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Thermomagnetic generators enable the conversion of low-grade waste heat into electric energy. The performance of a generator is intimately connected with the active thermomagnetic material used. Heusler alloys had been proposed as ideal systems for thermomagnetic microsystems, as they comprise a tuneable transition temperature just above room temperature, a steep change of magnetization within a narrow temperature change, a low heat capacity, and are easily processable by common deposition techniques. In this work, we present a path to optimize Heusler films for thermomagnetic applications, which need different properties compared to magnetocaloric applications. We focus on the key thermomagnetic properties like 1) the thermomagnetic working temperature T* and 2) the change of magnetization with the change of temperature ∆M/∆T and correlate them with common properties like 3) crystal structure, 4) martensitic transition temperature, 5) Curie temperature and 6) spontaneous magnetization M0073. We systematically examine all these properties on polycrystalline Ni-Mn-Ga-Cu films prepared by combinatorial sputter deposition and subjected to a heat treatment. Our analysis allows disentangling the effects in changing the number of valence electrons trough the addition of Cu and the alteration of chemical order before and after heat treatment.

We used the Taylor–Ulitovsky technique to prepare nanocrystalline Co2MnGe Heusler alloy glass-coated microwires with a metallic nucleus diameter of 18 ± 0.1 µm and a total diameter of 27.2 ± 0.1 µm. Magnetic and structural studies were carried out to determine the fundamental magneto-structural characteristics of Co2MnGe glass-coated microwires. XRD revealed a well-defined nanocrystalline structure with an average grain size of about 63 nm, lattice parameter a = 5.62 and a unique mixture of L21 and B2 phases. The hysteresis loops measured at different temperatures indicated a well-known ferromagnetic behavior for the reduced remanent, where a monotonic increasing in the reduced remanent and saturation magnetization occurs. The coercivity shows anomalous behavior compared to the Co2Mn-based glass-coated microwires. The magnetization curves for field cooling and field heating (FC–FH) demonstrate a considerable dependence on the applied magnetic field, ranging from 50 Oe to 20 kOe. Internal stresses, originated by the production process, resulted in various magnetic phases, which were responsible for the notable difference of FC and FH curves on magnetization dependence versus temperature. Furthermore, the ferromagnetic behavior and expected high Curie temperature, together with high degree of the L21 order, make it a promising candidate for many applications.

In the current study, we concentrated on the influence of annealing on the magnetic behavior of Co2MnSi-based Heusler microwires. We set the annealing temperature at 1023 K for 2 h, as the sample did not show any significant changes in the magnetic properties at lower temperatures, while annealing at temperatures above 1023 K damages the glass coating. Strong in-plane magnetocrystalline anisotropy parallel to the microwire axis was evident in the magnetic behavior at room temperature for as-prepared and annealed samples. The coercivity of the annealed sample was four times higher than that of the as-prepared sample across a wide range of measuring temperatures. Both annealed and as-prepared samples exhibit quite stable coercivity behavior with temperature, which may have interesting applications. The an nealed sample did not exhibit magnetic saturation for M-H loops measured below 50 K. Sharp irreversible magnetic behavior has been detected for annealed samples at a blocking temperature of 220 K; at the same time, the blocking temperature for the as-prepared sample was 150 K. The strong internal mechanical stress induced during the fabrication of Co2MnSi microwires in addition to the internal stress relaxation caused by the annealing induced the onset of magnetic phases resulting in unusual and irreversible magnetic behavior.

In this study, we experimentally investigated quaternary Heusler alloys Co2−xVxFeGe with 0≤x≤1 prepared by arc melting and annealing, and showed that they are promising candidates for spintronics applications. Single phase microstructures were observed for V compositions from x=0.25 to x=0.625. Other V concentrations were multi-phased. All single phase samples had a face centered cubic crystal structure with a lattice constant that increased linearly with the V concentration. The low-temperature saturation magnetic moments were shown to obey the Slater–Pauling rule of thumb for half-metals, which is a prerequisite for half metallicity. All alloys had high Curie temperatures, which scaled linearly with the saturation magnetic moment, thereby facilitating applications at room temperature and above. Electrical transport measurements were performed to elucidate the electronic structures of the alloys. The temperature dependence of the electrical resistivity was analyzed and discussed in the framework of the two-current conduction model by considering the existence of an energy gap in the electronic spectrum around the Fermi level of the spin down sub-band. High mechanical hardness values were also observed.

The novel all-d-metal Ni(Co)MnTi based magnetic Heusler alloys provide an adjustable giant magnetocaloric effect and good mechanical properties. We report that the second-order magnetic phase transition can be tailored in this all-d-metal NiCoMnTi based Heusler system by optimizing the Mn/Ti ratio, resulting in a reversible ferromagnetic-to-paramagnetic magnetic transition. A candidate material Ni33Co17Mn30Ti20 with a magnetic entropy change ∆Sm of 2.3 Jkg−1K−1 for a magnetic field change of 0–5 T, has been identified. The TC and saturation magnetization MS can be controlled by adjusting the Ni/Co concentration and doping non-magnetic Cu atoms. The compositional maps of TC and MS have been established. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveal a direct correlation between the magnetic moments and the Co content. By combining XRD, SQUID, SEM and DFT calculations, the (micro)structural and magnetocaloric properties have been investigated systematically. This study provides a detailed insight in the magnetic phase transition for this all-d-metal Ni(Co)MnTi-based Heusler alloy system., RST/Fundamental Aspects of Materials and Energy

