Recent Progress and Future Perspectives in Magnetic and Metamagnetic Shape-Memory Heusler Alloys

Magnetic shape-memory properties refer to the ability of certain materials to show strong response in strain to an applied magnetic field. This strain is caused by either inducing the martensitic transition or rearranging martensitic variants. In the first, case a superelastic effect is possible, while in the second, the system is able to show the shape-memory effect. The complex behaviour displayed by these materials is mainly a consequence of a strong interplay between magnetism and structure which is driven by a martensitic transition. This interplay is the source of many other observed effects such as giant magneto-resistance, exchange bias and magnetocaloric effects. In this paper, we will overview the present state of the art, discuss present challenges and outline some future perspectives in the field.