Structure, magnetism and magnetic thermal properties of heavy rare earth Tb1–xTmxFeO3 (x=0.00, 0.15, 0.25) polycrystalline samples

Abstract

Tb1–xTmxFeO3 (x = 0.00, 0.15, 0.25) polycrystalline series were synthesized using a solid-state reaction. Our results show that all three prepared samples are in a distorted orthogonal structure and their space group is pbnm. When the Tm3+ doping amount increases, the characteristics of the spin-flip of the sample decreases following an initial increase at the beginning; the antiferromagnetic property almost reaches zero; the magnetization decreases at the beginning but increases later on. The maximum magnetic entropy change and magnetic refrigeration effect RCP are reduced at varying degrees. Under a 7 T magnetic field, the maximum magnetic entropy change, ΔSmax, for the three samples of Tb1–xTmxFeO3 with x = 0.00, 0.15, 0.25 is 13.78, −9.28, and 10.69 J/(K·kg), respectively; the magnetic refrigeration capacity (RCP) is 316.85, 175.2, and 297.60 J/kg, respectively. In summary, doping with the element Tm reduces ΔSmax and RCP of the sample. Since the maximum magnetic entropy change and the cooling capacity for the three samples are relatively large, they can be used as an alternative for magnetic refrigerants.