With less energy consumption and environmental pollution, electrochemical ammonia synthesis is regarded as the most promising way to replace the industrial Haber-Bosch process, which greatly contributes to global energy consumption and CO2 emission. At present, the best metal electrocatalyst for N2 fixation is ruthenium although its performance still suffers from a low Faradaic efficiency and a high overpotential. Alloy engineering is a promising way to discover more metal-based electrocatalysts for dinitrogen reduction reaction (N2RR), and almost all reported alloy catalysts so far are binary alloys. In this work, we proposed a large group of ternary alloy electrocatalysts (Heusler alloys) for N2RR and demonstrated their superior catalytic performance. As an example, alloying Ru with Mn and Si led to a reduced Ru-Ru distance on the surface, which facilitates an uncommon horizontal adsorption mode of N2 and results in effective activation of N2 molecules. The theoretical overpotential of N2RR on Ru2MnSi(100-Ru) is only around 0.28 V, which ranks among the best reported results, and the usage of precious Ru is greatly reduced. Meanwhile, the adsorption of N2 on Ru2MnSi(100-Ru) was much stronger than that of protons, and it also took less energy to drive N2RR than the hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), making HER less competitive on this catalyst. Considering the successful synthesis of numerous Heusler alloys including the six members mentioned here, our work provided a wider range of practical and excellent N2RR electrocatalysts in terms of both catalytic performance and economical cost.

The review considers various groups of Heusler compounds, which can have the properties of a semiconductor, a half-metallic ferromagnet, a spin gapless semiconductor, a topological semimetal, and a non-collinear antiferromagnet. In these Heusler compounds, “conventional” from the point of view of the crystal structure, unusual kinetic and magnetic properties can be observed, which are caused by the features of their electronic structure (e.g., presence of an energy gap for one spin projection) and magnetic state (e.g., strong ferromagnetism, compensated ferrimagnetism). Their magnetic and kinetic characteristics are very sensitive to external influences. Depending on the alloy composition and external parameters, transitions between the considered states can be realized. All this opens up further prospects for controlling the electronic and magnetic characteristics of such compounds and their practical application. © 2022, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature.

Ni-Mn-based Heusler alloys have a high technical potential related to a large change of magnetization at the structural phase transition. These alloys show a subtle dependence of magnetic properties and structural phase stability on composition and substitution by 3d elements and although they have been extensively investigated, there are still ambiguities in the published results and their interpretation. To shed light on the large spread of reported properties, we perform a comprehensive study by means of density functional theory calculations. We focus on Cr and Co co-substitution whose benefit has been predicted previously for the expensive Ni-Mn-In-based alloy and study the more abundant iso-electronic counterpart Ni-Mn-Ga. We observe that substituting Ni partially by Co and/or Cr enhances the magnetization of the Heusler alloy and at the same time reduces the structural transition temperature. Thereby, Cr turns out to be more efficient to stabilize the ferromagnetic alignment of the Mn spins by strong antiferromagnetic interactions between Mn and Cr atoms. In a second step, we study Cr on the other sublattices and observe that an increase in the structural transition temperature is possible, but depends critically on the short-range order of Mn and Cr atoms. Based on our results, we are able to estimate composition dependent magnetic phase diagrams. In particular, we demonstrate that neither the atomic configuration with the lowest energy nor the results based on the coherent potential approximation are representative for materials with a homogeneous distribution of atoms and we also predict a simple method for fast screening of different concentrations which can be viewed as a blueprint for the study of high entropy alloys. Our results help to explain the large variation of experimentally found materials properties.

The ability of Heusler alloys to accommodate broad variations of composition, doping and ordering provides multiple options for tailoring their ferromagnetic and ferroelastic properties. Moreover, existing coupling between these ferroic properties ranging from coupled ferroic transitions to a coupling of their ferromagnetic and ferroelastic microstructure allows for manifold multifunctionalities. Here we focus on ferromagnetic, metamagnetic and reentrant shape memory alloys explaining the principles and sketch effects’ rich susceptibility to temperature, magnetic field and stress. We illustrate how these can provide a path to a multitude of emerging applications for actuation, sensing, and energy use. As an outlook, we discuss time dependency, fatigue, and finite size effects, which are not yet fully explored.

In the current study, we have succeeded to fabricate Co2FeSi Heusler alloy glass-covered microwires with magnetic core nucleus diameter d = 4.36 mu m and total diameter D = 17.55 mu m, with high Curie temperature (T-e > 1100 K) and well-defined magnetic anisotropy for high temperature spintronic devices application. The magnetic properties of as-prepared and annealed at different temperature (873 K, 973 K and 1073 K for 1 h) of Co2FeSi Heusler alloy glass-covered microwires have been investigated. Strong dependence of the magnetic properties on the annealing conditions has been indicated. Anomalous magnetic behavior for annealed samples at 873 K and 973 K has been found and structural properties of such samples have been analyzed. Critical temperatures 155 K and 250 K have been detected for annealed samples at 873 K and 973 K, respectively, where the behavior of M-H loops and coercivity changed. Below the critical point the M -H curve shows "kink or wasp-waisted" magnetic behavior and complex magnetic reversal mechanism is supposed. The anomalous magnetic behavior is due to the martensitic phases induced by annealing con-ditions below the room temperature. This unusual magnetization behavior provides opportunities to un-derstand the phenomena of different types of magnetic domain structures in the preferred crystallographically oriented Co2FeSi Heusler alloy glass-coated micro-wires, essentially helpful for de-signing the devices based on magnetization switching.

