Effect of Mn Doping on the Structural, Magnetic, and Magnetocaloric Effect of Fe{sub 17}Dy{sub 2} Compounds
Crystal structural and magnetic properties of polycrystalline (Fe{sub 1−x}Mn{sub x}){sub 17}Dy{sub 2} (x = 0.0, 0.1, 0.2, and 0.3) compounds were studied by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM) measurements. The results show that (Fe{sub 1−x}Mn{sub x}){sub 17}Dy{sub 2} forms as a substitutional solid solution with the hexagonal Th{sub 2}Ni{sub 17} type. The unit cell volume increases with Mn content. The Curie temperature (T{sub C}) can be tuned from 364 K for x = 0.0 to 80 K for x = 0.3. The magnetic transition at T{sub C} is a typical second-order ferromagnetic-paramagnetic transition. For an applied field change from 0 to 5 T, the maximum magnetic entropy change (| − ΔS{sub M}|) for (Fe{sub 1−x}Mn{sub x}){sub 17}Dy{sub 2} (x = 0.0, 0.1, and 0.2) compounds are 3.9, 2.8, and 1.7 J kg{sup −1} k{sup −1}, respectively. The high ΔS{sub M}, appropriate T{sub C}, and a high performance-to-cost ratio make (Fe{sub 1−x}Mn{sub x}){sub 17}Dy{sub 2} compounds a candidate materials for room-temperature magnetic refrigeration applications.