Conventional and anisotropic magnetic entropy change in HoAl2 ferromagnetic compound

Abstract In this paper, we present theoretical investigations on the conventional and anisotropic magnetocaloric effects in the cubic HoAl 2 ferromagnetic compound. They are investigated in terms of a Hamiltonian that takes into account the Zeeman and exchange magnetic interactions, and crystalline electric field. In this study we have explored recent experimental results in HoAl 2 single crystals and polycrystalline samples. HoAl 2 presents a spin reorientation transition at 20 K and different signatures of this phenomenon are reproduced in our calculations. In addition, we have calculated the anisotropic variation of magnetic entropy that corresponds to a rotation of a HoAl 2 single crystal from its [110] towards its [100] direction in the presence of a constant applied magnetic field. The intensity of the anisotropic effect is twice that one of the conventional effect at spin reorientation region. A subtle signature of the spin reorientation is also observed in the [111] direction. We conclude that the crystal electric field term plays the principal role to describe the main magnetic characteristics of the system, not being necessary to include in the Hamiltonian others effects such as elastic or high order magnetic interactions.