Review of magnetic properties and magnetocaloric effect in the intermetallic compounds of rare earth with low boiling point metals

The magnetocaloric effect （MCE） in many rare earth （RE） based intermetallic compounds has been extensively in- vestigated during the last two decades, not only due to their potential applications for magnetic refrigeration but also for better understanding of the fundamental problems of the materials. This paper reviews our recent progress on studying the magnetic properties and MCE in some binary or ternary intermetallic compounds of RE with low boiling point metal（s） （Zn, Mg, and Cd）. Some of them exhibit promising MCE properties, which make them attractive for low temperature magnetic refrigeration. Characteristics of the magnetic transition, origin of large MCE, as well as the potential application of these compounds are thoroughly discussed. Additionally, a brief review of the magnetic and magnetocaloric properties in the quaternary rare earth nickel boroncarbides RENi2B2C superconductors is also presented.

Dependence of Magnetic Properties of Rapidly Quenching (Nd,Pr)_x (FeCoZr)_(94-x)B_6 Bonded Magnets on Rare Earths Content

By using sub-overquenching and annealing method which has a wide processing window, (Nd, Pr), ( Fe-CoZr)(94-x)B-6(x = 12, 10.5, 10, 9) bonded magnets were prepared and the effect of rare earths content on magnetic properties was investigated. Being spun at sub-ove.quenching speed the as-spun ribbons consist of amorphous phases mixed with fine crystallites. After crystallization under optimum annealing conditions and bonded with 3.25% (mass fraction) epoxy, the magnets obtained the optimum magnetic properties. The rare earths content directly determines the magnetic properties. With the reduction of rare earths content, B-r increases but H-ci and (BH)(max) decrease. x = 10 is the critical value for the magnetic proper-ties change. Below this value, Br increases slowly meanwhile H-ci and (BH)(max) decrease strongly because alloy contains extra fractions of soft magnetic phase which are not coupled with the hard magnetic phase.. This experimental result is consistent with the calculated results using the model of volume fraction of soft magnetic phase coupled completely suggested.

Structure and magnetic properties of RFe_7Mn_4Ti compounds with R=Y, Tb, Dy,Ho, and Er

The effect of Mn substitution for partial Fe in RFe 11Ti on structure and magnetic properties of compounds was researched. RFe 7Mn 4Ti samples (R=Y,Tb,Dy,Ho,Er) were prepared by means of vacuum arc-melting and subsequent vacuum annealing. The structure and magnetic properties of RFe 7Mn 4Ti compounds were investigated by X-ray powder diffraction and magnetic measurements. The following conclusions were obtained: all the RFe tMn 4Ti compounds crystallize in the ThMn 12-type structure. The lattice constants and the unit-cell volume changed with the increase of atomic number for R=Y, Tb, Dy, Ho, and Er. The compensation characters appear for the DyFe 7Mn 4Ti and HoFe 7Mn 4Ti compounds, and the compensation temperatures were about 123 K and 90 K, respectively. The Curie temperature, the saturation magnetization, and saturation moment of RFe 7Mn 4Ti compounds were given.

Magnetic and Transport Properties of La_(0.5-x)Nd_xBa_(0.5) CoO_3 Compounds

Substituting effects of Nd for La in La 0.5 Ba 0.5 CoO 3 compounds were studied systematically. The results show that Nd doping does not change the itinerant properties of the Co3d electrons. The molecular magnetic moment of the materials decreases monotonically with increasing Nd dopant. When Nd content x ≥0.45, a magnetic phase separation appears in the materials. When x ≤0.45, the Curie temperature decreases monotonically with increasing Nd dopant. This is due to the size effects of the rare earth ions. The electric resistance measurements show that in the studied temperature range, the conduction of the materials belongs to the thermo diffusion conduction below the Curie temperature, while it belongs to the variable range hopping conduction of polarons over the Curie temperature.

Magnetic Properties and Phase Transformation of Tb_(1-x)Pr_xFe_(1.96)(x=0 to 0.7) Compounds

The magnetic properties and the phase Transformation of Tb1-xPrx Fe1.96（x = 0 to 0.7） compounds were studied by means of vibrating sample magnetometer（VSM）, X-ray diffraction（XRD） and SEM back-scattered electron （BSE）. The result indicates that the saturation magnetization σs of compounds along an easy axis decreases with the addition of Pr contents, which reduces from 77.24 Am^2·kg^-1（x =0） to 11.84 Am^2·kg^-1（x =0.5） and then returns to 37.14 Am2·kg^-1 （ x = 0.7）. The non-cubic phases appear when x exceeds 0.2, and the matrix of Tb1-xPrxFe1.96 compounds changes from （Tb, Pr）Fe2 phase with x = 0 to （Tb, Pr）Fe3 phase with x = 0.4, and at last to （Tb, Pr）2Fe17 phase in Tb0.3Pr0.7Fe1.96. Moreover, the structure, of the compounds may become more complex with the increase of Pr content.

