Controllable Nd2Fe14B/alpha-Fe nanocomposites: chemical synthesis and magnetic properties

It is extremely desirable but challenging to develop exchange-coupled magnets with well-dispersed hard/soft phase and confined size to meet the high energy requirements of advanced magnets in modern industry and information technology. Here, we report a novel bottom-up strategy with two-step thermal decomposition and reductive annealing process to synthesize Nd2Fe14B/alpha-Fe nanocomposites, in which effective control of the hard/soft magnetic phase size and proportion was achieved. It is worth noting that the composition, as well as phase distribution, can be readily tuned by changing the ratio between Nd-Fe-B-oxide and alpha-Fe. This work provides an effective approach to adjust the phase size and distribution for exchange-coupled, rare-earth nanomagnets, which can be fundamental for high energy magnets.http://gateway.webofknowledge.com/gateway/Gateway.cgi?GWVersion=2&SrcApp=PARTNER_APP&SrcAuth=LinksAMR&KeyUT=WOS:000341020700028&DestLinkType=FullRecord&DestApp=ALL_WOS&UsrCustomerID=8e1609b174ce4e31116a60747a720701Chemistry, MultidisciplinaryNanoscience & NanotechnologyMaterials Science, MultidisciplinaryPhysics, AppliedSCI(E)EIPubMed6ARTICLEhou@pku.edu.cn1810638-10642