Soft Magnetic Materials Research Articles

Research on Sensitivity Improvement Methods for RTD Fluxgates Based on Feedback-Driven Stochastic Resonance with PSO

With the wide application of Residence Time Difference (RTD) fluxgate sensors in Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) aeromagnetic measurements, the requirements for their measurement accuracy are increasing. The core characteristics of the RTD fluxgate sensor limit its sensitivity; the high-permeability soft magnetic core is especially easily interfered with by the input noise. In this paper, based on the study of the excitation signal and input noise characteristics, the stochastic resonance is proposed to be realized by adding feedback by taking advantage of the high hysteresis loop rectangular ratio, low coercivity and bistability characteristics of the soft magnetic material core. Simulink is used to construct the sensor model of odd polynomial feedback control, and the Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) algorithm is used to optimize the coefficients of the feedback function so that the sensor reaches a resonance state, thus reducing the noise interference and improving the sensitivity of the sensor. The simulation results show that optimizing the odd polynomial feedback coefficients with PSO enables the sensor to reach a resonance state, improving sensitivity by at least 23.5%, effectively enhancing sensor performance and laying a foundation for advancements in UAV aeromagnetic measurement technology.

Asymptotic analyses on field-induced bending deformations of multi-layered hard-magnetic soft material plates

Asymptotic analyses on field-induced bending deformations of multi-layered hard-magnetic soft material plates

Annelids‐Inspired Modular Design of Multi‐Modal Deformation for Magnetic Soft Robots

AbstractMagnetic‐responsive soft materials have found extensive applications in biomedicine, robotics, and bionics. They can achieve complex deformations through structural design, magnetization patterns, and driving magnetic fields. However, due to the infinite degrees of freedom in soft materials, more efficient design methods for magnetic soft materials need to be explored. Here, a multimodal unit programming method is proposed for designing hard magnetic soft materials. The structure of the multimodal units is inspired by the segmented structure of earthworms. By altering the combination of single‐tube units, the dual‐tube units exhibit specific deformation modes. This approach simplifies the complex deformation of magnetic soft materials into the single deformations of units, enabling facile programming design of magnetic soft materials. The application of different deformation modes is demonstrated in various scenarios and scale down the units to one‐tenth of their original size for operations at different scales. This further uncovering the potential of magnetic soft materials and providing ideas for their efficient design.

Fine-Grained High-Permeability Fe73.5−xB9Si14Cu1Nb2.5Mx (M = Mo or W) Nanocrystalline Alloys with Co-Added Heterogeneous Transition Metal Elements

This study investigates the effects of multi-transition metals on the soft magnetic properties of Fe73.5−xB9Si14Cu1Nb2.5Mx (M = Nb, Mo, and W) nanocrystalline soft magnetic alloys. Nanocrystalline soft magnetic materials are utilized in electronic components on the basis of their permeability and low core loss. In conventional alloys such as FINEMET, Nb inhibits nanocrystal growth and promotes amorphous formation. In this research, Mo and W were used as additional transition metals to control the size of nanocrystals and explore the potential for enhancing soft magnetic properties. We confirmed that the addition of Mo and W reduced the nanocrystal size, and the activation energy for nanocrystal formation and growth showed significant benefits for nanocrystalline alloys. Consequently, the soft magnetic properties of the alloys containing Mo and W exhibited higher permeability and lower coercivity. These results suggest that multi-transition metals are effective in improving soft magnetic properties by inhibiting nanocrystal formation and growth.

Comparative view of coercivity mechanisms in soft and hard magnetic materials

The main differences between soft and hard magnetic materials are commented on. It is discussed how the coercivity mechanisms can be affected by the domain wall energy. A spherical cap nucleus is used for this analysis. There is a competition between magnetostatic energy and domain wall energy terms. As a consequence, for soft magnetic materials, the magnetostatic energy term is dominant over the domain wall energy term. An explanation for the dependence of the coercivity with grain size is presented. For grain size above the single domain size, in hard magnetic materials with high magnetocrystalline anisotropy, the coercivity decreases following a law proportional to the inverse of the square root of the grain size, whereas in soft magnetic materials, the coercivity reduces proportionally to the inverse of grain size.

