An unusual diamagnetic response is observed in a Pr60Al10Ni10Cu16Fe4 bulk metallic glass (BMG) during the zero-field-cooled (ZFC) magnetization measurement. The ZFC magnetization of the BMG is found to reverse its direction at low temperature and becomes diamagnetic, whereas the field-cooled branch remains positive. This apparent diamagnetism is ascribed to the specific couple between the ferromagnetic nanoparticles and the amorphous matrix in low fields. Besides, in superconductors, a giant diamagnetic response is unusual in magnetic materials. Therefore, it may simulate scientific and technological interest.

A two-dimensional (2D) thin film composed of Tb nanocrystals with uniform orientations is fabricated directly from Tb65Fe25Al10 alloy melt upon quenching. The Tb nanocrystals with vertical height of 15–30 nm and lateral width of 10–20 nm are assembled in the nanocrystalline array on an amorphous substrate. The formation mechanism for the aligned Tb nanocrystals is discussed. The single-step formation method may provide a new and flexible alternative to fabricate nanostructured films or arrays used for submicron devices.

The phenomenon of inverted hysteresis loop has been observed in many materials for the past decades. However, the physical origin of the inverted hysteresis loop has long been debated. Here, we report the completely inverted hysteresis loop with a clockwise cycle in the soft-magnetic nanocrystalline Fe73.5Cu1Nb3Si13.5B9 alloy and amorphous Fe73.5Cu1Nb3Si13.5B9 alloy at room temperature. The negative remanence and positive coercivity were observed in the descending branch of magnetization curve when the scan field range was above 1 KOe. By comparing the results with that of the standard Pd sample, we found that the net coercivities of the nanocrystalline Fe73.5Cu1Nb3Si13.5B9 alloy and standard Pd sample are almost equal for the different scanning field ranges. Therefore, it is confirmed that the phenomenon of completely inverted hysteresis loop is caused by the remanence of superconducting magnet rather than the structural inhomogeneity effects. Our results suggest that special care should be taken during the measurement of hysteresis loops using MPMS 3, especially for the materials with small coercivity.