Magnetic hardening in Cu-Mn-Al alloys

The magnetic and structural properties of Cu42Mn25Al33 and Cu44Mn25Al31 alloys have been examined in as-cast and heat-treated samples. Magnetic hardening was achieved by heat treating the as-cast samples at 300°C, where they developed two finely dispersed phases identified as the ferromagnetic Heusler phase and the nonmagnetic gammaCu-Al phase. A maximum coercive field of 8 kOe was obtained in a heat-treated Cu44Mn25Al31 sample. Single domain particle behavior is suggested to explained the observed magnetic hysteresis.