Magnetocaloric effects of ferromagnetic erbium mononitride

The rare earth mononitride, ErN, has been synthesized by the carbothermic reduction and hot isostatic press methods. The magnetocaloric effect of ErN has been evaluated by calculating the magnetic entropy changes, Delta S, from the magnetization data sets and from the heat capacity measured at various temperatures and applied fields. The two results are in good agreement with each other. The AS value of ErN is the highest at 7.5 K and higher than that of ErNi2 reported as the candidate material for the magnetic refrigerant of cryogenic technology. Heat capacity curve against temperature of ErN has a peak at 4.4 K at zero-field. The peak value of the heat capacity of ErN is 507 kJ K-1 m(-3). This value is larger than those of Er3Ni used commercially as a magnetic regenerator for the Gifford-McMahon refrigerator. The present results indicate that ErN is a promising material for the magnetic refrigerant and regenerator of cooling systems working above the boiling temperature of helium. (c) 2005 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.