LAUSR

Abstract The aim of this article is to investigate the effect of concentration of SiC on structural, optical, dielectric and gas sensing properties of CoFe2O4/SiC nanocomposites. For this purpose, CoFe2O4/SiC nanocomposites were synthesized using chemical co-precipitation method with different (10, 20 and 30) wt% of SiC. The structural, optical, dielectric and morphological properties were investigated using X-ray diffractometer, UV–Vis spectroscopy, LCR meter and SEM respectively. The average crystallite size of CFO (CoFe2O4) and CFO/SiC nanocomposites of 10, 20 and 30 wt% was estimated to be 9.3  ± 2 nm, 9.3  ± 2 nm, 9.2  ± 2 nm and 12.6  ± 3 nm, respectively using Scherrer’s formula. The energy band gap was found in the range from 4.1eV to 4.5eV for all synthesized samples. The dramatic behavior was observed in dielectric permittivity, dissipation factor and a.c. conductivity with varying frequency and temperature. The dielectric permittivity, dissipation factor, a.c. conductivity and sensitivity (%) towards NH3 gas for 20 wt% of CFO/SiC nanocomposites were observed greater than other wt%. The compactness and porosity of device were determined by micrographs.