Effects of minor Sn addition on the glass formation and properties of Fe-metalloid metallic glasses with high magnetization and high glass forming ability

Effects of minor Sn addition on the glass-forming ability (GFA) as well as thermal, magnetic, and mechanical properties of Fe-P-C-B-Si bulk metallic glasses (BMGs) with compositions of Fe_80-xSn_xP₉C₈B₂Si₁ (x=0, 1, 2 and 3 at%) were investigated. The minor Sn substitution for Fe effectively enhances the GFA. The fully glassy rods can be produced up to 3 and 3.5 mm in diameter for the alloys with 1 and 2 at% Sn addition, respectively. Moreover, these Sn-containing BMGs exhibit good soft magnetic properties including high saturation magnetization (M_s) of 1.46-1.51 T, low coercivity (H_c) of 3.8-5.0 A/m and good mechanical properties, i.e., high fracture strength (σ_f) above 3.2 GPa and limited plastic strain (ε_p) above 0.4%. The combination of large GFA, good soft magnetic and mechanical properties as well as low cost makes the Fe-Sn-P-C-B-Si BMGs promising as soft magnetic materials for industrial applications.