We study the effect of annealing and the applied magnetic field from 50 Oe to 20 kOe on the magneto-structural behavior of Ni2FeSi-based Heusler microwires fabricated by using Taylor-Ulitovsky technique. Using the XRD analysis, a strong effect of annealing, manifested as the development of the crystallization process, was observed. The average grain size and crystalline phase content of annealed sample increase from 21.3 nm and 34% to 32.8 nm and 79%, respectively, as-compared to the as-prepared one. In addition, upon annealing, phase transforms into a monoclinic martensitic structure with a modulation of 10 M, which cannot be found in the as-prepared sample. Concerning the magnetic properties, both samples show ferromagnetic behavior below and above the room temperature, where the Curie temperature of Ni2FeSi is higher than the room temperature. The induced secondary phases have a noticeable effect on the magnetic behavior of the annealed sample, where a high normalized saturation magnetization (NMs) and low normalized reduced remenance (Mr = M/M5K), compared to the as-prepared have been detected. Additionally, the coercivity of annealed sample shows one flipping point at 155 K where its behavior changes with temperature. Meanwhile, the as-prepared sample show two flipped point at 205 K and 55 K. A mismatch between field cooling (FC) and field heating (FH) magnetization curves with temperature has been detected for annealed sample at low applied magnetic field. The difference in magnetic and structure behavior of Ni2FeSi microwires sample is discussed considering the effect of induced internal stresses by the presence of a glass coating and the recrystallization and stresses relaxation upon annealing.

Magnetic shape memory alloys (MSMAs) are an interesting class of smart materials characterized by undergoing macroscopic deformations upon the application of a pertinent stimulus: temperature, stress and/or external magnetic fields. Since the deformation is rapid and contactless, these materials are being extensively investigated for a plethora of applications, such as sensors and actuators for the medical, automotive and space industries, energy harvesting and damping devices, among others. These materials also exhibit a giant magnetocaloric effect, whereby they are very promising for magnetic refrigeration. The applications in which they can be used are extremely dependent on the material properties, which are, in turn, greatly conditioned by the structure, atomic ordering and magnetism of a material. Particularly, exploring the material structure is essential in order to push forward the current application limitations of the MSMAs. Among the wide range of available characterization tools, neutron scattering techniques stand out in acquiring advanced knowledge about the structure and magnetism of these alloys. Throughout this manuscript, a comprehensive review about the characterization of MSMAs using neutron techniques is presented. Several elastic neutron scattering techniques will be explained and exemplified, covering neutron imaging techniques—such as radiography, tomography and texture diffractometry; diffraction techniques—magnetic (polarized neutron) diffraction, powder neutron diffraction and single crystal neutron diffraction, reflectometry and small angle neutron scattering. This will be complemented with a few examples where inelastic neutron scattering has been employed to obtain information about the phonon dispersion in MSMAs.

