Towards the Development of Coercivity by Low Temperature Densification of Nd(Fe,Mo)12N Intermetallic Compounds

REFe12 intermetallics (RE being a rare earth) are considered as the strongest candidates for alternative high-performance permanent magnet material, thanks to the combination of high magnetocrystalline anisotropy, high Curie temperature and moderate saturation magnetization. However, the development of a well-adapted microstructure, including a paramagnetic/non-magnetic intergranular phase with low melting point, as in the case of NdFeB magnets, is necessary in order to develop the coercivity and remanent magnetization. In the case of Nd-based 1:12 compounds, the densification may prove to be difficult due to the necessity of nitrinding the compounds, which conducts to a strong reduction of the stability of the 1:12 phase, as the decomposition temperature of the nitride is strongly reduced. In this work we present a study on the low temperature densification of the Nd(Fe,Mo)12N compound promoted by a low melting intergranular phase, as is the case of Nd-Cu or La-Cu.