Micromagnets in the form of microwires have become a subject of interest in various applications including magnetic field bias elements in miniature actuators, sensors, and manipulators. While the preparation of… Click to show full abstract
Micromagnets in the form of microwires have become a subject of interest in various applications including magnetic field bias elements in miniature actuators, sensors, and manipulators. While the preparation of hard magnetic microwires with sufficiently high magnetization is a difficult task, it can be achieved by using specific crystallization techniques. We present a technique for the fabrication of micromagnets via controlled heat treatment of amorphous microwires using an electrical current. This crystallization technique converts a Co-rich microwire from a soft to a hard magnetic material. A large increase in coercivity (up to 580 Oe) is obtained after optimal current annealing (100 mA during 30–60 min). The crystallization consists of fine grains of mainly hcp-Co with an average size of 74 nm.
               
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