Structural and magnetic investigations on a wet chemically synthesized nanoscale S = 1/2 spin chain compound – CuSe2O5

Abstract

CuSe₂O₅ is a one dimensional antiferromagnetic compound with interesting magnetic interactions at low temperature and has been thoroughly studied in the form of single crystals. However, nanostructures of CuSe₂O₅ have not been investigated. Here we report the properties of CuSe₂O₅ nanorods of ∼55 nm diameter and 170 nm length. The composition of the nanorods has been thoroughly investigated using the Energy Dispersive Analysis of X-rays, Inductively Coupled Plasma-Atomic Emission Spectrometry and X-ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy. X-ray diffraction analysis using a synchrotron radiation source shows a reduction in the unit cell volume. Low temperature magnetic measurements from 2 K to 300 K confirm the antiferromagnetic nature of nanorods with no change in the Néel temperature (17 K) compared to the bulk single crystal. However, an enhanced Curie tail in the susceptibility at low temperature indicated the presence of uncompensated spins for nanorods which shift the hump in susceptibility observed at ∼101 K in the single crystal of CuSe₂O₅ to ∼75 K. In contrast to nanoparticles of many materials, the uncompensated spins in the surface region did not lead to a ferromagnetic shell in the case of the CuSe₂O₅ nanorods investigated here.