Eur. Phys. J. Plus (2022) 137: 570
https://doi.org/10.1140/epjp/s13360-022-02772-x

Regular Article

Study of the radiation tolerance of MgFe₂O₄ by XRD, TEM, Mössbauer, and EPR spectroscopy

¹ Laboratoire de Physico-Chimie des Matériaux, Département de Physique, Faculté Des Sciences de Monastir, Université de Monastir, Monastir, Tunisia
² Institut des Molécules et des Matériaux du Mans, UMR 6283, CNRS, Le Mans Université, Avenue Olivier Messiaen, 72085, Le Mans Cedex 9, France
³ Laboratoire de Valorisation des Matériaux Utiles (LVMU), Centre National de Recherches en Sciences des Matériaux (CNRSM), Technopole de Borj-Cédria, BP 73, 8027, Soliman, Tunisia
⁴ Laboratoire de Recherche en Énergie et Matière, Développement des Sciences Nucléaires (LR16CNSTN02), Centre National des Sciences et Technologie Nucléaires, 2020, Sidi Thabet, Tunisia
⁵ Institut Supérieur du Transport et de la Logistique, Université de Sousse, P.B. 247, 4023, Sousse, Tunisia

^a imenchihi03@gmail.com

Received: 21 February 2022
Accepted: 27 April 2022
Published online: 10 May 2022

Abstract

Materials with high radiation resistance are a major area of interest in the field of nuclear industry due to their wide range of applications. In this regard, this study investigates the radiation tolerance of a MgFe₂O₄ sample successfully synthesized via the sol–gel route. Therefore, an investigation of the structural and morphological characterizations of MgFe₂O₄ revealed a significantly high radiation resistance. Furthermore, Mössbauer spectrometry detected a cation redistribution with irradiation, while EPR showed the creation of oxygen vacancy defects by irradiation. Thus, the results presented in this study highlight the usefulness of the MgFe₂O₄ as a promising material for the development of highly efficient devices in the nuclear industry.