Diese Arbeit befasst sich mit dem Wachstum von Dünnschichtstrukturen, die zur Herstellung eines Spin-selektiven Schottky-Barrier-Tunneltransistors (SS-SBTT) erforderlich sind. Das Bauelement basiert auf dem Transport von Ladungsträgern durch eine dünne halbleitende (SC) Schicht, die zwei ferromagnetische (FM) Kontakte trennt. Daher müssen hochqualitative und gitterangepasste vertikale FM/SC/FM-Trilayer gezüchtet werden, was aufgrund der inkompatiblen Kristallisationsenergien zwischen SC und Metallen eine experimentelle Herausforderung darstellt. Das Problem wurde mit einem Festphasenepitaxie-Ansatz gelöst, bei dem eine dünne amorphe Ge-Schicht (4-8 nm) durch Ausglühen über Fe3Si auf GaAs(001)-Substraten kristallisiert wird. Langsame Glühgeschwindigkeiten bis zu einer Temperatur von 260°C konnten ein neues gitterangepasstes Polymorph von FeGe2 erzeugen, über das ein zweites Fe3Si mittels Molekularstrahlepitaxie gezüchtet werden könnte. SQUID-Magnetometermessungen zeigen, dass die dreischichtigen Proben in antiparallele Magnetisierungszustände versetzt werden können. Vertikale Spin-Ventil-Bauelemente, die mit verschiedenen Trilayern hergestellt wurden, wurden verwendet, um zu demonstrieren, dass der Ladungstransport über die Heteroübergänge spinselektiv ist und bei Raumtemperatur einen Magnetowiderstand von höchstens 0,3% aufweist. Der Effekt nimmt bei niedrigen Temperaturen ab, was mit einem ferromagnetischen Übergang in der FeGe2-Schicht korreliert. Durch TEM- und XRD-Experimente konnte festgestellt werden, dass das neue FeGe2-Polymorph die Raumgruppe P4mm aufweist und bis zu 17% Si-Atome als Ersatz für Ge-Stellen enthält. Die Isolierung von FeGe2 war möglich, indem das Verhältnis von Fe-, Si- und Ge-Atomen so eingestellt wurde, dass die richtige Stöchiometrie bei vollständiger Durchmischung erreicht wurde. Anhand von FeGe2-Dünnschichten wurde ein zunehmender spezifischer Widerstand bei niedriger Temperatur und ein semi-metallischer Charakter beobachtet., This thesis discusses the growth of thin film structures required to fabricate a Spin-Selective Schottky Barrier Tunnel transistor (SS-SBTT). The device relies on charge carriers being transported through a thin semiconducting (SC) layer separating two ferromagnetic (FM) contacts. Thus, high quality and lattice-matched FM/SC/FM vertical trilayers must be grown, which is experimentally challenging due to incompatible crystallization energies between SC and metals. The problem was solved using a solid-phase epitaxy approach, whereby a thin amorphous layer of Ge (4-8 nm) is crystallized by annealing over Fe3Si on GaAs(001) substrates. Slow annealing rates up to a temperature of 260°C could produce a lattice-matched Ge-rich compound, over which a second Fe3Si could be grown my molecular-beam epitaxy. The compound obtained during annealing is a new layered polymorph of FeGe2. SQUID magnetometry measurements indicate that the trilayer samples can be placed in states of antiparallel magnetization. Vertical spin valve devices created using various trilayers were used to demonstrate that charge transport is spin-selective across the heterojunctions, showing a magnetoresistance of at most 0.3% at room temperature. The effect decreases at low temperature, correlating with a ferromagnetic transition in the FeGe2 layer. TEM and XRD experiments could determine that the new FeGe2 polymorph has a space group P4mm, containing up to 17% Si atoms substituting Ge sites. Isolating FeGe2 was possible by tuning the proportion Fe, Si and Ge atoms required to obtain the right stoichiometry upon full intermixing. Hall bars fabricated on FeGe2 thin films were used to observe an increasing resistivity at low temperature and semimetallic character.

The paper presents a review of theoretical and experimental studies of the electronic structure and electronic and magnetic properties of various systems of Heusler alloys in the states of a half-metallic ferromagnet, spin gapless semiconductor, and topological semimetal. These substances have unusual magnetic and electronic characteristics and are highly sensitive to external effects, due to the presence of energy gaps and exotic excitations in them. Peculiarities of the behavior and evolution of the electronic structure and properties in each of these states and upon the transition between them are considered. The possibility of purposeful control of the properties of such materials opens up prospects for their practical application. © 2021, Pleiades Publishing, Ltd.

Parameters of the energy gap and, consequently, electronic, magnetic and galvanomagnetic properties in different X2YZ Heusler alloys can vary quite strongly. In particular, half-metallic ferromagnets (HMFs) and spin gapless semiconductors (SGSs) with almost 100% spin polarization of charge carriers are promising materials for spintronics. The changes in the electrical, magnetic and galvanomagnetic properties of the Co2YSi (Y = Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe) and Co2MnZ Heusler alloys (Z = Al, Si, Ga, Ge) in possible HMF- and/or SGS-states were followed and their interconnection was established. Significant changes in the values of the magnetization and residual resistivity were found. At the same time, the correlations between the changes in these electronic and magnetic characteristics depending on the number of valence electrons and spin polarization are observed. © 2021 Author(s).

The electro- and magneto-transport as well as magnetic properties of Co2MeSi (Me = Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni) Heusler alloys were studied. The electroresistivity was measured from 4.2 to 300 K, the galvanomagnetic properties (magnetoresistivity and Hall effect) were measured at T = 4.2 K in magnetic fields of up to 100 kOe, and the magnetization at T = 4.2 and 300 K in fields of up to 70 kOe. The normal and anomalous Hall coefficients, saturation magnetization, residual resistivity, current carrier concentration, coefficients at linear contributions into the electroresistivity and magnetoresistivity were obtained. It was shown that on the one hand, there is quite clear correlation between the electronic and magnetic characteristics of Heusler alloys studied, and the spin polarization coefficients of current carriers, taken from well know literature data, on the other hand. The obtained results can be used for creation of new materials for spintronics. © 2021 Author(s).

The hysteresis that occurs during superelasticity caused by the stress-induced first-order martensite transformation is sometimes detrimental to the properties of superelastic materials. In this paper, first-principles calculations are performed to systematically investigate the effects of the chemical composition and crystal disorder on the superelasticity of Ni50-xCoxM25Ga25 (M = Mn, Fe) Heusler alloys. Calculations of the stress-strain relation in the studied alloys reproduce the recent experimental findings for nonhysteretic superelasticity within an acceptable range of composition and ordering. We evaluate the Bloch spectral function to study the Fermi surface topology in connection with nonhysteretic superelasticity. We propose the Landau-de Gennes model-dependent critical parameter P-c, which can be used to predict the composition range of nonhysteretic superelastic materials. For the ferromagnetic L2(1) Ni50-xCoxMn25Ga25 and B2 Ni50-xCoxFe25Ga25 alloys, the nonhysteretic superelasticity phenomenon theoretically occurs for Co contents over x = 16 at.% and x = 28 at.%, respectively.

