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Neodymium Magnet

Electrical Engineering

Neodymium magnets are permanent magnets made from an alloy of neodymium, iron and boron in a tetragonal crystal structure, and they are the strongest type of permanent magnet in commercial production. General Motors and Sumitomo Special Metals developed them independently in 1984 as researchers sought a cheaper alternative to expensive samarium-cobalt magnets. Their exceptional field strength for their size has let them replace older magnet types across modern electronics and machinery: electric motors in cordless tools and hybrid or electric vehicles, hard-disk-drive actuators, loudspeakers and headphones, wind-turbine generators, and the strong fields used in MRI scanners. This description is adapted from Wikipedia contributors under CC BY-SA 4.0; changes were made. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

Facts
Primary UseSourced to the subject's own account
Electric motors in cordless tools and hybrid or electric vehicles; hard-disk-drive actuators; loudspeakers and headphones; wind-turbine generators; MRI scanner magnets. 1
Origin YearSourced to the subject's own account
1984 1
Classification
Material ClassSourced to the subject's own account
Metal 1
Connections

Associated With

Electric Motor, Inventions

Neodymium magnets enable compact high-torque permanent-magnet motors.

Hard Disk Drive, Inventions

Neodymium magnets drive the voice-coil actuator that positions a hard disk drive head.

Source Neodymium Magnet (Wikipedia)
Sintering, Methods
Wind Turbine, Inventions

Direct-drive wind turbine generators often use neodymium permanent magnets.

In Field

Sources
1. Neodymium Magnet (Wikipedia)
Wikipedia
  • History section
    They have replaced other types of magnets in many applications in modern products that require strong permanent magnets, such as electric motors in cordless tools, hard disk drives and magnetic fasteners.
  • Corrosion section
    This vulnerability is addressed in many commercial products by adding a protective coating to prevent exposure to the atmosphere. Nickel, nickel-copper-nickel and zinc platings are the standard methods, although plating with other metals, or polymer and lacquer protective coatings, are also in use.
  • material-class sentence
    Neodymium magnets are permanent magnets made from an alloy of neodymium, iron and boron in a tetragonal crystal structure, and they are the strongest type of permanent magnet in commercial production.
  • Associated With: Magnetic Resonance Imaging, Applications section
    The strength and magnetic field homogeneity of neodymium magnets has also opened new applications in the medical field with the introduction of open magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners used to image the body in radiology departments as an alternative to superconducting magnets that use a coil of superconducting wire to produce the magnetic field.
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