Flux Crystal Growth and the Electronic Structure of BaFe12O19 Hexaferrite

The barium hexaferrite, BaFe12O19, microcrystals were obtained by the flux crystal growth method and were characterized by XRD, SEM, and TEM methods. XPS measurements were carried out on a powder sample. The binding energy differences between the O 1s and cation core levels, ΔBa = BE­(O 1s) – BE­(Ba 3d5/2) and ΔFe = BE­(O 1s) – BE­(Fe 2p3/2), were used to characterize the valence electron transfer on the formation of Ba–O and Fe–O bonds. The chemical bonding effects were considered on the basis of our XPS results measured for BaFe12O19 and the earlier published structural and XPS data for other Ba- or Fe-containing oxide compounds. The band structure of BaFe12O19 was calculated by spin-polarized DFT methods and compared to the valence band spectrum measured by the XPS method.