Magnetic Wall-Climbing Wheels With Controllable Adhesion Reduction via Soft Magnetic Material

Magnetic Wall-Climbing Wheels With Controllable Adhesion Reduction via Soft Magnetic Material

High-entropy alloys as magnetic shielding materials in low-frequency wireless power transmission

Soft magnetic materials are required to exhibit high saturation magnetization and low coercivity. Iron-based metal alloys, such as FeMnZn, are commonly used commercial soft magnetic materials with electromagnetic shielding functions. However, these alloys generally exhibit low saturation magnetization, poor high-temperature stability, and significant magnetic losses. In recent years, many research groups have highlighted the excellent soft magnetic properties of high-entropy alloys (HEAs). This study develops new HEA powders with superior soft magnetic characteristics for applications in low-frequency magnetic shielding components. The research found that the FeCoNiSiCuNb HEA, under appropriate ball-milling and annealing conditions, exhibits high saturation magnetization and excellent high-temperature properties, retaining over 50% of its magnetism even at 700K. At an operating frequency of 100 kHz, compared to FeMnZn, the real permeability of the FeCoNiSiCuNb HEA is increased by 2.25 times. Preparing this HEA material as a magnetic shielding material can lead to higher inductance, a coupling coefficient increased to 0.84, and a transmission efficiency improvement of 19%, demonstrating the potential of high-entropy alloys in wireless charging applications.

Resistivity Model for Soft Magnetic Composite Materials With Cauer Network Representation

Resistivity Model for Soft Magnetic Composite Materials With Cauer Network Representation

Tuning Corrosion Resistance and AC Soft Magnetic Properties of Fe-Co-Ni-Al Medium-Entropy Alloy via Ni Content

Corrosion of soft magnetic materials during service can significantly impact their performance and service life, therefore it is important to improve their corrosion resistance. In this paper, the corrosion resistance, alternating current soft magnetic properties (AC SMPs) and microstructure of FeCoNixAl (x = 1.0–2.0) medium-entropy alloys (MEAs) were studied. Corrosion resistance is greatly improved with an increase in Ni content. The x = 2.0 alloy has the lowest corrosion current density (Icorr = 2.67 × 10−7 A/cm2), which is reduced by 71% compared to the x = 1.0 alloy. Increasing the Ni content can improve the AC SMPs of the alloy. When x = 1.75, the total loss (Ps) is improved by 6% compared to the x = 1.0 alloy. X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) show that the increase in Ni content is beneficial for promoting the formation of the face-centered-cubic (FCC) phase, and the body-centered-cubic (BCC) phase is gradually divided by the FCC phase. Electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) shows that, with the increase in Ni content, the number of grain boundaries in the alloy is greatly reduced and numerous phase boundaries appear in the alloys. The degree of strain concentration is significantly reduced with the increasing Ni content. The corrosion mechanism of alloys is also discussed in this paper. Our study provides a method to balance the soft magnetic properties and corrosion resistance, paving the way for potential applications of Fe-Co-Ni-Al MEAs in corrosive environments.

Two-gigapascal-strong ductile soft magnets

Soft magnetic materials (SMMs) are indispensable for electromechanical energy conversion in high-efficiency applications, but they are exposed to increasing mechanical loading conditions in electric motors due to higher rotational speeds. Enhancing the yield strength of SMMs is essential to prevent the degradation in magnetic performance and failure from plastic deformation, yet most SMMs have yield strengths far below one gigapascal. Here, we present a multicomponent nanostructuring strategy that doubles the yield strength of SMMs while maintaining ductility. We introduce morphologically anisotropic nanoprecipitates through dislocation-driven precipitation induced by preceding deformation during heat treatment in an iron–nickel–cobalt–tantalum material. With all dimensions of the precipitates below the magnetic domain wall width, we achieve a high precipitate number density with a large specific surface area, small interprecipitate spacing, and high lattice mismatch, which impede dislocation glide and strengthen the material. Both the matrix and precipitates are ferromagnetic, yielding a high magnetic moment. This nanostructuring approach offers a pathway to two-gigapascal-strong ductile SMMs with moderately increased coercivity that can be tolerated in exchange for significantly improved mechanical performance for sustainable electrification.

