Magnetic and structural studies in rapidly quenched iron-rare-earth-metalloid alloys

Abstract

The crystallization of the amorphous phase into the tetragonal Fe14R2B phase and the observed magnetic hysteresis have been examined in melt-spun Fe-R-M alloys. The results show that the Fe14R2B phase is stable in melt-spun alloys with R≡Ce to Tm and with M≡B but not in Fe-La-B. The estimated Curie temperatures for the Fe14R2B phases are in the range of 300–380 °C and are found to be strongly correlated with the deGennes factor. A phase with an ordering temperature not very much different from that of Fe14R2B is also observed when boron is replaced by other metalloids. However, it is not clear yet whether this is the Fe14R2M phase. The crystallized samples show large hysteresis with coercivities up to 6 kOe.