Sintering studies of rare-earth iron laves phase magnetostrictive compounds

Powder metallurgical techniques were used to prepare high density rare-earth iron Laves phase based magnetostrictive alloys. The rare-earth content of the alloys must be in excess of the stoichiometric composition in order to prevent the formation of oxygen stabilized intermetallic compounds. Solid state sintering leads to low density products. High density can be achieved by employing a liquid phase sintering approach. The magnetostrictive properties of the sintered products are comparable to those reported on cast samples.