Structural, optical, and dielectric characteristics of Fe doped ZrO2 nanoparticles for multifunctional applications

•Combustion synthesis was used to synthesise the undoped and Fe3+ ions incorporated ZrO2 nanostructures using Tamarind indica extract.•The size and phase purity of the nanoparticles are responsible for the intriguingly high dielectric constant increase of up to 9.7 × 104 with very little loss following the integration of Fe into the ZrO2 medium.•The high value of dielectric constant and uniform nanoparticles produced have applications in high-frequency devices and technologies such as spintronics as multifunctional applications. Combustion synthesis was used to synthesise the undoped and Fe3+ ions incorporated ZrO2 nanostructures using Tamarind indica extract. The synthesised ZrO2 nanoparticles with a tetragonal phase and a particle size