Tuning Texture and Magnetic Properties of Bulk Pr 2 Fe 14 B/α-Fe Nanocomposite Magnets via Cu Addition.

In this study, bulk Pr2Fe14B/ $\alpha $ -Fe nanocomposite magnets were fabricated from amorphous Pr9Fe86-x ${\text {Cu}}_{x}\text{B}$ 5 ($x$ = 0–1.5 at.%) precursors by a rapid high-pressure thermal compression (HPTC) technique, and the effects of Cu content on the texture and magnetic properties of the deformed magnets were investigated systematically. Results showed that the magnetic anisotropy $A_{m}$ and remanence $B_{r}$ of the deformed magnets increase evidently with increasing Cu content, whereas the coercivity $H_{\mathrm {ci}}$ decreases dramatically, thereby resulting in the maximum energy product (BH)max initial increase and then decrease. A magnetic anisotropy of $A_{m}$ = 0.44 and the optimal magnetic properties of (BH)max = 21.4 MGOe, $B_{r}$ = 13.1 kG, and $H_{\mathrm {ci}}$ = 3.52 kOe were achieved at x = 1.0 at.%, which can mainly be attributed to the strong ($00l$) crystallographic alignment of Pr2Fe14B nanocrystals and excellent exchange coupling between hard and soft nanocrystals. The present research is important for developing anisotropic bulk nanocomposites with high-energy products. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]