Magnetic and transformation properties of Ni2MnGa combinatorically substituted with 5 at.% of transition elements from Cr to Cu – Experimental insight

Heusler Ni–Mn–Ga alloys with martensitic transformation being multiferroic materials exhibit magnetic shape memory (MSM) phenomena and moreover, these are touted for magneto– and multi–caloric effect (MCE). MCE benefits from high saturation magnetization and also large variability and sensitivity of transformation temperatures on alloying. In contrast, MSM phenomena are limited by low temperatures of both ferromagnetic and ferroelastic transformations. In an attempt to increase or modify the transformation temperatures and to understand the physical fundamentals beyond transformation variations and magnetic ordering, we experimentally investigate the magnetic and transformation properties in Ni2MnGa alloyed with transitional elements spanning from Cr to Cu. These elements are consecutively substituted on Ni, Mn, and Ga sites, to establish the effect of chemical substitution and elemental evolution. The elemental dependence of saturation magnetization, magnetocrystalline anisotropy, Curie temperature, and martensitic transformation temperatures are compared with (non–)stoichiometric Ni–Mn–Ga Heusler compounds. The observed behavior is complex and there are no clear trends of transformation temperatures as a function of the number of valence electrons or of non–bonding electrons per atom. The saturation magnetization at 10 K seems to follow the Slater–Pauling curve particularly for Ni substitution. Obtained results can serve as useful rectification for the theoretical prediction of new Ni–Mn–Ga–X Heusler alloys.