Extended x-ray absorption fine structure study on amorphous Nd–Fe–B alloys

The local structure and crystallization behavior of Nd15Fe77Bxx = 2−14) melt-spun alloys were studied by Nd L3 extended x-ray absorption fine structure (EXAFS). The conventional x-ray powder diffractometry studies showed that the Nd–Fe–B melt-spun ribbons had the amorphous structure regardless of the boron content. EXAFS studies of the local structure around the Nd atom confirmed that the Nd–Fe–B melt-spun alloys had the amorphous structure and virtually the same nearest neighbor distance from the Nd atom. The amorphous alloys were heated by a differential scanning calorimetry in order to investigate the variation in the local structure during the crystallization process by EXAFS measurements. Although no appreciable difference was found in the nearest neighbor distance of the Nd atom between the amorphous alloys and the crystallized alloys, the small variation in the nearest neighbor distance during the crystallization process was detected by EXAFS measurements.