Abstract
The itinerant-electron metamagnetic (IEM) transition and magnetocaloric effects (MCE’s) in the and compounds have been investigated. The compounds exhibit large values of both the isothermal entropy change and the adiabatic temperature change around the Curie temperature in relatively low magnetic fields. Such large MCE’s are explained by a large magnetization change at and a strong temperature dependence of the critical field for the IEM transition. By hydrogen absorption into the compounds, is increased up to about 330 K, keeping the metamagnetic transition properties. Accordingly, the extension of the working temperature range having the large MCE’s in relatively low magnetic fields is demonstrated by controlling y in the compounds. The correlation between the increase of and the large MCE’s in the compounds is discussed by taking the magnetovolume effects into consideration.
- Received 1 October 2002
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.67.104416
©2003 American Physical Society