This standard is intended to classify commercially available magnetic materials and should not be read as a technical specification.
The term "magnetic materials" denotes substances where the application requires the existence of ferromagnetic or ferrimagnetic properties.
In this standard, the classification of magnetic materials is based upon the generally recognized existence of two* main groups of products:
— Soft magnetic materials (coercivity < 1 000 A/m).
— H?rd magnetic materials (coercivity > 1 000 A/m).
Within these main groups, the classification when appropriate recognizes the following character-istics:
— The main alloying element and the physical state and properties of the material.
— When possible and convenient, the relationship between these characteristics is identified.
A classification by specific areas of application cannot be applied to all materials because different materials can very often be used for the same application depending on the characteristics required.
In the general classification of magnetic materials which follows, the nomenclature and values employed are those sanctioned by usage.