Preparation of Fe–Pt alloy particles by pulsed laser ablation in liquid medium

Fe–Pt alloy particles were prepared by pulsed laser ablation in degassed hexane and deionized water. The atomic composition of the obtained binary metal particles significantly depended on the liquid media. Fe23Pt77 close to FePt3 and Fe38Pt62 which contributed to the L10 phase formation were produced in hexane, however only Fe26Pt74 close to FePt3 was produced in water. The absence of oxygen atoms in the molecule of the liquid medium was important because oxidation of iron species led to deviation from stoichiometric alloying. As-prepared particles produced in hexane had a random phase that was changed to the L10 phase by heat treatment at temperatures higher than 773 K.