Polyvinyl pyrrolidone-assisted hydrothermal synthesis of octahedral ZnFe2O4 nanoparticles

Octahedral ZnFe₂O₄ nanocrystals were prepared via a polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP)-assisted hydrothermal route. X-ray diffractometer, field emission scanning electron microscopy and high-resolution transmission electron microscopy measurements were carried out to investigate the products´ structures and morphologies. Different dosages of PVP were tested and 0.3´g was found to be the optimal dosage for the synthesis of octahedral ZnFe₂O₄. The selective adsorption of PVP onto the crystallographic planes should be responsible for the formation of the final octahedral particles. Moreover, magnetisation measurements revealed that these ZnFe₂O₄ particles possessed a high magnetic parameter with a saturation magnetisation of 44.30 emu/g and a coercivity of 299.2 Oe at room temperature.