Static and Dynamic Magnetization of Gradient FeNi Alloy Nanowire

Soft Functionally Gradient Materials and Structures - Natural and Manmade: A Review

Functionally gradient materials (FGM) have gradual variations in their properties along one or more dimensions due to local compositional or structural distinctions by design. Traditionally, hard materials (e.g., metals, ceramics) are used to design and fabricate FGMs; however, there is increasing interest in polymer-based soft and compliant FGMs mainly because of their potential application in the human environment. Soft FGMs are ideally suitable to manage interfacial problems in dissimilar materials used in many emerging devices and systems for human interaction, such as soft robotics and electronic textiles and beyond. Soft systems are ubiquitous in everyday lives; they are resilient and can easily deform, absorb energy, and adapt to changing environments. Here, the basic design and functional principles of biological FGMs and their manmade counterparts are discussed using representative examples. The remarkable multifunctional properties of natural FGMs resulting from their sophisticated hierarchical structures, built from a relatively limited choice of materials, offer a rich source of new design paradigms and manufacturing strategies for manmade materials and systems for emerging technological needs. Finally, the challenges and potential pathways are highlighted to leverage soft materials' facile processability and unique properties toward functional FGMs.

The glass-like structure of iron-nickel nanochains produced by the magnetic-field-induced reduction reaction with sodium borohydride

Preparation and detailed structural characterization of iron-nickel wire-like nanochains with Fe_0.75Ni_0.25, Fe_0.50Ni_0.50, and Fe_0.25Ni_0.75 compositions are reported. The investigated nanomaterials were produced by the novel template-free magnetic-field-induced reduction reaction with NaBH₄ as the reducing agent. It is demonstrated that this method leads to the formation of Fe-Ni nanochains composed of spherical nanoparticles with an average diameter of 50-70 nm and with a very high degree of atomic disorder manifested as the lack of clearly developed bcc and fcc phases, which are usually observed for nano- and polycrystalline Fe-Ni species. The recorded wide-angle X-ray scattering data for the obtained Fe-Ni nanochains exhibit a strong resemblance to those obtained for bulk metallic glasses. The atomic scale structure of the investigated nanochains has been studied using pair distribution function analysis of the recorded total scattering data. The best fits to the experimental pair distribution functions have been achieved assuming two-phase models of hcp and bcc networks with the size of coherently scattering regions of about 2.5 nm in diameter, for each Fe-Ni composition. The transmission electron microscopy images indicate that the glass-like bimetallic alloy cores are covered by amorphous oxide/hydroxide shells with their thickness ranging from 2 to 5 nm. Moreover, electron energy loss spectroscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and Mössbauer spectroscopy results confirm the core-shell structure of the Fe-Ni nanochains and the complex character of the shell layer which consists of several iron- and nickel-containing phases.

Magnetic Nanowires for Nanobarcoding and Beyond

Multifunctional magnetic nanowires (MNWs) have been studied intensively over the last decades, in diverse applications. Numerous MNW-based systems have been introduced, initially for fundamental studies and later for sensing applications such as biolabeling and nanobarcoding. Remote sensing of MNWs for authentication and/or anti-counterfeiting is not only limited to engineering their properties, but also requires reliable sensing and decoding platforms. We review the latest progress in designing MNWs that have been, and are being, introduced as nanobarcodes, along with the pros and cons of the proposed sensing and decoding methods. Based on our review, we determine fundamental challenges and suggest future directions for research that will unleash the full potential of MNWs for nanobarcoding applications.

Enhanced magnetic performance of aligned wires assembled from nanoparticles: from nanoscale to macroscale

Magnetic wires in highly dense arrays, possessing unique magnetic properties, are eagerly anticipated for inexpensive and scalable fabrication technologies. This study reports a facile method to fabricate arrays of magnetic wires directly assembled from well-dispersed α″-Fe₁₆N₂/Al₂O₃ and Fe₃O₄ nanoparticles with average diameters of 45 nm and 65 nm, respectively. The magnetic arrays with a height scale of the order of 10 mm were formed on substrate surfaces, which were perpendicular to an applied magnetic field of 15 T. The applied magnetic field aligned the easy axis of the magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) and resulted in a significant enhancement of the magnetic performance. Hysteresis curves reveal that values of magnetic coercivity and remanent magnetization in the preferred magnetization direction are both higher than that of the nanoparticles, while these values in the perpendicular direction are both lower. Enhancement in the magnetic property for arrays made from spindle-shape α″-Fe₁₆N₂/Al₂O₃ nanoparticles is higher than that made from cube-like α″-Fe₁₆N₂/Al₂O₃ ones, owing to the shape anisotropy of MNPs. Furthermore, the assembled highly magnetic α″-Fe₁₆N₂/Al₂O₃ arrays produced a detectable magnetic field with an intensity of approximately 0.2 T. Although high-intensity external field benefits for the fabrication of magnetic arrays, the newly developed technique provides an environmentally friendly and feasible approach to fabricate magnetic wires in highly dense arrays in open environment condition.

