The devitrification of FeSiB-XNb (X = Pd,Pt) amorphous alloys has been
investigated by the combined use of calorimetric, thermomagnetic, X-r
ay diffraction and electron microscopy techniques. Substitution of Cu
by Pd or Pt modifies the crystallization properties. In the first stag
e, beginning around 840 K, alpha-Fe(Si) and t-Fe3B phases are formed.
Precipitation of the bce Fe(Si) phase does not show the kinetics found
in Finemet-type alloys. The Fe2B phase is formed during a second stag
e but Fe3B subsists over a range of annealing temperatures. (C) 1998 E
lsevier Science B.V. AU rights reserved.