Investigating magnetic and optical properties and morphology of a nanocomposite of intercalated layered material and polymer compounds

Abstract The study focuses on doping polyvinyl pyrrolidone (PVP), polyacrylic (PAC), and nanosilica (SiO 2 ) into the layered material FePS 3 intercalated with 1,3-bis(amino-5-phenyl-1,2,4-triazol-3-ylsulfanyl) propane (FePS 3 -BAPT). Different ratios of FePS 3 -BAPT were incorporated into the polymers (PVP, PAC, and SiO 2 ) to form a nanocomposite. This nanocomposite was characterized by a number of tools: X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), Scanning Electron Microscopy supported by Energy Dispersive X-ray analysis (SEM-EDX), and Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM). Magnetic and optical properties of the prepared nanocomposite were evaluated. XRD analysis indicates that the ratio of doped materials has affected the detection of FePS 3 -BAPT. The XRD patterns also reveal the amorphous nature of the polymers. The nanocomposite crystallinity is about 1.5%, while the amorphous content percentage is about 98.5%. TEM results confirm the amorphous structure of the polymers within the nanocomposite. The magnetic properties of FePS 3 -BAPT have been affected after doping with the PVP/PAC/SiO 2 ; this shift is due to the lack of charged ions, the cluster size, and the amorphous nature of the polymers. According to the magnetic hysteresis loop, the magnetic behavior shifted from paramagnetic to diamagnetic. This shift is because of the revealing of the amorphous nature of polymers and the absence of unpaired electrons. The nanocomposites of FePS 3 -BAPT/PVP/PAC/SiO 2 (H11, H13, and H19) show an increase in band gap energy; this increase is due to strong interfacial interactions between the layered FePS₃ structure and polymer matrix and also the effect of insulation in the presence of SiO₂ nanoparticles.