Effect of Heat Treatment on the Microstructure and Soft Magnetic Properties of the Amorphous Fe-B-P-Cu Alloy

In the present research, rapidly solidified Fe85.3B11P3Cu0.7 ribbons were prepared by melt spinning process. The microstructural variation as well as magnetic properties of the as-spun and annealed ribbons were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), transmission Mossbauer spectroscopy and alternating gradient field magnetometer (AGFM). The results show two separated distinct exothermic peaks during heating resulting from the phase transition from amorphous to α-Fe and then to Fe3B, respectively. The study of magnetic properties in the amorphous and nanocrystalline states revealed that annealing the amorphous ribbons at 440˚C for 10 minutes gives rise to a significant increase in saturation magnetization (220 emu/g) which makes this alloy a good candidate for power applications.