Ga added Nd-Fe-B sintered and die-upset magnets

The addition of Ga to Nd-Fe-B sintered and die-upset magnets in order to improve thermal stability was examined. The Ga addition increases the coercivity of Nd(Fe/sub 0.72/Co/sub 0.2/B/sub 0.08/)/sub 5.6/ sintered magnets markedly. Ga addition does not enhance coercivity of sintered magnets with lower Co substitution. Ga addition increases coercivity for Nd-Fe-B die-upset magnets. No decrease in coercivity due to Co substitution of up to 20 at.% is observed for Nd/sub 14/Fe/sub 79.25/B/sub 6/Ga/sub 0.75/ die-upset magnets. This is an advantage of the die-upset magnets compared with the sintered magnets. Ga has a tendency to occur in the Nd-rich phase at higher concentrations than 2 wt.%, and Ga content in the 2/14/1 matrix is around 0.2 wt.% for Nd/sub 14/Fe/sub 79.25/BGa/sub 0.75/ die-upset magnets. For sintered magnets, Ga is distributed between the matrix and the Nd-rich phase. H/sub A/ of the 2/14/1 matrix is increased by Ga addition up to 2.5 at.%. The correlation between H/sub A/ and iH/sub c/ is not good. The Ga-containing Nd-rich phase is observed in the sintered magnets, and the role of Ga in this phase needs to be evaluated to understand coercivity enhancement by Ga addition. >