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The Rapid Development of Neodymium Iron Boron Permanent Magnets in China during the 1980s and 1990s and Its Impact on the World
Thu, July 16, 2:30 to 4:00pm, Edinburgh Futures Institute, 1.60English Abstract
The research and development of neodymium iron boron (“Nd-Fe-B”) permanent magnets saw breakthroughs in China in 1984. The success of the technology of using low-purity Nd not only helped Chinese-made Nd-Fe-B permanent magnets reach a high cost-performance ratio, but also shaped China’s rare-earth industry for decades. This report emphatically investigates the important role played by a number of transnational factors since the 1970s in the development of the Nd-Fe-B technology in China, including the exploitation of rare earth mines in China, the introduction of the physics of amorphous solids into the country, Sino-French scientific and technological exchanges and cooperation, the plans to build BEPC and the subsequent BSRF in the field of high energy physics in Beijing, and the development of Alpha Magnetic Spectrometers in the United States. As China has participated more actively in the globalization of contemporary sciences since the 1970s, the quick development of physics of amorphous solids and Nd-Fe-B magnets serves as a representative case study for how the development of new industries has been boosted by advancements in contemporary physics in China.