Nanoengineered pure Fe in citrate matrix (Fe-CIT) with significant and tunable magnetic properties.

The present work demonstrates synthesis and elucidation of Fe nanoparticles surrounded by citrate matrix prepared at various temperatures and concentrations of the metal, capping agent and reducing agent at standard conditions. We study the effect of reactants ratio and reaction temperature on magnetization of nanoparticles and their crystal structure. We found out that at optimal metal concentrations, magnetic saturation increases with increase in concentrations of capping and reducing agents but decreases as the temperature of the reaction increases. Synthesis conditions are tailored revealing nucleation of particles with average size ranging from 24 to 105 nm and spherical shape. Ultra-high saturation magnetization of 241 and 228 emu/g obtained for samples prepared at 0oC and metal precursor concentration of 27.8 mole/L which attributed to the formation of small magnetic domain size. Hence, we demonstrate that the concentration of the reducing agent and temperature of the reaction environment are crucial for monitoring the tunability of magnetization in Fe-CIT nanoparticle systems.