Improved soft magnetic properties by laser de-vitrification of Fe-Si-B amorphous magnetic alloys

Devitrification of Fe-Si-B melt-spun ribbons by laser annealing, instead of typical furnace-annealing, led to substantially refined alpha-Fe(Si) nanocrystals nucleating within the amorphous matrix with a large number density of nucleation sites. This microstructural refinement due to laser devitrification leads to substantially improved soft magnetic properties with a drastic, 25 times, reduction in the coercivity, while maintaining the saturation magnetization values comparable to the furnace-annealed condition, making laser-annealing a very attractive devitrification route for these soft magnetic alloys. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.