dc- and ac-magnetic field-induced strain effects in ferromagnetic shape memory composites of Ni–Mn–Ga single crystal and polyurethane polymer

Ferromagnetic shape memory composites of multilayer and sandwich types were fabricated by laminating Ni–Mn–Ga single-crystal plates with polyurethane (PU) polymer plates. The dc- and ac-magnetic field-induced strains (MFISs) in the composites were measured as functions of both magnetic field and mechanical load, and the results were compared with those of the single crystal. It was found that the load-free dc-MFISs were 5.6%, 1.5%, and 0.8%, while the load-free ac-MFISs were 0.3%, 0.8%, and 0.5% in the single crystal, multilayer composite, and sandwich composite, respectively. The relatively smaller load-free dc-MFISs and larger load-free ac-MFISs in the composites than the single crystal originated from the stress bias of the Ni–Mn–Ga plates by the PU plates in the composites. The dc-MFISs of all samples and the ac-MFISs of the composites decreased with the increase in mechanical load amplitude, while the ac-MFIS of the single crystal peaked at 1.6 MPa load.