Structure and Magnetic Properties of HoFe_(12-x) Mn_x Compounds

The effect of substitution of Mn on the structure and magnetic properties of HoFe 12- x Mn x (x =2 0, 3 0, 4 0 and 5 0) compounds was investigated. All the HoFe 12x Mn x compounds studied crystallize in ThMn 12 type of structure. The lattice constants and unit cell volume increase monotonously with increasing Mn concentration. The Curie temperature and the moments of the transition metal sublattice of HoFe 12- x Mn x compounds decrease monotonously with increasing Mn content. A minimum appears at x =3 0 in the Mn concentration dependence of the saturation magnetization of HoFe 12- x Mn x compounds. A compensation point appears in the M(t) curve of the compound with x =4 0. The mean field constant n RT of HoFe 9Mn 3 was calculated.

Structure and magnetic properties of new compounds CdYFeWO_7

The solid solutions of CdYFeWO7,which are cubic pyrochlores of the type A2B2O7,have been prepared and their structures were determined using Ab initio method.Rietveld refinement of the powder XRD data showed that CdYFeWO7 adopted cubic(Fd-3m) structure,while oxides crystallized in a defect-pyrochlore structure where both O(48f) and O (8b) sites were partially occupied,and the frustrated cations sublattice precluded long range ordering of Fe/W in the pyrochlore structure.Charge distribution analysis also sug...

Influence of Non-Magnetic Substitutional Atoms on Spontaneous Moment and Curie Temperature of Ce_2Co_(17) Compounds

The structure and magnetic properties of Ce 2Co 17-xM x(M=Ga,Al and Si) compounds for M concentrations up to x=5 were studied by means of X-ray diffraction and magnetic measurements. The experimental results show that the Curie temperatures and Co spontaneous magnetization decrease significantly with increasing the addition of non-magnetic substitutional atoms, and that Si which has a minimum solid solubility in Ce 2Co 17 causes a largest reduction of Curie temperature, spontaneous magnetization and moment per Co atom compared with Ga and Al.

Magnetic Field Induced Entropy Change for La-Fe Based NaZn_(13)-Typed Compounds

Magnetic field induced entropy change was investigated for La-Fe based NaZn13-type compounds with magnetic first-order phase transition. In view of magnetic refrigeration at room temperature, the developing of the materials and the understanding of the entropy change were., reviewed. For La-Fe-Si compounds, the entropy change about 29 J·kg^- 1·K^-1 was obtained at 190 K under the magnetic field of 5 T.While a large entropy change of about 15 J·kg^-1·K^-1 near room temperature under 5 T can be obtained by the substitution of Co for Fe in the compounds. It is found that the entropy change is mainly composed of that contributed from magnetic ordering and crystal lattice. The large entropy change consumed by lattice contribution is mainly due to the magnetic ordering one.

Structure and magnetic properties of RFe7Mn4Ti compounds with R=Y, Tb, Dy,Ho, and Er

The effect of Mn substitution for partial Fe in RFe 11Ti on structure and magnetic properties of compounds was researched. RFe 7Mn 4Ti samples (R=Y,Tb,Dy,Ho,Er) were prepared by means of vacuum arc-melting and subsequent vacuum annealing. The structure and magnetic properties of RFe 7Mn 4Ti compounds were investigated by X-ray powder diffraction and magnetic measurements. The following conclusions were obtained: all the RFe tMn 4Ti compounds crystallize in the ThMn 12-type structure. The lattice constants and the unit-cell volume changed with the increase of atomic number for R=Y, Tb, Dy, Ho, and Er. The compensation characters appear for the DyFe 7Mn 4Ti and HoFe 7Mn 4Ti compounds, and the compensation temperatures were about 123 K and 90 K, respectively. The Curie temperature, the saturation magnetization, and saturation moment of RFe 7Mn 4Ti compounds were given.

