Electromagnetic interference shielding and DFT study of barium hexaferrites nanoparticles coated polyaniline with heterointerface polarization behavior

Barium-hexaferrite-nanoparticles (BHNs) and polyaniline-nanoparticles (PNs) were prepared individually with average particle sizes of 50 nm and 42 nm. The two nanoparticles were then combined to create hybrid nanoparticles (HNs) with a ferritic core and a conductive surface, by chemically coating polyaniline onto the surface of BHNs via in-situ polymerization. The nanoparticle shape, size, structural, and morphological properties were analyzed using SEM, XRD, and PSA. The nanoparticles were dispersed into a PVDF matrix to produce nanocomposite-films (NFs) for testing EMI shielding effectiveness. The NFs exhibited excellent blocking of near infrared radiation and a shielding effectiveness of more than 50 dB in the microwave region when 30 wt% of HNs was used in the PVDF matrix. Density-function-theory (DFT) based on first-principle was used to confirm the interfacial polarization contribution at the heterointerface, revealing different electron occupied states and considerable charge transfer and accumulation at the interface, enhancing the EMI shielding effectiveness.