Martensitic transition and magnetic response of Ni50−x Pdx,y Mn36 Sn14−y (x = 0, 1, 2 and y = 0, 1) Heusler alloys were analysed. The crystalline structure of each composition was solved by X-ray diffraction pattern fitting. For x = 1 and 2, the L21 austenite structure is formed and, for y = 1, the crystallographic phase is a modulated martensitic structure. From differential scanning calorimetry scans, we determine characteristic transformation temperatures and the entropy/enthalpy changes. The temperatures of the structural transformation increase with the addition of Pd to replace Ni or Sn, whereas the austenitic Curie temperature remains almost unvarying. In addition, the magneto-structural transition, investigated by magnetic measurements, is adjusted by suitable Pd doping in the alloys. The peak value of the magnetic entropy changes reached 4.5 J/(kg K) for Ni50Mn36Sn13Pd1 (external field: 50 kOe).

Heusler alloys are intensively studied and applied in various spintronic devices. First principles calculations of their electronic structure allow to predict promising compounds with high spin polarization. However the theoretical predictions usually substantially deviate from experimental data. One of the reason is incorrect structural models used in the calculations. Heusler alloys are apt to form various disordered modifications with high concentration of antisite defects. In this paper we considered the effects of structural order and disorder on the electronic structure, stability and magnetic properties of full Heusler alloys Fe2VAl and Co2CrAl. The ordered Fe2VAl is non-magnetic narrow-gap semiconductor, the ordered Co2CrAl is a ferromagnet with metal behavior for majority spin band and narrow-gap semiconductor for minority one. When disordering Fe2VAl becomes a ferromagnetic metal. Co2CrAl loses minority band gap and its spontaneous magnetization reduces by 32%. Introduction of short range order in the disordered structure by increasing the portion of clusters specific for bcc structure further raised the magnetization in Fe2VAl and did not change it in Co2CrAl. © 2019 Elsevier B.V.

The influence of Cu doping on structural and magnetic properties of Ni50-xMn36Sn14- yCux, y (x=0, 1,2 and y=1 at. %) ribbons has been investigated. The crystalline structures of the alloys were resolute by X-ray diffraction (XRD). It is found that the addition of Cu for Ni stabilizes austenite phase, whereas, replacing small amount of Cu for Sn stabilizes modulated martensite phase. Differential scanning calorimetry measurements have proved the characteristic transformation temperatures., The financial support from MAT2016-675967-P MINECO project is acknowledged. This work was partially supported by the national Science Centre of Poland – project 2018/31/B/ST7/04006., Postprint (author's final draft)

Martensitic transition and magnetic response of Ni50-x Pdx,y Mn36 Sn14-y (x = 0, 1, 2 and y = 0, 1) Heusler alloys were analysed. The crystalline structure of each composition was solved by X-ray diffraction pattern fitting. For x = 1 and 2, the L21 austenite structure is formed and, for y = 1, the crystallographic phase is a modulated martensitic structure. From differential scanning calorimetry scans, we determine characteristic transformation temperatures and the entropy/enthalpy changes. The temperatures of the structural transformation increase with the addition of Pd to replace Ni or Sn, whereas the austenitic Curie temperature remains almost unvarying. In addition, the magneto-structural transition, investigated by magnetic measurements, is adjusted by suitable Pd doping in the alloys. The peak value of the magnetic entropy changes reached 4.5 J/(kg K) for Ni50Mn36Sn13Pd1 (external field: 50 kOe)., Postprint (published version)

Electric, magnetic and magnetocaloric properties of Heusler alloys Ni47-xMn42+xIn11 (x = 0, 1, 2) have been investigated. Relatively large values of the magnetocaloric effect have been observed at temperatures near and below room temperature, making it a potential material system for various applications. The elemental composition change of alloys leads to sig-nificant changes in the magnitude and temperature dependences of the electrical resistivity and magnetization. It affects the value of the magnetocaloric effect and leads to a shift in the maximum of the change in the magnetic entropy over the temperature scale., Исследованы электрические, магнитные и магнитокалорические свойства сплавов Гейслера Ni47-xMn42+xIn11 (x = 0, 1, 2). Обнаружены относительно большие значения магнитокалорического эффекта при температурах вблизи и ниже комнатных, что делает данные сплавы пригодными для практического применения. Изменение элементного состава сплавов приводит к значительным изменениям величины и температурных зависимостей электросопротивления и намагниченности, кроме того, оказывает влияние на величину магнитокалорического эффекта и приводит к сдвигу максимума изменения магнитной энтропии по температурной шкале.

Large magnetocrystalline anisotropy (MCA) is of high technical relevance, in particular for magnetic actuators, permanent magnets, and memory devices with high density. Large MCAs have been reported for the low temperature L1(0) phase of Ni2MnGa. Both, Mn and Pt substitution can stabilize this phase at and above room temperature. Despite the larger spin-orbit coupling in the heavy 5d-element Pt, it has been reported that Pt substitution may result in degeneration of the MCA. In this paper, we study the MCA for a combination of epitaxial strain and Mn and Pt substitution based on density functional theory methods. We show that one can stabilize both large uniaxial and easy-plane anisotropies depending on the value of strain. In particular, small changes of the applied strain may allow to switch between low- and high-anisotropy states or even switch the direction of the easy-axis magnetization direction.

