Samples of varying x (ZnFe2O4)/ (1-x) SiO2 (where x= 0.4, 0.6 and 0.8)
nanocomposites were prepared by sol-gel method. The influence of ZnFe2O4
content on the structural, electrical and dielectric properties of the
nanocomposites was studied. The samples were characterized by X-ray
diffraction (XRD), thermogravimetric analysis (TGA) and differential thermal
analysis (DTA). The XRD spectra showed that, Zn-ferrite particle size lies in
the range of 5.17-34.6 nm. Electrical conductivity of the samples increases as
the temperature increases indicating that the samples have semiconductor like
behavior. It is also found that the electrical resistivity and dielectric constant of
the samples changes considerably with zinc-ferrite content and the sintering
temperatures. The variation of electrical resistivity and dielectric constant with
zinc-ferrite content are found to be opposite to each other. The possible
mechanism for the influence of ZnFe2O4 content on the electrical properties is
discussed in this paper.