Sol Gel Assembly and Luminescence of SiO_2/PEMA Hybrid Material Incorporated with Terbium Complex

Ethyl methacrylate (EMA) doped with luminescent ternary terbium complex (Tb(acac) 3·dam) with acetylacetone (Hacac) and diantipylmethane (dam) was incorporated into the microporous silica gel. With the polymerization of EMA, the hybrid material containing Tb(acac) 3·dam was obtained. The hybrid material exhibited good toughness and transparency and higher thermal stability than that of the pure complex and pure polymer matrix. In the range of doping concentration of Tb(acac) 3·dam (0.05%, 0.1%, 0.2%, 0.5%, 1.0%, 2.0% and 5.0%), emission intensity increases with the increasing of corresponding doping concentration and concentration quenching effect has not taken place.

Synthesis and Characterizations of Rare Earth Compounds RE(HCO_2)_3(HNO_2)(H_2CO_2)(RE=Y,Tb,Dy,Ho,Er,Yb,Tm)

A series of novel inclusion compounds with compositions of RE(HCO 2) 3(HNO 2)(H 2CO 2) (RE=Y, Tb, Dy, Ho, Er, Yb, Tm) were synthesized and structures were characterized by X ray methods. The orthorhombic structure was shown to be a new type with a non centrosymmetric space group (20) C 222 1 by single crystal structure determinations. It is characterized by networks of rare earth centered square anti prisms formed by eight oxygen atoms through bridging carbon and nitrogen atoms. The guest formic acid molecules H 2CO 2 are distributed inside the open tunnels along the crystallographic a axis. The magnetic susceptibility measurements show the heavy rare earth compounds follow the Curie Weiss law and the calculated numbers of Bohr magnetons are consistent with the RE 3+ ions. The yttrium compound shows very weak temperature independent paramagnetism.

Study on the Crystal Structure and the Intrinsic Properties of Ternary Rare Earth Compound TbMn_6Sn_6

The crystal structure, the intrinsic magnetism and the temperature dependence of coercivity for TbMn 6Sn 6 have been studied. The measurements show that the TbMn 6Sn 6 compound with the HfFe 6Ge 6 type hexagonal structure has the lattice parameters of a =0 54561 nm, c =0 90477 nm, volume of unit cell V =0 241 nm 3 and Curie temperature T c=421 K. The thermomagnetic curve showed that the TbMn 6Sn 6 compound is of ferrimagnetism in the low external magnetic field( H o<32 kA/m) and ferromagnetism in the higher field. The coercivity of the TbMn 6Sn 6 compound has the maximum of 960 kA/m at the temperature of T =200 K.

Thermomagnetic Properties near Transition of Compound Dy_6FeSb_2

Thermomagnetic properties of the new compound Dy6FeSb2 were investigated by vibrating sample magnetometer. The sample of the compound Dy6FeSb2 showed soft magnetic behavior in the investigated temperature range from 85 to 300 K and the ferromagnetic-paramagnetic transition of the compound was a second-order transition. The Landau theory of second-order phase transition was employed to investigate the thermodynamic transition temperature and the specific heat. The calculated transition temperature and the specific heat jump at Currie point of the compound were 143 K and 47.2 J·kg-1·K-1, respectively.

Spontaneous Magnetic Transitions and Corresponding Magnetoelastic Properties of Intermetallic Compounds RMn_2Ge_2(R=Gd, Tb and Dy)

The spontaneous magnetic transitions and corresponding magnetoelastic properties of intermetallic compounds RMn2Ge2（R=Gd, Tb and Dy） were investigated by using the X-ray diffraction method and magnetic measurement. The results showed that the compounds experience two magnetic transitions, namely the second-order paramagnetic to antiferromagnetic transition at temperature TN（TN=368, 423 and 443 K for Gd Mn2 Ge2, Tb Mn2 Ge2 and Dy Mn2 Ge2, respectively） and the first-order antiferromagnetic-ferrimagnetic transition at temperature Tt（Tt=96, 80 and 40 K for Gd Mn2 Ge2, Tb Mn2 Ge2 and Dy Mn2 Ge2, respectively） as the temperature decreases. The temperature dependence of the lattice constant a（T） displays a negative magnetoelastic anomaly at the second-order transition point TN and, at the first-order transition Tt, a increases abruptly for Gd Mn2 Ge2 and Tb Mn2 Ge2, Da/a about 10^（-3）. Nevertheless, the lattice constant c almost does not change at these transition points indicating that such magnetoelastic anomalies are mainly contributed by the Mn-sublattice. The transitions of the magnetoelastic properties are also evidenced on the temperature dependence of magnetic susceptibility χ. The first-order transition behavior at Tt is explained by the Kittel mode of exchange inversion.

