In situ X-ray diffraction investigation of nanocrystallization of amorphous Co-Fe-Zr-B alloys

Cobalt-rich soft-magnetic alloys were recently developed as amorphous materials with promising engineering properties, e.g. high mechanical strength, excellent magnetic properties and high corrosion resistance. The crystallization of the as-prepared amorphous alloys plays a crucial role in most technological applications of these advanced soft-magnetic nanomaterials. Amorphous ribbons with nominal composition Co56Fe16Zr8B20 (at%) were here obtained by single-roller melt spinning. The nucleation and growth of nanoscale phases during constant-rate heating of as-quenched and of high-energy ball-milled Co-rich amorphous soft-magnetic alloys were investigated by differential scanning calorimetry and by in situ high-temperature powder X-ray diffraction using synchrotron radiation. The temperature/time evolution of the crystallite size and of average microstrain was obtained from the X-ray diffraction line-profile analysis (LPA) of the powder diffraction patterns. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.