Materials with an abrupt transition between a low and a high thermal conductance state at a critical temperature would be useful for thermal regulation applications. Here, the authors report a high contrast reversible thermal conductivity change through the thermally-induced martensitic transition (MT) in Ni-Mn-In alloys. The authors measure the thermal conductivity of a wide temperature range 130 < T < 530 K using time-domain thermoreflectance (TDTR). The thermal conductivity of these alloys increases from approximate to 7.0-8.5 W m(-1) K-1 to approximate to 11.5-13.0 W m(-1) K-1 through the MT near 300 K as temperature rises, with a rate of change among the highest yet reported in solid-state materials with thermally-induced phase transitions. Based on Hall resistivity measurements, the authors further show that the change of thermal conductivity is dominated by the electronic contribution, which results from a unique carrier mobility change through the MT. Their findings highlight the interplay between the structural disorders and the thermal transport in alloys through solid-state phase transitions and open a new avenue in the search of high-performance materials for thermal regulation.

A brief survey of experimental and theoretical studies of half-metallic ferromagnets (HMFs) and spin gapless semiconductors is given, the possible candidates being the X2YZ (X = Mn, Fe, Co; Y = Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni; Z = Al, Si, Ga, Ge, In, Sn, Sb) Heusler alloys. The data on the electrical resistivity, normal and anomalous Hall Effect, and magnetic properties are presented. It is shown that the Co2FeZ alloys demonstrate properties of conventional ferromagnets, the HMF properties being also manifested upon variation of the Z-component. The Fe2YAl and Mn2YAl alloys show upon variation of the Y-component both metallic and semiconducting electronic characteristics, the magnetic properties changing from the ferromagnetic to compensated ferrimagnetic state. The HMF and spin gapless semiconductor states are supposed to exist in these Heusler alloys systems. © 2019, Pleiades Publishing, Ltd.

Half-metallic ferromagnets and spin gapless semiconductors are promising materials for spintronic devices since a high degree of the spin polarization of charge carriers can be realized in such materials. Spin gapless semiconductors make it possible to combine the properties of half-metallic ferromagnets with semiconductor characteristics and to perform fine tuning of the energy gap value. The Mn2 MeAl (Me = Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni) Heusler alloys can possess such features. We studied the electrical, magnetic and galvanomagnetic properties of the Mn2 MeAl (Me = Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni) Heusler alloys from 4.2 K to 900 K and in magnetic fields up to 100 kOe. The features in the electronic and magnetic properties of Mn2MeAl Heusler alloys were observed, which can be a manifestation of the electronic energy spectrum peculiarities with occurrence of the half-metallic ferromagnet and/or spin gapless semiconductor states. © Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd.

The Co2 YSi (Y = Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni) Heusler alloys can manifest the properties of half-metallic ferromagnets. These compounds are promising materials for spintronics since almost 100 % spin polarization of charge carriers can be realized at room temperature. We measured the electroresistivity, magnetic and galvanomagnetic properties of the Co2 YSi (Y = Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni) Heusler alloys from 4.2 K to 300 K and in magnetic fields up to 100 kOe. The type, concentration and mobility of charge carriers were estimated. The Y-component variation in the Co2 YSi Heusler alloys is found to affect strongly the number of current carriers and alter the electronic band structure near the Fermi level E F and, consequently, the electronic transport and magnetic properties of the Co2 YSi (Y = Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni) Heusler alloys. © Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd.

The temperature dependences of magnetization and electrical resistance of the Ni50Mn36Sb14-xZx (Z = Al, Ge; x = 0; 1; 2; 3; 4) alloys have been used to determine the structural transition temperatures (STT) such as: Ms, Mf, As and Af (temperatures of the start and finish of martensitic and austenitic transformations, respectively). Effect of various parameters (e/a, Vcell, n) on the STT was studied. Using Hall Effect the concentration of charge carriers n∗ was obtained and it was found that n∗ is not strongly correlated with a behaviour of STT, there is only a general trend with exceptions. © Published under licence by IOP Publishing Ltd.

[EN] Positron annihilation lifetime spectroscopy is used to experimentally demonstrate the direct relationship between vacancies and the shift of the martensitic transformation temperature in a Ni55Fe17Ga28 alloy. The evolution of vacancies assisting the ordering enables shifts of the martensitic transformation up to 50 K. Our results confirm the role that both vacancy concentration and different vacancy dynamics play in samples quenched from the L21 and B2 phases, which dictate the martensitic transformation temperature and its subsequent evolution. Finally, by electron-positron density functional calculations VNi is identified as the most probable vacancy present in Ni55Fe17Ga28. This work evidences the capability of vacancies for the fine-tuning of the martensitic transformation temperature, paving the way for defect engineering of multifunctional properties.

