Magnetic properties and magnetocaloric effect of the compound NdSi

Abstract The magnetic properties and magnetocaloric effect (MCE) of the compound NdSi have been studied. The magnetic ground state of this compound is determined to be ferromagnetic and a second-order phase transition occurs at the Curie temperature T C =46 K. Large magnetic-entropy changes (Δ S ) with no hysteresis loss are found with field variation. Maximum values of Δ S −6.8 J/kg K and −12.4 J/kg K are found for field changes of 0–20 kOe and 0–50 kOe, respectively. With the merits of the large Δ S and without hysteresis loss, NdSi can be considered as a competitive candidate magnetic refrigerant.