Fabrication of Fe-based bulk metallic glass by selective laser melting: A parameter study

Highlights: • Successful synthesis of 3-dimensional fully glassy components using SLM • Components have same thermal and intrinsic magnetic properties as parent powders. • Relative densities of the SLM samples reach values of about 99.7%. - Abstract: Soft magnetic Fe-based bulk metallic glass cylindrical specimens with a diameter of 2 mm and height of 6 mm have been successfully fabricated by selective laser melting (SLM) and the effect of scan speed v and laser power P on the microstructure, thermal stability and soft magnetic properties has been investigated. The results indicate that low v and high P lead to the formation of SLM samples with high relative densities, which can reach values of about 99.7%. This can be ascribed to the optimal energy transfer during processing at low v and high P. Structural and calorimetric studies prove that the SLM samples are fully amorphous. In addition, magnetic measurements reveal that the amorphous structure of the SLM material is identical to the parent atomized powders. Although additional work is required to remove the residual porosity and to avoid the formation of cracks during processing, the present results confirm that additive manufacturing by SLM represents an alternative processing route for the preparation of bulk metallic glass components with designed geometry having excellent magnetic softness.