Development of high-quality ceramic powders for Sr0.9Ca 0.1Zn2-W type hexagonal ferrite for permanent magnet devices

Fine ceramic powders of Sr_0.9Ca_0.1Zn₂ Fe₁₆O₂₇ (Sr_0.9Ca_0.1Zn ₂-W) ferrite, of almost single domain grain size ~1 μm, have been synthesized successfully by sintering for a few hours a mixture of SrCO₃, CaCO₃, ZnO, and α-Fe₂ O₃ in stoichiometric amounts at an effectively low temperature (T_s) of ~1100°C. Carbon dioxide evolves in the reaction Sr(Ca)CO₃+2ZnO+8 α-Fe₂D₃ &lrarr2;Sr(Ca)Zn₂Fe₁₆O₂+C₂ , making fine pores in the sample, which prevent large grain growth of the material and result in a very loose powder. The small ⩽10% substitution of Sr by Ca activates the reaction, but preserves the crystallization of the small-sized grains. This yields magnetic properties useful for most permanent magnet applications, with a promisingly high coercivity H_c~3650 Oe and saturation magnetization M_s~65 emu/g. A considerably better saturation magnetization M_s~85 emu/g can be obtained by sintering the samples at higher T_s~1300°C, but that results in a rather very low coercivity H_c~105 Oe