•Recycled NdFeB magnets are proposed as a cost effective, sustainable alternative to virgin NdFeB.•Electrical transport and magnetic properties are compared for recycled vs. virgin NdFeB magnets.•Surface morphology and magnetic structure are similar for the recycled and virgin NdFeB magnet.•A 27% enhancement in resistivity is measured in the recycled magnet.•The Grain Boundary Engineering technique is proven to enhance the resistivity of NdFeB alloys.Recycled NdFeB magnets are emerging as a viable alternative to virgin NdFeB, because of lower production costs and environmental impacts. Recycled NdFeB magnets produced via the recently reported magnet-to-magnet (m2 m™) recycling process display unanticipated enhancements of magnetic and physical properties that may arise because of their unique microstructure. In the present study, we compare electrical transport and magnetic properties of these recycled magnets (Grade: N42SH, Br = 1289 mT, Hcj = 1876 kA/m, BHmax = 323.4 kJ/m3, Dy content = 4.0 wt%) with an equivalent grade of commercial NdFeB magnet produced from virgin material by conventional techniques (Grade: N42SH, Br = 1215 mT, Hcj = 1943 kA/m, BHmax = 285.0 kJ/m3, with Dy content = 4.6 wt%). Atomic force microscopy (AFM) and magnetic force microscopy (MFM) analyses revealed very similar surface morphology and magnetic structure for the virgin and recycled samples. However, bulk electrical transport measurements demonstrated a 27% enhancement in the resistivity of the recycled magnets. This suggests that the electrical properties of NdFeB alloys are enhanced during Grain Boundary Engineering™ (GBE™). Moreover, point-contact measurements, used to probe the electrical transport properties on the microscopic scale, found similar results to those of the bulk measurements.

We study spin–torque-driven ferromagnetic resonance (ST-FMR) in point contacts. Point contacts as small as a few nanometers in size are used to inject microwave currents into F/N/F spin valves where two ferromagnetic (F) layers are separated by a nonmagnetic (N) metal spacer. High densities of injected currents produce the spin-transfer torque on magnetic moments and drive FMR in the F-layers. The resonance is detected electrically when a small rectified dc voltage appears across the point contact. Here we focus on the origin of this rectified signal and study ST-FMR in point contacts to spin valves with different ferromagnets (Py and Co) and single ferromagnetic (Py) films, as well as in spin-valve wires patterned by electron beam lithography. We find that this voltage can be explained by the resistance variations which originate from giant magnetoresistance in point contacts to spin valves and involve effects of anisotropic magnetoresistance and extraordinary Hall effect on the propagation of microwave currents in continuous F-films and microwires.