Microstructure and properties of high strength, high conductivity and magnetic Cu–10Fe-0.4Si alloy

Abstract The effect of Si on the microstructure and properties of Cu–10Fe alloy was systematically studied in this paper. By adding 0.4 wt% Si to Cu–10Fe alloy, the mechanical properties, electric conductivity, thermal conductivity, saturation magnetization and electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness are significantly improved. After 90% cold rolling and 450 °C/32 h heat treatment, the electrical conductivity, thermal conductivity, tensile strength, elongation and electromagnetic interference shielding effectiveness of Cu–10Fe-0.4Si alloy are 68.02 %IACS, 304 W/(m·K), 521 MPa, 29.6% and 107.4 dB, respectively. Microstructure observation shown that FCC FeSi phases formed in two different sizes and the precipitation of the Fe atoms was promoted in Cu–10Fe-0.4Si alloy, which lead to the simultaneously improvement of conductivity, strength and magnetic properties. This high-strength, high-conductivity and magnetic Cu–Fe alloy has great application potential in electromagnetic shielding and other fields.