Coercivity enhancement of anisotropic die-upset Nd-Fe-B powders by Pr-Cu alloy diffusion

The grain boundary diffusion treatment using the low melting point Pr-Cu eutectic alloy was applied to enhance the coercivity of anisotropic die-upset Nd-Fe-B powders. It was found that the room temperature coercivity of the powders increases from 13 kOe to 24 kOe. The thickness of the grain boundary layer was increased and the Fe and Co content in the grain boundary phases was decreased. The modified boundary layers may thus increase the domain wall nucleation field, leading to an enhancement in the coercivity. The diffusion of Pr-Cu alloy prevents the loss of continuity of the Nd-rich grain boundary phase and retains the crystal texture in the initial grains.