Structural, morphological and surface properties of the samarium modified BiFeO3 perovskite

Abstract

This paper reports the synthesis of the Bi0.93Sm0.07FeO3 system by the conventional method of solid-state reaction using quenching at room temperature. X-ray diffraction characterization revealed a rhombohedric perovskite structure with spatial group R3c (161) and an impurity phase of Bi2Fe4O9. The scanning electron microscopy images show the formation of homogeneous grains with an average size of 3μm. The energy dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (EDS) microanalysis shows the percentage of samarium incorporated in the structure of the bismuth ferrite. The analysis of X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) allowed us to establish the percentage of the ions Bi, Sm, Fe and O ions present in the surface of the solid in addition to confirming the oxidation state 3+ of all the cations.