hematite via maghemite (γ-Fe2O3) as an intermediate could have taken place. The Mössbauer spectrum of siderite from the Ljubija location showed a quadrupole doublet with asymmetric spectral lines. This asymmetry could be assigned to the Goldanskii-Karyagin effect, however, the contribution of the crystallite texture to this asymmetry cannot be excluded. Hematite and a small fraction of siderite at the Vareš location (Bosnia-Herzegovina) are of metasomatic origin deposited in limestone that now form a series of greatly metamorphosed sedimentary rocks. Hematite particles were deposited in the form of laminates (2D)

Site Occupancy and Lattice Parameters in Sigma-Phase Co-Cr alloys

Neutron diffraction technique was used to study distribution of Co and Cr atoms over different lattice sites as well as lattice paramaters in sigma-phase Co100-xCrx compounds with x = 57.0, 62.7 and 65.8. From the diffractograms recorded in the temperature range of 4.2 - 300 K it was found that all five sites A, B, C, D and E are populated by both kinds of atoms. Sites A and D are predominantly occupied by Co atoms while sites B, C and E by Cr atoms. The unit cell parameters a and c, hence the unit cell volume, increase with x, the increase being characteristic of the lattice paramater and temperature. Both a and c show a non-linear increase with temperature.Comment: 5 figure

Size distribution of FeNiB nanoparticles

Two samples of amorphous nanoparticles FeNiB, one of them with SiO2 sheath around the core and one without, were investigated by transmission electron microscopy and magnetic measurements. The coating gives mean particle diameters of 4.3 nm compared to 7.2 nm for the uncoated particles. Magnetic measurements prove superparamagnetic behaviour above 160 K (350 K) for the coated (uncoated) sample. With use of effective anisotropy constant Keff – determined from hysteresis loops – size distributions are determined both from ZFC curves, as well as from relaxation measurements. Both are in good agreement and are very similar for both samples. Comparison with the size distribution determined from TEM pictures shows that magnetic clusters consist of only few physical particles

Magnetic ordering above room temperature in the sigma-phase of Fe66V34

Magnetic properties of four sigma-phase Fe_(100-x)V_x samples with 34.4<x<55.1 were investigated by Mossbauer spectroscopy and magnetic measurements in the temperature interval 5-300 K. Four magnetic quantities viz. hyperfine field, Curie temperature, magnetic moment and susceptibility were determined. The sample containing 34.4 at% V was revealed to exhibit the largest values found up to now for the sigma-phase for average hyperfine field, B = 12.1 T, average magnetic moment per Fe atom, m = 0.89 mB, and Curie temperature, TC = 315.5 K. The quantities were shown to be strongly correlated with each other. In particular, TC is linearly correlated with m with a slope of 406.5 K/mB, as well as B is so correlated with m yielding 14.3 T/mB for the hyperfine coupling constant.Comment: 15 pages, 11 figures, 1 tabl

Porous silicon/Ni composites of high coercivity due to magnetic field-assisted etching

Ferromagnetic nanostructures have been electrodeposited within the pores of porous silicon templates with average pore diameters between 25 and 60 nm. In this diameter regime, the pore formation in general is accompanied by dendritic growth resulting in rough pore walls, which involves metal deposits also offering a branched structure. These side branches influence the magnetic properties of the composite system not only due to modified and peculiar stray fields but also because of a reduced interpore spacing by the approaching of adjacent side pores. To improve the morphology of the porous silicon structures, a magnetic field up to 8 T has been applied during the formation process. The magnetic field etching results in smaller pore diameters with less dendritic side pores. Deposition of a ferromagnetic metal within these templates leads to less branched nanostructures and, thus, to an enhancement of the coercivity of the system and also to a significantly increased magnetic anisotropy. So magnetic field-assisted etching is an appropriate tool to improve the structure of the template concerning the decrease of the dendritic pore growth and to advance the magnetic properties of the composite material

Comparison of a New Inertial Sensor Based System with an Optoelectronic Motion Capture System for Motion Analysis of Healthy Human Wrist Joints

This study aims to compare a new inertial measurement unit based system with the highly accurate but complex laboratory gold standard, an optoelectronic motion capture system. Inertial measurement units are sensors based on accelerometers, gyroscopes, and/or magnetometers. Ten healthy subjects were recorded while performing flexion-extension and radial-ulnar deviation movements of their right wrist using inertial sensors and skin markers. Maximum range of motion during these trials and mean absolute difference between the systems were calculated. A difference of 10° ± 5° for flexion-extension and 2° ± 1° for radial-ulnar deviation was found between the two systems with absolute range of motion values of 126° and 50° in the respective axes. A Wilcoxon rank sum test resulted in a no statistical differences between the systems with p-values of 0.24 and 0.62. The observed results are even more precise than reports from previous studies, where differences between 14° and 27° for flexion-extension and differences between 6° and 17° for radial-ulnar deviation were found. Effortless and fast applicability, good precision, and low inter-observer variability make inertial measurement unit based systems applicable to clinical settings