Structure and Magnetic Properties of LaCo_(13-X)M_X Intermetallic Compounds

LaCo_(13) has the highest 3d metal content ,of any known rare-earth intermetallic compounds,a1. 03MA/m saturation magnetization at room temperature and a high T_c (1318K). Unfortunately ,it is cubic ,lacking of the necessary anisotropy,thus diminishing the chance that it will be used as a permanent rnagneticmaterial. In this paper ,the structure and magnetic properties of LaCo_(13) Six (x=2 , 4 )and LaCo_(13) Ge_X(x=2,2. 5 ,3 ,4)intermetallic compounds have been studied. The crystal structure was found to be tetragonal whenx=4 for LaCo_(13-X) Six and x=3 , 4 for LaCo_(13-X) Gex ,but the difference between the lattice parameters a and c isvery small. In order to gain the tetragonal structure ,the annealing temperature of LaCo_(13-X) Ge_X must be con-trolled strictly. The magnetic rneasurement results show that the Curie temperatures of all these compoundsare high ,but the saturation magnetization at room-temperature decreases greatly with x increasing.

Magnetocaloric Properties of (Gd_(1-x)Tb_x)_3Al_2 Compounds Near Room Temperature

Magnetic and thermal properties of the (Gd 1- x Tb x ) 3Al 2 compounds were studied as potential magnetic refrigerant materials which are used in magnetic refrigeration near room temperature at low magnetic field. The compounds (Gd 1- x Tb x ) 3Al 2 with x =0, 0.1, 0.2 and 0 3 exhibit a second order magnetic transition. Curie temperature varies from 255 K for x =0.3 to 280 K for x =0. The maximum of the isothermal magnetic entropy change Δ S increases by substituting Tb element for Gd element. Δ S max =18.9 kJ·m -3 ·K -1 for x =0.1 by changing the magnetic field from 0 to 1 T.

Large reversible magnetocaloric effect in antiferromagnetic Er_(3)Si_(2)C_(2) compound

The magnetic properties,magnetic phase transition and magnetocaloric effects(MCE) of Er_(3)Si_(2)C_(2) compound were investigated based on theoretical calculations and experimental analysis.Based on the first principles calculations,the antiferromagnetic(AFM) ground state type in Er_(3)Si_(2)C_(2) compound was predicted and its electronic structure was investigated.The experimental results show that Ei_(3)Si_(2)C_(2) compound is an AFM compound with the Neel temperature(T_(N) of 7 K and undergoes a field-induced firstorder magnetic phase transition from AFM to ferromagnetic(FM) under magnetic fields exceeding 0.6 T at 2 K.The magnetic transition process of Er_(3)Si_(2)C_(2) compound was investigated and discussed.The values of the maximum magnetic entropy change(-ΔS_(M)^(max)) and the refrigeration capacity(RC) are 17 J/(kg·K)and 193 J/kg under changing magnetic fields of 0-5 T,respectively.As a potential cryogenic magnetic refrigerant,the Er_(3)Si_(2)C_(2) compound also provides an interesting research medium to study the magnetic phase transition process.

Investigation of Intermetallic Compound Formed from Rapid Solidification of Al-Ti-RE Alloy

Al-Ti alloy containing rare earth elements can produce fine, uniform dispersion intermetallic phase through rapid solidification (RS) technology. RS Al-Ti-RE alloy can be designed for applications at elevated-temperature since the intermetallic compound has good thermal stability. A transmission electron microscopy investigation shows the intermetallic phase has a diamond cubic structure (a=1.47736 nm), with space group Fd3m. The chemical stoichiometry is Al_(20)Ti_2La. The particle is formed from the melting directly, prior to other phases, and the nucleus is formed from icosahedrons composed with twenty tetrahedrons. Twin crystal structure plays an important role in the nucleation stage.

Mid-Temperature Synthesis of CeO_2-TiO_2 Complex Compound and Its XRD Structure Study

The CeTi 2O 6, which is formed above 1300 ℃ by ceramic method, was obtained at 700 ℃ using sol gel synthesis method. XRD analysis shows that there is 8% deficient of Ce in the structure. The chemical formula is Ce 0.92 Ti 2O 5.84 , which has a monoclinic structure with space group of C 2/ m . Its cell parameters are a =0.9811(8) nm, b =0.3726(3) nm, c =0.6831(6) nm, and β =118.84°. After being treated at 1300 ℃ for 3 h, the system keeps stable but the deficient disappears, while the chemical formula change to the normal CeTi 2O 6, and the cell parameters are a =0.9813(3) nm, b =0.3752(4) nm, c =0.6883(5) nm, β =119.05°. The key to synthesis the precursors of CeTi 2O 6 is that Ti 4+ and Ce 3+ ions must reach the atomistic distributing state and prevent the oxidation of Ce 3+ during sol gel process.