Abstract
Magnetic and magnetocaloric effects of (Mn1-x Fex) 5 Ge3 compounds are studied systematically. The maximum of magnetic entropy changes of 8.01 J/kg K under an external field change of 5 T is obtained for (Mn0.9 Fe0.1) 5 Ge3, which is the largest value in Mn5 Ge3 -based solid solutions. Moreover, the Fe substitution increases the refrigeration capacity (RC) value greatly. The largest RC value of 237 J/kg in (Mn0.8 Fe0.2) 5 Ge3 even compares favorably to that of many well-known magnetic refrigeration materials. Thus the Fe-containing (Mn1-x Fex) 5 Ge3 compounds are much-improved magnetic refrigerants for the application of room-temperature magnetic refrigeration. The increase of the RC value is probably resulted from the formation of magnetic nanostructure.
Original language | English |
---|---|
Article number | 123911 |
Journal | Journal of Applied Physics |
Volume | 101 |
Issue number | 12 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 2007 |
Externally published | Yes |
Funding
This work has been supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China under Grant No. 50332020.