Static and dynamic magnetic properties of Co2FeAl and Fe65Co35 alloys have been investigated. Co2FeAl films were deposited at different temperatures and the deposition parameters were optimized with respect to structural and magnetic properties. As a result, a film with B2 crystalline phase was obtained without any post-annealing process. A lowest magnetic damping parameter of was obtained for the film deposited at 573K. This obtained low value is comparable to the lowest values reported in research literature. After optimizing the deposition parameters of this alloy, different seed layers and capping layers were added adjacent to the Co2FeAl layer and the effect of these layers on the magnetic relaxation was investigated. In addition to adding nonmagnetic layers to Co2FeAl, the dependence of the magnetic damping parameter with respect to the thickness of Co2FeAl was investigated by depositing films with different thicknesses. A temperature dependent study of the magnetic damping parameter was also performed and the measured damping parameters were compared with theoretically calculated intrinsic Gilbert damping parameters. Different extrinsic contributions to the magnetic damping, such as two magnon scattering, spin pumping, eddy-current damping and radiative damping, were identified and subtracted from the experimentally obtained damping parameter. Hence, it was possible to obtain the intrinsic damping parameter, that is called the Gilbert damping parameter. In the second part of the thesis, Fe65Co35 alloys were investigated in terms of static and dynamic magnetic properties. Fe65Co35 films were deposited without and with different seed layers in order to first understand the effect of the seed layer on static magnetic properties of the films, such as the coercivity of the films. Then the films with seed layers yielding the lowest coercivity were investigated in terms of dynamic magnetic properties. Fe65Co35 films with different rhenium dopant concentrations and

Heusler compounds are an exciting class of intermetallics due to their diverse electrical and magnetic properties, including semiconducting, half metallic, and topologically insulating behaviors. With a crystal structure and lattice parameters similar to III-V compound semiconductors, the possibility of Heusler/III-V semiconductor as well as Heusler/Heusler heterostructures with unique properties is achievable. However, the integration of epitaxial Heusler compounds into functional devices still faces a number of challenges. The tunability of the electronic and magnetic properties of Heusler compounds must first be better understood. In addition, Heusler-based device demonstrations have been limited to magnetic Heuslers, leaving the semiconducting and topologically non-trivial variants relatively unexplored. Finally, most experimental studies of the semiconducting half-Heusler compounds have been limited to bulk polycrystalline samples, which cannot be easily used for device applications. Here, the semiconducting half-Heusler, CoTiSb is grown by molecular beam epitaxy and used to explore the both the tunability of Heusler compound properties as well as the interface properties of Heusler alloys with III-V and other Heusler compounds. A semiconductor to metal transition is examined by substitutionally alloying Ni for Co. The evolution of the electronic structure in the alloy Co1-xNixTiSb is examined by electrical transport, Seebeck measurements, and angle-resolved photoemission spectroscopy. A gradual transition from semiconducting to metallic behavior is observed for films with x≥0.1. The effects of Ni alloying as well as the surface reconstruction on the valence band, conduction band, and Fermi level positions are examined.Next, the introduction of ferromagnetism into CoTiSb is achieved by substitutionally alloying Fe on the Ti site, a predicted half-metallic compound for intermediate levels of alloying. The magnetic, electronic, and nano-structural properties of t

Electrical, magnetic and galvanomagnetic properties of half-metallic Heusler alloys of Co2YZ (Y = Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Fe, Ni, and Z = Al, Si, Ga, Ge, In, Sn, Sb) were studied in the temperature range 4.2–900 K and in magnetic fields of up to 100 kOe. It was found that varying Y in Co2YZ alloys affects strongly the electric resistivity and its temperature dependence ρ(T), while this effect is not observed upon changing Z. When Y is varied, extrema (maximum or minimum) are observed in ρ(T) near the Curie temperature TC. At T ≤ TC, the ρ(T) behavior can be ascribed to a change in electronic energy spectrum near the Fermi level. The coefficients of normal and anomalous Hall effect were determined. It was shown that the latter coefficient, RS, is related to the residual resistivity ρ0 by a power law RS ∼ ρ0 k/MS with MS the spontaneous magnetization. The exponent k was found to be 1.8 for Co2FeZ alloys, which is typical for asymmetric scattering mechanisms, and 2.9 for Co2YAl alloys, which indicates an additional contribution to the anomalous Hall effect. The temperature dependence of resistivity at low temperatures is analyzed and discussed in the frame of the two-magnon scattering theory. © 2017 Elsevier B.V.

An overview of the processing, characterization and magnetostructural properties of ferromagnetic NiMnX (X = group IIIA-VA elements) Heusler alloys is presented. This type of alloy is multiferroic-exhibits more than one ferroic property-and is hence multifunctional. Examples of how different synthesis procedures influence the magnetostructural characteristics of these alloys are shown. Significant microstructural factors, such as the crystal structure, atomic ordering, volume of unit cell, grain size and others, which have a bearing on the properties, have been reviewed. An overriding factor is the composition which, through its tuning, affects the martensitic and magnetic transitions, the transformation temperatures, microstructures and, consequently, the magnetostructural effects.

A brief review of experimental and theoretical studies of half-metallic ferromagnets (HMF) and spin gapless semiconductors (SGS) is presented. An important role of non-quasiparticle states owing to electron-magnon scattering in transport properties is discussed. The problem of low-temperature resistivity in HMF is treated in terms of one-magnon and two-magnon scattering processes. © 2018, Pleiades Publishing, Ltd.

