Using a scanning electron microscopy, elemental analysis, electron paramagnetic resonance, and Raman scattering methods, two types of the shungite materials (Sh-II from Zazhogino deposit and shungite from a commercial filter (ShF)), with different carbon content and porosity, are studied in this work. It was established by scanning electron microscopy data that the structure of the shungite samples is formed by a micron-size agglomeration of carbon and silicon dioxide clusters. It is found from the Raman data that carbon fraction is formed from sp2-hybridized clusters, size of which increases from 9 up to 12 nm after annealing of the samples. High conductivity of shungite is found to belong to the carbon nanoclusters of different sizes. Big clusters give the conduction electron spin resonance signal with a Dysonian line shape with variable g-factor and line width.The careful search of the nature of two other narrow electron paramagnetic resonance signals in shungite, which used to be prescribed to fullerene-like molecules, is fulfilled. Here, it is shown that the oxygen-deficient E'γ centers are responsible for these signals. A strong correlation is revealed between the concentration of Е'γ centers and the line width of conduction electron spin resonance signal, which occurs under annealing process of the samples at T = 570 K. The correlation reasons are a spin-spin coupling between two spin subsystems and time dependent of the Е'γ concentration during annealing process.

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Biomorphic carbon matrices (BCMs) were produced by pyrolysis from wood species of different forest and garden trees, after which the as-prepared BCMs were converted to SiC ceramics through their impregnation with liquid silicon and further heat-treatment. Both types of obtained samples were studied by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Raman scattering (RS), and electron spin resonance (ESR) methods. The SEM data reveal that all BCM samples contain large (10–50 μm) and small (1–5 μm) micro-pores with surface densities ∼109 m−2 and 1011 m−2, respectively. Analysis of RS allowed to estimate carbon cluster sizes of about 5–11 nm depending on the sample type. The study of the electronic structure using ESR spectroscopy is carried out for BCM and SiC ceramics samples. Using theoretical analysis of the ESR spectra, it was found that spin resonance in BCMs is due to the contribution of three spin systems: free electron spins, “pseudo-free” electron spins from the tail of density states below the conduction band, and localized spins at dangling carbon bonds (DCBs). Their contributions depend on the ratio of different structural phases such as sp2-hybridized graphite-like carbon network and amorphous carbon phase. For most BCM samples, the large ESR line width is dramatically narrowed when samples are pumped out due to the exclusion of the broadening effect of molecular oxygen. The transformation of BCM into SiC by impregnation with liquid silicon can be clearly traced in the Raman spectra and in the ESR spectra. It is established that the electronic properties of synthesized SiC ceramics are due to the presence of residual graphite-like carbon nanoclusters.

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In this paper, we present the results of a study of the properties of silver and copper nanoparticle (NP) ensembles and Fe3O4:Gd:B composites, which are promising for their potential uses in biomedicine. Magnetic resonance is applied as the main method of analysis. The magnetic properties of the NPs are found to be highly sensitive to the nanoparticle size, which enables finding the size distributions of metal NPs, using magnetic measurements. The dependence of the magnetic properties of lyophilized ensembles of Ag and Cu NPs on the interaction with molecular oxygen is revealed. The composites magnetic system Fe3O4:Gd:B is a key component of a promising method for neutron-capture therapy. The magnetic properties of this system, which are the result of differences in the g-factors of its components, are described in detail. As a consequence, the dependence of the resulting g-factor on the ratio of the components is established.