Synthesis and Characterization of La_1-xNd_x)_0.7Sr_0.3MnO₃  Perovskite Nanoparticles

La_1-xNd_x)_0.7Sr_0.3MnO₃ (x= 0.0-1.0) perovskite nanoparticles (NPs) were synthesized using sol-gel method followed by heat treatment. XRD showed that  crystalized in rhombohedral structure with R-3c space group while  (x≥= 0.2) crystalized in orthorhombic structure with Pbnm space group. The Rietveld refinement analysis, showed that both calculated unit cell volume and crystallite size of the samples decrease as the concentration of Nd increases. SEM and TEM images confirmed the formation of the nanoparticles in almost spherical shape for all the samples, with the average particle size of (27±3) nm. The EDXS results confirmed the agreement between the elemental composition of the samples with the desired elemental composition. FT-IR analysis confirmed the formation of perovskite structure, and the bonds present in NPs were identified. XPS analysis confirmed the formation of the compounds and the ionic valance states and the binding energies of each element were identified. Temperature and magnetic field dependent magnetic moment confirmed the ferromagnetic structure. The magnetic behavior was observed to be second order in nature with broad magnetic transition just below the Currie temperature,. The samples exhibited magnetocaloric effect (MCE) around room temperature with maximum values of magnetic entropy change around 2 J/Kg.K and a high values of relative cooling power (RCP). The MCE observed in these NPs with large RCP and wide range of working temperatures can be  promising for practical applications such as magnetic refrigerant.