Al2O3-10 wt% Fe composite prepared by high energy ball milling: Structure and magnetic properties

Abstract In the present work, Al2O3-10 wt% Fe composite powders were manufactured by mechanical alloy using different milling times. The morphology, structure and magnetic properties were carefully investigated and explained through the results of SEM, XRD (with Rietveld refinement), Mossbauer spectroscopy and magnetic measurements at low-temperatures. After 50 h of milling, the results reveal α-Fe particles uniformly distributed in Al2O3 and a decrease of the average particle size of Al2O3–Fe composite. Besides, XRD data show a decrease of crystallite sizes, accompanied by an increase of the lattice micro-strain. For samples milled for 30 h and 50 h, the Mossbauer spectra recorded at 300 K showed a superparamagnetic component related to very fine hematite crystallites with a maximum absorption relative area of 10%. The M − H curves recorded at 6 K showed a small reduction in saturation magnetization, and an improvement in remanence magnetization and coercivity field with milling time, while the M-T curve of the sample milled for 50 h shows a peak at 185 K, related to the Morin transition of the hematite phase.