Magnetic Properties and Oxygen Defects of Dilute Metal Doped Tin Oxide Based Semiconductor

Chemical and magnetic states of iron doped tin oxide (SnO2) as a diluted magnetic semiconductor (DMS) at room temperature have been investigated using 57Fe Mössbauer spectrometry, XRD and magnetometery. The influence of the doping conditions of SnO2 with iron on the generation of oxygen defects was reviewed and discussed on the basis of ab initio calculations. The magnetic properties depended on preparation conditions, such as thermal decomposition and sol-gel processing as well as 57Fe and super-dilute 57Mn implantation. It was shown that Sb codoping in Fe doped SnO2 increases the saturation magnetization. Doping of Fe(Sb)-SnO2 with nonmagnetic Zn ions up to 7 % also increases the magnetization although there is no precipitation of crystalline magnetic phases. The codoping of two transition metal ions (Fe-Co, Fe-Mn, Fe-Ni and Fe-V) in SnO2 matrix enhanced the magnetization as compared with that of single metal ion doped samples. It is suggested from different valence states of doped metal ions that double exchange interactions occur through or near the oxygen vacancies in SnO2. The SnO2 doped with dilute 57Fe may show the intrinsic and/or extrinsic DMS properties. Oxygen vacancies play an important role in the intrinsic DMS. The intrinsic nature of DMS is supported by both, experimental results and ab initio calculations. The long range interactions between diluted magnetic ions are considered to occur through electrons produced by oxygen vacancies or electrons induced by Sb5+ doping.