Comparison of a New Inertial Sensor Based System with an Optoelectronic Motion Capture System for Motion Analysis of Healthy Human Wrist Joints

This study aims to compare a new inertial measurement unit based system with the highly accurate but complex laboratory gold standard, an optoelectronic motion capture system. Inertial measurement units are sensors based on accelerometers, gyroscopes, and/or magnetometers. Ten healthy subjects were recorded while performing flexion-extension and radial-ulnar deviation movements of their right wrist using inertial sensors and skin markers. Maximum range of motion during these trials and mean absolute difference between the systems were calculated. A difference of 10° ± 5° for flexion-extension and 2° ± 1° for radial-ulnar deviation was found between the two systems with absolute range of motion values of 126° and 50° in the respective axes. A Wilcoxon rank sum test resulted in a no statistical differences between the systems with p-values of 0.24 and 0.62. The observed results are even more precise than reports from previous studies, where differences between 14° and 27° for flexion-extension and differences between 6° and 17° for radial-ulnar deviation were found. Effortless and fast applicability, good precision, and low inter-observer variability make inertial measurement unit based systems applicable to clinical settings

Magnetic Characteristics of Ni-Filled Luminescent Porous Silicon

The aim of the presented work is to combine luminescent porous silicon (PSi) with a ferromagnetic metal (Ni) to modify on the one hand the photoluminescence by the presence of metal deposits and on the other hand to influence the optical properties by an external magnetic field. The optical properties are investigated especially with respect to the wavelength-shift of the photoluminescence due to the metal filling. With increasing metal deposits within PSi the photoluminescence peak is blue-shifted and furthermore an increase of the intensity is observed. Photoluminescence spectra of bare PSi show a maximum around 620 nm whereas in the case of Ni filled samples the peak is blue-shifted to around 580 nm for a deposition time of 15 min. Field dependent magnetic measurements performed with an applied field parallel and perpendicular to the surface, respectively, show a magnetic anisotropy which is in agreement with a thin film. This film-like behavior is caused by the interconnected Ni structures due to the branched porous silicon morphology. The coercivity increases with increasing metal deposition from about 150 Oe to about 450 Oe and also the magnetic anisotropy is enhanced with the growth of metal deposits. Within this work the influence of the magnetic metal filling on the optical properties and the magnetic characterization of the nanocomposites are discussed. The presented systems give not only rise to optoelectronics applications but also to magneto optical integrated devices

3D printing of polymer-bonded anisotropic magnets in an external magnetic field and by a modified production process

The possibility of producing polymer-bonded magnets with the aid of additive processes, such as 3D printing, opens up a multitude of new areas of application. Almost any structures and prototypes can be produced cost-effectively in small quantities. Extending the 3D printing process allows the manufacturing of anisotropic magnetic structures by aligning the magnetic easy axis of ferromagnetic particles inside a paste-like compound material along an external magnetic field. This is achieved by two different approaches: First, the magnetic field for aligning the particles is provided by a permanent magnet. Secondly, the 3D printing process itselfs generates an anisotropic behavior of the structures. An inexpensive and customizable end-user fused filament fabrication 3D printer is used to print the magnetic samples. The magnetical properties of different magnetic anisotropic Sr ferrite and SmFeN materials are investigated and discussed

On the Debye temperature in sigma-phase Fe-V alloys

A series of sigma-phase Fe_{100-x}V_x samples with 34.4 < x < 59.0 were investigated by neutron and X-ray diffraction and Mossbauer spectroscopy (MS) techniques. The first two methods were used for verification of the transformation from alpha to sigma phase and they also permitted to determine lattice parameters of the unit cell. With MS the Debye temperature, T_D, was evaluated from the temperature dependence of the centre shift, , assuming its entire temperature dependence originates from the second-order Doppler shift. To our best knowledge, it is the first ever-reported study on T_D in sigma-FeV alloys. Both attice parameters i.e. a and c were revealed to linearly increase with x. T_D shows, however, a non-monotonic behaviour as a function of composition with its extreme values between 425K for x=40 and 600K for x=59. A local maximum of 525K was found to exist at x=43