Thermal, Magnetic, and Magnetotransport Properties of a Rapidly Quenched Ni 50 Mn 35 Al 2 Sn 13 Tape Sample

The heat capacity, thermal diffusivity, thermal conductivity, magnetization, and electrical resistance of the rapidly quenched Ni50Mn35Al2Sn13 alloy have been studied. Pronounced anomalies in the form of minima associated with magnetic and magnetostructural transformations have been observed on the temperature dependence of the thermal diffusivity. The behavior of thermal conductivity and thermal diffusivity indicates that the free path of heat carriers is limited by structural imperfections of the tape. The transition of the sample to the martensitic phase is accompanied by a sharp increase in electrical resistance, suggesting increasing the electron relaxation rate on structural distortions inherent in martensite. The magnitude of the magnetoresistive effect Δρ/ρ0 in a field of 1.8 T near the martensitic transition reaches 40%. A temperature hysteresis, indicating the structural heterogeneity of the austenitic phase, was detected on the dependence of ρ(T) near TC.