The magnetic properties of MMCo5 (MM=Mischmetal) nanoflakes prepared by multistep (three steps) surfactant-assisted ball milling

The hard magnetic MMCo5 nanoflakes with high coercivity and narrow size distribution have been successfully obtained by three steps surfactant-assisted ball milling (SABM). The magnetic properties, phase structure and morphology of these MMCo5 nanoflakes were studied in this work. The coercivity and the remanence ratio of MMCo5 nanoflakes reached to 5.89 kOe and 0.75, respectively. The X-ray powder diffraction (XRD) patterns indicated that the MMCo5 nanoflakes were CaCu5-type hexagonal crystal structure. The average thickness, in-plane size and aspect ratio reached to 20 nm, 0.9 μm and 60, respectively. The low cost and great properties of MMCo5 nanoflakes with a centralized thickness distribution could be the building blocks for the future high-performance nanocomposite permanent magnets with an enhanced energy product.