Synthesis and film formation of iron-cobalt nanofibers encapsulated in graphite shell: Magnetic, electric and optical properties study

Novel characteristics for the FexCoy alloys have been obtained when these compounds were synthesized in the form of nanofibers encapsulated in a graphite shell. The prepared nanofibers reveal good semiconducting features as a thin film from the prepared nanofibers supported on a graphite disk and could be utilized as a diode with good rectifying behaviour. Magnetic properties study showed that the introduced nanofibers are magnetically clean as very low remanent magnetizations were detected; moreover the saturation magnetization is a temperature-independent property. Optical properties study indicated that these nanofibers have band gap energies of 4.73 and 5.43 eV. FexCoy bimetallic alloys could be produced in the form of nanofibers encapsulated in a graphite shell by calcination of electrospun nanofiber mats composed of poly(vinyl alcohol), ferrous acetate and cobalt acetate tetrahydrate in an argon atmosphere at 750 °C. The composition of the nanofibers could be adjusted by controlling the concentration of the original electrospun solution; two formulations have been prepared: FeCo and FeCo2.7. Transmission electron microscopy indicated that the thickness of the graphite shell enveloping the obtained nanofibers is ∼10 nm. A graphite disk possessing on its surface a well attached thin film from the introduced nanofibers could be successfully prepared when a diskette made of poly(acrylonitrile) was used as a collector during the electrospinning process. The introduced methodology is effective, simple and can be exploited to produce different metallic alloys nanofibers. © 2011 The Royal Society of Chemistry.