1
Effect of annealing time on exchange coupling interactions and microstructure of
nanocomposite Pr
7.5
Dy
1
Fe
71
Co
15
Nb
1
B
4.5
ribbons
Xiaoqian Bao, Yi Qiao,
Maocai Zhang, Jie Zhu, and Shouzeng Zhou
State Key Laboratory for Advanced Metals and Materials, University of Science and Technology
Beijing, Beijing 100083, China
Abstract: The influence of annealing time on magnetic properties and microstructure of
nanocomposite Pr
7.5
Dy
1
Fe
71
Co
15
Nb
1
B
4.5
ribbons was systematically investigated by the methods of
vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and high resolution transmission
electron microscopy (HRTEM). Interaction domains derived from strong exchange coupling
interactions between hard and soft magnetic grains were imaged using magnetic force microscopy
(MFM). Maximum J
r
, H
ci
,
and (BH)
max
values were obtained in the ribbons annealed at 700C for
15 min, which were composed of Pr
2
(Fe, Co)
14
B, -(Fe, Co), and slight Pr
2
(Fe, Co)
17
phases.
Although J
r
, H
ci
, and (BH)
max
decreased gradually with further increase of annealing time, it is
emphasized that comparatively high J
r
and H
ci
and (BH)
max
were obtained in a wide annealing time
period of 15 to 360 min. The shape of initial magnetization curves and hysteresis
loops change as a
function of annealing time, indicating different magnetization reversal routes, which can be fully
explained by the corresponding microstructure.
Key words: nanocomposite magnets; exchange coupling interaction; microstructure; magnetization
reversal
[This work was financially supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China
(No.10074005).]
1. Introduction
Nanocomposite permanent magnets, which are also called exchange spring magnets, have
attracted considerable attention as a probable new generation of permanent magnets with a potential
theoretical (BH)
max
in excess of 10
6
J/m
3
and with lesser cost [1-4]. Production of melt-spun
precursor materials with an amorphous or nanoscaled structure and precise thermal treatment are the
two key processes which determine the magnetic performance of nanocomposite materials.
However, the processing window for producing remanence-enhanced rare-earth RFeB melt-spun
ribbons with optimum magnetic properties by direct quenching to a nanocrystalline structure is
narrow and the properties within a batch vary due to the differences in ribbon thickness [5-8]. One
way to overcome this is to produce amorphous material by overquenching, followed by annealing to
obtain the desired microstructure [9-12]. Furthermore, for R
2
Fe
14
B/-Fe type nanocomposites, the
size and volume fraction of -Fe and R
2
Fe
14
B can be manipulated by thermal processing. In this
article, a systematic study has been performed on the effect of annealing time on the microstructure
and magnetic properties of Pr
7.5
Dy
1
Fe
71
Co
15
Nb
1
B
4.5
ribbons.
2. Experimental procedures
The alloy with a nominal composition of Pr
7.5
Dy
1
Fe
71
Co
15
Nb
1
B
4.5
was prepared by induction
melting the pure constituent elements under high-purity atmosphere. The ingots were melted 3-4
times to ensure homogeneity. The overquenched ribbons were produced by melt spinning in an
argon atmosphere onto a copper roll rotating at circumferential speed, V
s
=30 m/s. These amorphous
flakes with the thickness of about 20 m were then annealed at 700C for 2-360 min under the
vacuum of 2×10
3
Pa to crystallize and develop a fine nanoscaled microstructure and optimize the
coercivity.
The ribbons were examined by XRD analysis, using Cu K
radiation, prior to annealing and at