Amorphization Induced High Magneto-Caloric Effect of Gd₅₅Al₂₀Ni₂₅ Ternary Alloy

We report the amorphization induced high magneto-caloric effect (MCE) of recently developed Gd₅₅Al₁₅Ni₃₀ bulk metallic glass (BMG). The magnetic properties of the Gd₅₅Al₁₅Ni₃₀ BMG are investigated in comparison with that of its crystalline counterpart. It is found that amorphization can increase the saturation magnetization and decrease the hysteresis of Gd₅₅Al₁₅Ni₃₀ alloys, which indicate the possible enhancement of MCE. The magnetic entropy changes and the refrigerant capacity of the BMG as well as the crystalline samples is calculated directly from isothermal magnetic measurements. The results show the amorphization induced high MCE of the alloy and the excellent refrigerant efficiency of Gd₅₅Al₁₅Ni₃₀ bulk metallic glass.