Study on electric field induced structural color change of Fe3O4@C hybrid nanoparticles

The photonic properties of Fe3O4@C and Fe3O4 colloidal suspensions in an external electric field have been investigated. Compared to Fe3O4, the Fe3O4@C colloidal suspension has been found to have a wider tunability range of the optical spectrum and a stronger electric response in low electric fields. Based on the dielectric spectroscopy analysis of Fe3O4@C and Fe3O4 colloidal suspensions, a dielectric loss model has been proposed to explain the significant effect of the carbon shell on the electrically modulated photonic property of the Fe3O4@C suspension.