Crystal structure and magnetic properties of SmCo6.6Nb0.4 nanoflakes prepared by surfactant-assisted ball milling

SmCo6.6Nb0.4 nanoflakes with TbCu7 structure were successfully prepared by surfactant-assisted high energy ball milling (SA-HEBM) with heptane and oleic acid as milling medium. The microstructure, crystal structure and magnetic properties were studied by scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and vibrating sample magnetometer, respectively. The effects of ball milling time on the c-axis crystallographic alignment and coercivity of the nanoflakes were systematically investigated. The research showed that the nanoflakes had an average thickness of 100 nm, an average diameter of 1 μm, with an aspect ratio as high as 100. As the ball milling time increased from 2 to 8 h, the reflection peaks intensity ratio I(002)/I(101), which indicated the degree of c-axis crystal texture of the SmCo6.6Nb0.4 phase, increased first, reached a peak at 4 h, and then decreased. Meanwhile, the coercivity of the nanoflakes also increased first, reached a peak at 13.86 kOe for 4 h, and then decreased.