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Mn1.96−xCrxCo0.04Sb with x  =  0.05 and 0.09 has been investigated for its magnetocaloric properties using structural, magnetization and calorimetric methods. These compounds exhibit an antiferromagnetic-ferrimagnetic transition of which the temperature can be adjusted by the Cr concentration. The transition temperature is at room temperature for x  =  0.09. Magnetocaloric properties are presented as entropy-change and direct temperature-change. We show that these compounds have a narrow transitional hysteresis and exhibit the inverse magnetocaloric effect. We find a nearly hysteresis-free transition with a 2.6 K temperature-change around 287 K making it attractive for magnetic-cooling. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We study the technologically important (0 0 1)-texture formation in 10 nm thick (Fe0.9Cu0.1)52Pt48 and, as reference, Fe49Pt51 alloy films. The samples are grown on SiO2(200 nm)/Si(0 0 1) substrates at ambient temperature by pulsed laser deposition. Subsequent rapid thermal processing (RTP) at 650 °C for various time steps drives the initially nanocrystalline and chemically disordered films into the tetragonal L10 phase accompanied by a strong (0 0 1)-texture leading to perpendicular magnetic anisotropy. The fundamental role of the chemical order during short-time annealing as an additional source of strain in the films is experimentally addressed. The structural and magnetic results indicate selective grain growth leading to the (0 0 1)-texture. Strongly prolonged annealing, however, leads to a reorientation of grains towards the (1 1 1)-texture pointing to the increasing importance of surface energies when the initial strain has released. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]