Preparation of Fe2Ni2N/SiO2 nanocomposite via a two-step route and investigation of its electromagnetic properties

Abstract

Fe2Ni2N/SiO2 nanocomposite was fabricated by thermal reduction in association with nitridation in flowing ammonia gas at elevated temperature. The electromagnetic parameters of as-prepared Fe2Ni2N/SiO2 nanocomposite were measured in a frequency range of 2–18 GHz. Furthermore, its magnetic properties were investigated with a superconducting quantum interference device. Findings reveal that as-prepared Fe2Ni2N/SiO2 nanocomposite possesses a larger magnetic loss than soft magnetic metal-based magnetic/dielectric nanocomposites, which is attributed to its strong multi-resonance peaks in the high frequencies. Besides, as-prepared Fe2Ni2N/SiO2 nanocomposite exhibits typical superparamagnetic characteristics, showing promising potential as an alternative microwave absorbent.