Speaker
Description
Understanding and controlling the microstructure of soft magnetic nanocrystalline materials is crucial since it strongly influences the material's magnetic properties, such as coercivity, permeability, and saturation magnetization. By meticulously tailoring the grain size and size distribution, one can minimize energy losses, optimize performance, and enhance the material's efficiency in various applications, including transformers, inductors, and electric motors. In essence, mastering microstructure paves the way for superior magnetic behavior, enabling advancements in energy-efficient technologies.
X-ray diffraction (XRD) is a powerful and non-destructive technique for characterizing the microstructure of materials. By examining the broadening of diffraction peaks, which occurs due to the finite size of the grains, XRD enables the calculation of grain sizes with high accuracy. This information is crucial for understanding the material's properties and performance, as grain size strongly influences magnetic properties [1].
This work is focused on design and verification of an iterative convolution algorithm that serves to determine the true shape of the diffraction profiles after eliminating the instrumental contribution due to its insufficient angular resolution. The proposed algorithm was verified on synchrotron X-ray diffraction patterns acquired on the Vitroperm alloy. Test specimens with two different nanocrystalline states were prepared by isothermal annealing of the amorphous precursor at $520$ °C for $30$ and $150$ minutes. The profiles of Bragg peaks, adjusted for instrumental broadening, were used to determine the average grain sizes of the nanocrystalline Fe$_3$Si phase. Results obtained from a novel iterative convolution algorithm are promising, demonstrating some advantages over deconvolution-based techniques.
Acknowledgements
This study was funded by the EU NextGenerationEU through the Recovery and Resilience Plan for Slovakia under the project No. 09I03-03-V03-00034.
References
[1] G. Herzer, “Nanocrystalline soft magnetic materials,” Journal of Magnetism and Magnetic Materials, vol. 157–158. Elsevier BV, pp. 133–136, May 1996. https://doi.org/10.1016/0304-8853(95)01126-9
