Solidification experiments of aluminum-nickel binary alloys under uniform high magnetic fields have been conducted. The effects of high magnetic fields on the crystal orientation of Al3Ni were investigated by XRD and the alignment of primary phases Al3Ni were also analyzed. Experimental results showed that the easy magnetization axis of Al3Ni crystal oriented parallel to the imposed magnetic fields and the primary phase Al3Ni aligned perpendicular to the magnetic fields. Magnetic orientation of crystal was determined by magnetic anisotropy energy. Whereas the phase alignment should be contributed to the combined effects of magnetic orientation, crystal growth and the effects of magnetic fields on mass transport during solidification. (c) 2007 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.