UC Riverside

Rare-earth elements possess unique magnetic, optical, and electronic properties, making them essential components in modern technologies, including but not limited to, electronics, renewable energy systems, and telecommunications. However, the supply of rare-earth elements is limited, and their extraction and processing can have significant environmental impact. Addressing this challenge is the exploration of new magnetic compounds which aims to reduce dependence on rare-earth elements. The research presented in this study focuses on the synthesis and characterization of new metal-rich borides, exploring their potential as possible magnets. Because of the versatility of metal borides, these compounds have applications in fields such as permanent magnets, superconductors, and conductive ceramics. The Ti3Co5B2 structure-type is one of many metal-rich borides that represents an effort to search for magnetic materials that could replace the rare-earth elements. Consisting of a layered arrangement of titanium, cobalt, and boron atoms, this compound can introduce magnetically active elements. New quinary members based on this structure, Hf2Fe1-Ir5-x+RuxB2 (x = 1-4, VE = 63-66), were synthesized and investigated for the possibility of magnetic tuning using non-magnetic elements. All compounds exhibited intrinsic soft to semi-hard magnetic behaviors with notable hysteresis even at room temperature. Another metal-rich boride, Ti2FeOs3B3, was synthesized to understand its structural and magnetic characteristics. This compound features isolated boron, B4 zigzag fragments, iron dumbbell chains, and osmium. Coupled with theoretical calculations, this work contributes to the understanding of complex magnetic interactions. Finally, by leveraging computational techniques, the exploration of new compounds such as Hf2FeOs5B2 and Hf2MnOs5B2 within the Ti3Co5B2 structure-type has been investigated. By predicting and understanding these new materials, their potential suitability can be discerned.