Simultaneously improving mechanical and magnetic properties through heterogeneous lamella structures in a superalloy-like, soft magnetic complex concentrated alloy

Heterogeneous lamella (HL) structures were produced via simple processing steps in a FeCoNi-based complex concentrated alloy (CCA) with superalloy-like FCC/L12 microstructure. Compared to the homogeneous-structured control specimens, the HL-structured specimens exhibited synergic enhancements in strengths and ductility (with σy up to 1 GPa, σu up to 1.4 GPa, and ϵt up to 16.5%), and at the same time, higher saturation magnetization and lower coercivity (with Ms up to 104 Am2 kg−1 and Hc as low as 833 A/m). The results obtained in this study provide insights to enhancing mechanical properties in structural soft magnetic materials without sacrificing their magnetic properties. GRAPHICAL ABSTRACT IMPACT STATEMENT The current work presents a simple and effective strategy that can be applied to soft magnetic alloys with superalloy-like microstructures for simultaneous enhancements of mechanical and magnetic properties.