Microwave absorption properties of FeSiBNbCu glass-covered amorphous wires

Coaxially dielectric samples consisting of different packing ratios of glass-covered Fe_73.5Si_13.5B₉Nb₃Cu₁ amorphous wires embedded in a paraffin wax matrix were fabricated, and the influence of short-wire packing ratio (3%-9% in mass fraction) and thickness (1-7 mm) on the microwave absorption properties was systematically investigated in microwave frequency range of 2-18 GHz. X-ray diffraction (XRD), differential scanning calorimetry (DSC), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and scalar network analyzer (SNA) were used for characterizing microstructure and evaluating microwave absorption properties. Experimental results show the significant frequency (6-18 GHz) dependence of the complex relative permeability and permittivity. The reflection loss (RL) with different thickness and short-wire packing ratio reveals that the composite sample containing 7% exhibits better microwave absorption behavior with its minimum value of RL reaching -34 dB in thickness of 3 mm at 14 GHz. Therefore, it is significantly useful to develop microwire-dielectric materials with much wider absorption band for microwave absorption applications.