Theoretical study of magnetic, magnetocaloric, and hysteresis behavior of the antiperovskite compound Mn3AlN

Abstract

In this study, we explore the magnetic, magnetocaloric properties, as well as the hysteresis behavior of the antiperovskite compound Mn₃AlN using a theoretical approach based on the mean-field approximation. We examine the effects of the magnetic field and exchange interaction on the magnetization, magnetic susceptibility, magnetic entropy change, as well as the hysteresis behavior of this material. The results show that Mn₃AlN undergoes a second-order magnetic phase transition, with a maximum magnetocaloric effect around the critical temperature. Moreover, the relative cooling power RCP increases monotonically with magnetic field strength, suggesting that this compound could be promising for magnetic refrigeration applications. The maximum values of the magnetic entropy change \(\Delta S_{m}\) and the relative cooling power RCP are 0.21 and 5.14, respectively, under an applied magnetic field of \(h=2.5\). Hysteresis behavior is also studied, revealing a decrease in coercivity and remanent magnetization with increasing temperature, until the hysteresis loop completely disappears above the critical temperature.