A new study by researchers at the Erich Schmid Institute of Materials Science, Austrian Academy of Sciences, in collaboration with the Institute of Materials Science, Joining and Forming at Graz University of Technology, has been published in Materials Research Letters.

For the first time, the magnetic α-MnBi phase was directly synthesized using laser powder bed fusion (LPBF) of elemental Mn and Bi powder mixtures, establishing a novel additive manufacturing route for rare-earth-free bulk magnetic materials. The study presents a systematic analysis of the influence of printing parameters on α-MnBi phase formation, microstructure, and resulting magnetic properties. In the as-printed state, up to 50 wt.% α-MnBi phase was obtained, with further increases achieved through subsequent annealing. Notably, the magnetic properties showed significant improvement at elevated temperatures compared to ambient conditions, underlining the potential of MnBi as a high-temperature permanent magnet material. This work was carried out in close collaboration with Christof Sommitsch and Siegfried Arneitz from Graz University of Technology, combining expertise in additive manufacturing and materials characterisation to open new pathways for the development of sustainable, rare-earth-free magnetic materials.

The full article is available here.