Review of Electrical Steels with their Properties and Recent Trends for Improvement

Objectives: This review study provides a thorough analysis of the magnetic behavior and characteristics of electrical steels, including established and novel materials (3%wt Silicon). Methods: We investigate how composition, microstructure, and processing methods affect the magnetic performance of these steels as well as the basic principles guiding their behavior. Thermomechanical processing can be observed for its impact on the material’s microstructure and magnetic properties. This review discusses testing over samples for conventional processes for different % of cold worked or strain hardening and annealing at higher temperatures i.e., 1200°C. For uncertainties regarding the impact of impurities or inclusions on their magnetic properties, the study was carried out to know the effect of cerium addition on the material’s magnetic properties of the material. Findings: It was observed that rolling temperature has significant effect over magnetic properties of the material. A notable improvement in the magnetic permeability of the material and its critical performance metric for soft magnetic materials is indicated by the increase in “Gamma max”. Similarly, the effects of compressive stresses, doping effect, grain size, annealing, and other manufacturing processes were studied, and observed their impact on magnetic properties. This review discusses the literature on future scope with the latest trends. This helps clarify the trade-offs associated with maximizing electrical steels for certain uses. Novelty: This study presents a novel approach towards electrical steel and its magnetic properties by incorporating different alloying elements and optimizing rolling & annealing parameters. A key innovation is the application of machine learning and neural network to predict and optimize material behavior, core loss and provide methods to improve magnetic properties of electrical steels. Significance: Electrical steels are crucial in transformers and electric motors, enhancing efficiency by minimizing energy losses and improving magnetic performance. This can be achieved by changing manufacturing parameters and operating conditions with the help of latest trends. Keywords: Electrical steel, Magnetic properties, Machine learning, Composition, Microstructure, Core loss

A Progressive Loss Decomposition Method for Low-Frequency Shielding of Soft Magnetic Materials.

Energy loss in shielding soft magnetic materials at low frequencies (1-100 Hz) can cause fluctuations in the material's magnetic field, and the resulting magnetic noise can interfere with the measurement accuracy and basic precision physics of biomagnetic signals. This places higher demands on the credibility and accuracy of loss separation predictions. The current statistical loss theory (STL) method tends to ignore the high impact of the excitation dependence of quasi-static loss in the low-frequency band on the prediction accuracy. STL simultaneously fits and predicts multiple unknown quantities, causing its results to occasionally fall into the value boundary, and the credibility is low in the low-frequency band and with less data. This paper proposes a progressive loss decomposition (PLD) method. Through multi-step progressive predictions, the hysteresis loss simulation coefficients are first determined. The experimental data of the test ring verifies the credibility of PLD's prediction of the two hysteresis coefficients, improving the inapplicability of the STL method. In addition, we use the proposed method to obtain the prediction results of the low-frequency characteristics of the loss of a variety of typical soft magnetic materials, providing a reference for analyzing the loss characteristics of materials.

Synthesis of Ferrocene‐Containing Schiff Bases Based on 3‐Aminopropyltriethoxysilane Oligomers for Covalent Modification of Glass Surfaces and Creation of Soft Magnetic Materials

ABSTRACTA ferrocene‐containing oligoorganosiloxane with a number‐average degree of polymerization of 8.8 and a number‐average molecular weight of 3200 is synthesized by hydrolytic condensation of 3‐aminopropyltriethoxysilane followed by chemical modification of the resulting oligomer with acetylferrocene. Its structure is characterized by MALDI‐TOF, NMR and IR spectroscopy. 1H NMR spectroscopy shows the predominance of more thermodynamically stable units containing anti‐configuration Schiff bases. Using IR spectroscopy as well as experimental determination of surface energy and its polar (acid–base) and dispersion components, the covalent immobilization of ferrocene‐containing oligoorganosiloxane on a glass surface after heating at 110°C is shown. The formed coating provides hydrophobization, acid–base indifference of the glass surface and serves as a precursor for the formation of magnetically soft materials after pyrolysis in argon already at 350°C. The main stages of ferrocene‐containing oligoorganosiloxane thermal destruction in an inert atmosphere and the formation of a mixture of iron and silicon oxides during its thermal oxidative destruction are established by combination of TGA/DTA, IR spectroscopy and elemental analysis. The proposed approach opens up new possibilities for functionalizing silicates surfaces, creating magnetic glasses, as well as regulating surface energy and its components.