The Study of the Applicability of Electron Irradiation for FeNi Microtubes Modification

The paper presents the results of a study of irradiation of high-energy electrons by an array of FeNi nanostructures with doses from 50 to 500 kGy. Polycrystalline nanotubes based on FeNi, the phase composition of which is a mixture of two face-centered phases, FeNi3 and FeNi, were chosen as initial samples. During the study, the dependences of the phase transformations, as well as changes in the structural parameters as a result of electronic annealing of defects, were established. Using the method of X-ray diffraction, three stages of phase transformations were established: FeNi3 ≅ FeNi → FeNi3 ≪ FeNi → FeNi. After increasing the radiation dose above 400 kGy, no further phase changes were followed, indicating the saturation of defect annealing and completion of the lattice formation process. It was found that an increase in the degree of crystallinity and density of the microstructures as a result of irradiation indicates electronic annealing of defects and a change in the phase composition. It was established that the initial microtubes, in which two phases are present, leads to the appearance of differently oriented crystallites of different sizes in the structure, which contributes to a large number of grain boundaries and also a decrease in density, and are subject to the greatest degradation of structural properties. For modified samples, the degradation rate decreases by 5 times. In the course of the study, the prospects of the use of electron irradiation with doses above 250 kGy for directed modification of FeNi microtubes and changes in structural features were established.

Novel gradient-diameter magnetic nanowire arrays with unconventional magnetic anisotropy behaviors

Fe-Co-Ni gradient-diameter magnetic nanowire arrays were fabricated via direct-current electrodeposition into a tapered anodic aluminium oxide template. In contrast to the magnetic behaviors of uniform-diameter nanowire arrays, these arrays exhibited tailorable magnetic anisotropy that can be used to switch magnetic nanowires easily and unconventional temperature-dependent coercivity with much better thermal stability.

Magnetic-field-induced synthesis of magnetic wire-like micro- and nanostructures

A lot of physical and chemical preparation methods of one-dimensional (1D) structures are known today. Most of them use highly advanced technology or quite complex chemical reagents. This results in their high costs and difficulties with their implementation to a large industrial scale. Hence, new, facile and inexpensive approaches are still sought. One alternative to wire-like structure production is based on the chemical reduction reactions combined with an external magnetic field, which acts as an independent synthesis parameter. This approach is commonly called magnetic-field-assisted (MFA) synthesis or magnetic-field-induced (MFI) synthesis. As usual, this manufacturing strategy comprises both drawbacks and advantages, which are introduced in this review. Moreover, this work shows that MFI synthesis depends on several synthesis parameters including the strength of the applied magnetic field, reaction temperature, pH value of the reaction environment, chemical composition of the precursor solution, reaction time, and also the presence of surfactants, complexing agents, nucleating agents, initiators as well as organic solvents. All of them have an impact on the morphology and dimensions of wire-like materials and their chemical, physical and mechanical properties. Finally, the opportunities and challenges associated with the magnetic-assisted fabrication of wire-like structures are widely discussed in this review.

Diameter-dependent multiferroic functionality in hybrid core/shell NWs

A versatile approach towards nanofabrication of highly reproducible Co/BiCoO3 (Co/BCO) core/shell (CS) nanowires (NWs) with different diameters has been adopted by demonstrating easily available and low cost sol-gel and electrodeposition routes. X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis confirmed the tetragonal system of the BCO nanoshells (NSs) with the space group P4mm. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) clearly demonstrates the uniform morphology with well aligned CS NWs. The magnetization reversal processes (MRPs), experimentally and with analytical modelling, have been discussed for CS NWs with θ ranging from 0° (in-plane magnetic easy axis) to 90° (out-of-plane magnetic hard axis) with magnetic hysteresis loops and geometrical parameters. Crossover from the vortex to transverse reversal mode on increasing θ has been observed for all diameters. An exchange bias effect has been observed for smaller CS NWs diameters and it is attributed to the shell thickness of ∼25 nm. Furthermore, the magnetic anisotropy effect has been discussed in some detail.