We have found low temperature a/b nanotwins having (110) twinning plane in a five-layered modulated martensite phase of Ni50Mn25+xGa25x (at. %) Heusler alloys and identified the particular region in phase diagram where the nanotwinning occurs. Evolution of the structure with decreasing temperature was studied by X-ray diffraction using single crystals exhibiting magnetic shape memory effect. The merging of (400) and (040) lines upon cooling for 2.6 < x < 3.5 indicated a/b nanotwinning originating from the refinement of initially coarse a/b twins. Refinement of the twins with decreasing temperature was observed directly using scanning electron microscopy. The prerequisite for nanotwinning is an extremely low twin boundary energy, which we estimated using first-principles calculations to be 0.16 meV/2. As the nanotwinning distorts the relation between the crystal lattice and the X-ray diffraction pattern, it should be taken into consideration in structural studies of Ni-Mn-Ga Heusler alloys.

We have found low temperature a/b nanotwins having (110) twinning plane in a five-layered modulated martensite phase of Ni50Mn25+xGa25x (at. %) Heusler alloys and identified the particular region in phase diagram where the nanotwinning occurs. Evolution of the structure with decreasing temperature was studied by X-ray diffraction using single crystals exhibiting magnetic shape memory effect. The merging of (400) and (040) lines upon cooling for 2.6 < x < 3.5 indicated a/b nanotwinning originating from the refinement of initially coarse a/b twins. Refinement of the twins with decreasing temperature was observed directly using scanning electron microscopy. The prerequisite for nanotwinning is an extremely low twin boundary energy, which we estimated using first-principles calculations to be 0.16 meV/2. As the nanotwinning distorts the relation between the crystal lattice and the X-ray diffraction pattern, it should be taken into consideration in structural studies of Ni-Mn-Ga Heusler alloys.

We have found low temperature a/b nanotwins having (110) twinning plane in a five-layered modulated martensite phase of Ni50Mn25+xGa25x (at. %) Heusler alloys and identified the particular region in phase diagram where the nanotwinning occurs. Evolution of the structure with decreasing temperature was studied by X-ray diffraction using single crystals exhibiting magnetic shape memory effect. The merging of (400) and (040) lines upon cooling for 2.6 < x < 3.5 indicated a/b nanotwinning originating from the refinement of initially coarse a/b twins. Refinement of the twins with decreasing temperature was observed directly using scanning electron microscopy. The prerequisite for nanotwinning is an extremely low twin boundary energy, which we estimated using first-principles calculations to be 0.16 meV/2. As the nanotwinning distorts the relation between the crystal lattice and the X-ray diffraction pattern, it should be taken into consideration in structural studies of Ni-Mn-Ga Heusler alloys.

We have found low temperature a/b nanotwins having (110) twinning plane in a five-layered modulated martensite phase of Ni50Mn25+xGa25x (at. %) Heusler alloys and identified the particular region in phase diagram where the nanotwinning occurs. Evolution of the structure with decreasing temperature was studied by X-ray diffraction using single crystals exhibiting magnetic shape memory effect. The merging of (400) and (040) lines upon cooling for 2.6 < x < 3.5 indicated a/b nanotwinning originating from the refinement of initially coarse a/b twins. Refinement of the twins with decreasing temperature was observed directly using scanning electron microscopy. The prerequisite for nanotwinning is an extremely low twin boundary energy, which we estimated using first-principles calculations to be 0.16 meV/2. As the nanotwinning distorts the relation between the crystal lattice and the X-ray diffraction pattern, it should be taken into consideration in structural studies of Ni-Mn-Ga Heusler alloys.

Using full-potential local-orbital minimum-basis along with spin-polarized relativistic Korringa-Kohn-Rostoker methods, we study the electronic, Fermi surface, Curie temperature and optical properties of Zr2CoAl alloy. The alloy with Li2AgSb and Cu2MnAl structures are compared in terms of magnetic properties, and the electronic structures in two structures are also discussed. According to the calculated electronic states, it finds that the Zr2CoAl with Li2AgSb structure is half-metallic ferromagnet with an integral magnetic moment of 2.00μB, meanwhile we also notice the d-d and p-d hybridizations are responsible for the formation of minority-spin gap, furthermore, the fat-bands are applied to discuss the mixture between d and p electrons in the vicinity of the Fermi level. The Fermi surfaces related to the valence bands are constructed, and it is found that the spin-up valence bands 26, 27 and 28 across the Fermi energy dominate the nature of electrons. By mapping the system onto a Heisenberg Hamiltonian, we obtain the exchange coupling parameters, and observe that the Zr(A)-Co(C) and Zr(A)-Zr(B) interactions provide a major contribution for exchange interactions. Based on the calculated exchange coupling parameters, the Curie temperature is estimated to be 287.86 K at equilibrium, and also the dependence of Curie temperature on lattice constant related to the tunable Curie temperature in Zr2CoAl alloy is studied. Finally, we report the optical properties of Zr2CoAl alloy, and present the photon energy dependence of the absorption, the optical conductivity and the loss function., QC 20170208

We report on narrow-band THz emission from ferrimagnetic Mn3-xGa nano-films based. The emission originates from coherently excited spin precession. The central frequency of the emitted radiation is determined by the anisotropy field, while the bandwidth relates to Gilbert damping. It is shown how THz emission can be used for the characterization of dynamic properties of ultra-thin magnetic films. We furthermore study the dependence of THz emission on laser power and applied external magnetic field.