Improvement of microwave absorbing capability on the soft magnetic/hard magnetic/perovskite composites

Abstract This paper reports an increase in the ability to absorb microwaves from a composite made of combination between soft and hard magnetic materials, perovskite material, and an epoxy as matrix of composite, Ni0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4/Ba0.6Sr0.4Fe9.5Al0.5MnTiO19/FeTiO3/epoxy (NBFE) with a wt% ratio of 5:3:2:10. Composite samples were made using the mechanical alloying method with milling techniques and sintered at a temperature of 1000 °C for 5 h. NBFE composites were studied to increase the ability to absorb microwaves at 2–18 GHz frequencies with thickness variations of 1 mm and 2 mm. The results obtained, the composite sample Ni0.5Zn0.5Fe2O4/Ba0.6Sr0.4Fe9.5Al0.5MnTiO19/FeTiO3/epoxy has the ability to absorb microwaves with the best reflection loss value −37.47 dB with a bandwidth almost reaches 11.32 GHz in the 2–18 GHz frequency range.

In situ phase engineering during additive manufacturing enables high-performance soft-magnetic medium-entropy alloys

Additive manufacturing (AM) shows promise as a method for producing soft-magnetic multicomponent alloys for use in electric motors and sustainable electromobility applications. However, the simultaneous achievement of a high saturation magnetic flux density (Bs) and a low coercivity (Hc) in AM soft-magnetic materials remains challenging. Herein, we present an approach that integrates an elemental powder mixture of Fe45Co30Ni25 with Fe2O3 nano-oxides, which is then subjected to laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) followed by high-temperature annealing to achieve an FCC-structured Fe45Co30Ni25 MEA/FeO composite. The FeO nanoparticles, a byproduct of the reaction between Fe powders and Fe2O3 nano-oxides, serve as nucleation sites for the formation of a single FCC phase in the MEA matrix. The resulting LPBF MEA/FeO composite has a Bs of 2.05 T and an exceedingly low Hc of 115 A m−1, compared to those of the BCC/FCC dual phase MEA and other state-of-the-art additively manufactured soft-magnetic alloys. In situ Lorentz transmission electron microscope (TEM) revealed that the low Hc of the FCC-structured MEA/FeO composite originates from the reduced pinning effect of grain boundaries in the FCC phase on domain wall movement compared with those in the FCC/BCC dual phase.

Performance enhancement of a magnetoactive elastomer actuator through a coupled magnetoelastic topology optimization scheme

Abstract We have found that considering local magnetic fields, large deformations, and magnetoelastic coupling simultaneously significantly affect the resulting shape in magnetoelastic topology optimization in a uniaxial actuator case. In contrast to the work presented here, other works incorporate magnetoelastic formulations that include simplifying assumptions on the local field, and subsequent effects on the magnetization response of the material, or the absence of large deformation mechanics, or both. These assumptions were shown to produce solutions that differ substantively from cases where local fields and large deformations are addressed concurrently. Magnetoelastic topology optimization schemes are needed to optimize magnetoactive elastomer (MAE) devices. MAE devices are magnetic particle-filled polymer matrices designed for specific actuations and controlled remotely by an external magnetic field. They garner considerable research interest as an emerging technology for actuators in soft robots or in applications requiring untethered actuation. The material properties of MAEs are dependent on the volume fraction of particles in the elastomer matrix, where a high-volume fraction increases relative permeability (for soft magnetic particles) but also increases elastic modulus. For optimal actuation, a tradeoff between low stiffness and high magnetic response must be made by adjusting volume fraction and controlling material placement. Using a topology optimization scheme that considers both the magnetic and mechanical properties of the material, the shape and material composition of the device can be tuned to best achieve the desired actuation displacement. In this work, a density-based magnetoelastic multimaterial topology optimization scheme for soft magnetic material is developed in COMSOL Multiphysics. The optimization scheme uses multiphysics coupling that considers local magnetic fields and large deformations at each iteration through a Maxwell stress tensor formulation. A simulated example is then considered to demonstrate the effectiveness and necessity of a coupled optimization. The effect of considering large deformations during optimization is also investigated. It was found that a coupled topology optimization scheme with large deformations produced shapes with modes of actuation not captured by schemes with simplifying assumptions, leading to better performance at lower material cost. Considering large deformations in the coupled scheme offered significantly better performance, with an increase of 81.3% in a side-by-side performance simulation when compared to uncoupled cases.

