Effect of deformation and annealing on the microstructure and magnetic properties of grain-oriented electrical steels

The effect of plastic deformation and subsequent annealing on the magnetic properties and microstructure of a grain-oriented (GO) electrical steel has been studied. True strain (ε) from 0.002 to 0.23 was applied by rolling in two directions, rolling (RD) and transverse (TD). The deterioration of power losses varies according to the direction of deformation. Annealing the strained material—at 800 °C/2 h—leads to a recrystallization and restored magnetic properties. The main components of annealed-textures are around 15–35° from those of deformed-textures for both RD and TD. Rolling along {1 1 0} 〈0 0 1〉 direction leads to the development of deformation twins.