Particle dimension effects on magnetization and strain sensitivity for a composite of nickel particles in silicone matrix

Samples of composite material made of Ni ellipsoidal particles (with a fixed eccentricity but different major axis dimensions) uniformly dispersed in a silicone matrix were produced and characterized by both magnetization cycles and strain sensitivity of magnetization tests. It was theoretically justified and experimentally shown that at constant Ni percentage, in the case of nanometric size particles, higher coercive and saturation fields and a higher strain sensitivity of the magnetization intensity in comparison with the case of micrometric particles are obtained.