Design and Optimization of a Magnetic Field Generator for Magnetic Particle Imaging with Soft Magnetic Materials

Design and Optimization of a Magnetic Field Generator for Magnetic Particle Imaging with Soft Magnetic Materials

Advanced Soft Magnetic Materials for the Development of High-Frequency Magnetic Core Used in Solid-State Transformers

Advanced Soft Magnetic Materials for the Development of High-Frequency Magnetic Core Used in Solid-State Transformers

DESIGN AND FABRICATION OF SHAPE MORPHING MAGNETO-IMPEDANCE MAGNETIC SENSOR

The magnetoimpedance (MI) effect is characterized by the alteration in the impedance of soft magnetic materials when subjected to a magnetic field while a high-frequency alternating current flows through them. In this study, we engineered two distinct sensor architectures utilizing amorphous FeCSi magnetic ribbon: a single-bar structure with the dimension of 10 mm × 90 μm × 20 μm and a meander structure consisting of 13 parallel single bars. These structures were miniaturized through advanced techniques combining laser engraving and chemical etching. The magnetic analysis reveals that the meander structure exhibits a pronounced dependency on the angle θ between the magnetic field and the sensor orientation, enhancing its soft magnetic properties by up to fivefold compared to the single-bar design. This enhancement might be attributed to a reduction in the demagnetization effect and shape anisotropy energy within the meander sensor. Furthermore, the analysis of the MI effect indicates that the resonance frequency remains unaffected by external magnetic fields for both sensor types. Notably, the meander sensor demonstrates exceptional MI ratio values exceeding 82%, representing a remarkable 24-fold increase over the 3.5% observed in the single-bar sensor. Additionally, the isotropy - quantified as the MI ratio's dependence on angle θ, and magnetic field sensitivity are significantly improved in the meander configuration. These advancements in soft magnetic and physical properties are correlated to the domain structure of the sensor, particularly its transverse magnetic permeability, as evidenced by micromagnetic simulations conducted using Mumax3. With its superior MI ratio, isotropy, and heightened magnetic field sensitivity, the meander-type magnetic field sensor presents substantial potential for applications across diverse fields, ranging from biological systems to specialized practical missions.

MHz High Performance of Soft Magnetic Composite with Ordered Domain Structure for Efficient Conversion of Electrical Energy

AbstractSoft magnetic materials are a core element of power electronics and electrical machines. However, none of the soft magnetic materials is able to exploit the full potential of wide bandgap semiconductors, which operate above MHz frequency for efficient energy conversion in power electronic systems. Here, a high‐performance Fe–Si soft magnetic composites with a 2D ordered domain structure are reported, enabling efficient energy conversion at MHz frequencies. By transforming spherical particles into flakes and arranging them in layers, 2D magnetic domains are created within the composite. This leads to a 90% increase in permeability and a tenfold decrease in loss at 3 MHz compared to composite made with spherical particles. The significantly increased cut‐off frequency indicates that the ordered flaky particles are suitable for MHz applications, unlike the disordered spherical particles. These findings provide an effective approach for fabricating high performance soft magnetic composites from traditional spherical particles and miniaturizing magnetic devices for efficient power electronics operation.