Very low core loss, low hysteresis and therefore low signal distortion. Very good temperature stability. High cost. Maximum saturation flux of about 0.8 tesla. Used in high-Q filters, resonant circuits, loading coils, transformers, chokes, etc. The material was first introduced in 1940, used in loading coils to compensate capacitance in long telephone lines. It is usable up to about 200 kHz to 1 MHz, depending on vendor. It is still used in above-ground telephone lines, due to its temperature stability. Underground lines, where temperature is more stable, tend to use ferrite cores due to their lower cost. An alloy of about 50–50% of nickel and iron. High energy storage, saturation flux density of about 1.5 tesla. Residual flux density near zero. Used in applications with high DC current bias (line noise filters, or inductors in switching regulators) or where low residual flux density is needed (e.g. pulse and flyback transformers, the high saturation is suitable for unipolar drive), especially where space is constrained. The material is usable up to about 200 kHz. An alloy of 6% aluminium, 9% silicon, and 85% iron. Core losses higher than MPP. Very low magnetostriction, makes low audio noise. Loses inductance with increasing temperature, unlike the other materials; can be exploited by combining with other materials as a composite core, for temperature compensation. Saturation flux of about 1 tesla. Good temperature stability. Used in switching power supplies, pulse and flyback transformers, in-line noise filters, swing chokes, and in filters in phase-fired controllers (e.g. dimmers) where low acoustic noise is important. Absence of nickel results in easier processing of the material and its lower cost than both high-flux and MPP. The material was invented in Japan in 1936. It is usable up to about 500 kHz to 1 MHz, depending on vendor. A nanocrystalline alloy of a standard iron-boron-silicon alloy, with addition of smaller amounts of copper and niobium. The grain size of the powder reaches down to 10-100 nanometers. The material has very good performance at lower frequencies. It is used in chokes for inverters and in high power applications. It is available under names like e.g. Nanoperm, Vitroperm, Hitperm and Finemet. Ferrite ceramics are used for high-frequency applications.