Hexaferrites have long been the object of extensive studies because of their great possibility for applications-permanent magnets, high-density recording media, microwave devices, in biomedicine, to name but a few. Lately, many researchers' efforts have been focused on the existence of the magneto-electric effect in some hexaferrite systems and the appealing possibility of them being used as single-phase multiferroic and magneto-electric materials. As indicated by theoretical analyses, the origin of the large magneto-electric effect can be sought in the strong interaction between the magnetization and the electric polarization that coexist in insulators with noncollinear magnetic structures. The hexaferrites' magnetic structure and, particularly, the specific magnetic spin ordering are the key factors in observing magneto-electric phases in hexaferrites. Some of these phases are metastable, which hampers their direct practical use. However, as the hexaferrites' phase diagrams reveal, chemical doping can be used to prepare a number of noncollinear stable magnetic phases. Since the magneto-electric effect has to do with the magnetic moments ordering, it seems only logical that one should study the cation substitutions' influence on the magnetic phase transition temperature. In this paper, we summarize recent examples of advances in the exploration of magnetic phase transitions in Y-type hexaferrites. In particular, the effect is emphasized by substituting in Y-type hexaferrites the nonmagnetic Me²⁺ cations with magnetic ones and of the magnetic Fe³⁺ cations with nonmagnetic ones on their magnetic properties and magnetic phase transitions. The work deals with the structural properties of and the magnetic phase transitions in a specific Y-type hexaferrite, namely, Ba(Sr)₂Me₂Fe₁₂O₂₂.

Ba₂Mg_0.4Co_1.6Fe₁₂O₂₂ was prepared in powder form by sonochemical co-precipitation and examined by X-ray diffraction, Mössbauer spectroscopy and magnetization measurements. Careful XRD data analyses revealed the Y-type hexaferrite structure as an almost pure phase with a very small amount of CoFe₂O₄ as an impurity phase (about 1.4%). No substantial changes were observed in the unit cell parameters of Ba₂Mg_0.4Co_1.6Fe₁₂O₂₂ in comparison with the unsubstituted compound. The Mössbauer parameters for Ba₂Mg_0.4Co_1.6Fe₁₂O₂₂ were close to those previously found (within the limits of uncertainty) for undoped Ba₂Mg₂Fe₁₂O₂₂. Isomer shifts (0.27–0.38 mm/s) typical for high-spin Fe³⁺ in various environments were evaluated and no ferrous Fe²⁺ form was observed. However, despite the indicated lack of changes in the iron oxidation state, the cationic substitution resulted in a significant increase in the magnetization and in a modification of the thermomagnetic curves. The magnetization values at 50 kOe were 34.5 emu/g at 4.2 K and 30.5 emu/g at 300 K. The zero-field-cooled (ZFC) and field-cooled (FC) magnetization curves were measured in magnetic fields of 50 Oe, 100 Oe, 500 Oe and 1000 Oe, and revealed the presence of two magnetic phase transitions. Both transitions are shifted to higher temperatures compared to the undoped compound, while the ferrimagnetic arrangement at room temperature is transformed to a helical spin order at about 195 K, which is considered to be a prerequisite for the material to exhibit multiferroic properties.

Here, we report results on the magnetic and microwave properties of polycrystalline Y-type hexaferrite synthesized by sol-gel auto-combustion and acting as a filler in a composite microwave-absorbing material. The reflection losses in the 1–20 GHz range of the Y-type hexaferrite powder dispersed homogeneously in a polymer matrix of silicon rubber were investigated in the absence and in the presence of a magnetic field. A permanent magnet was used with a strength of 1.4 T, with the magnetic force lines oriented perpendicularly to the direction of the electromagnetic wave propagation. In the case of using an external magnetic field, an extraordinary result was observed. The microwave reflection losses reached a maximum value of 35.4 dB at 5.6 GHz in the Ku-band without a magnetic field and a maximum value of 21.4 dB at 8.2 GHz with the external magnetic field applied. The sensitivity of the microwave properties of the composite material to the external magnetic field was manifested by the decrease of the reflected wave attenuation. At a fixed thickness, t_m, of the composite, the attenuation peak frequency can be adjusted to a certain value either by changing the filling density or by applying an external magnetic field.

In this work, a novel approach is suggested to grow bilayer fibers by combining electrospinning and atomic layer deposition (ALD). Polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) fibers are obtained by electrospinning and subsequently covered with thin Al₂O₃ deposited at a low temperature by ALD. To burn the PVA core, the fibrous structures are subjected to high-temperature annealing. Differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) analysis of the PVA mat is performed to establish the proper annealing regime for burning off the PVA core and obtaining hollow fibers. The hollow fibers thus formed are covered with a ZnO layer deposited by ALD at a higher temperature within the ALD window of ZnO. This procedure allows us to prepare ZnO films with better crystallinity and stoichiometry. Different characterization methods—SEM, ellipsometry, XRD, and XPS—are performed at each step to investigate the processes in detail.