The concentration effects on structural and magnetic properties of Fe 2 V 1-x Mn x Ge Heusler alloys

This study presents the concentration-dependent structural, morphological, and magnetic properties of Fe 2 V 1-x Mn x Ge Heusler alloys (x = 0.0, 0.25, and 0.50) have not been studied previously in the literature, and are investigated by using X-ray Diffractometer, Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), and Physical Properties Measurement System (PPMS). We observed from the X-ray diffraction measurements that (except x = 0) Fe 2 V 1-x Mn x Ge samples have had L2 1 -type crystal structure, matching well with the literature. In all SEM images, some holes and crack-type formations are observed. Increasing Mn content in Fe 2 V 1-x Mn x Ge Heusler alloys can effectively inhibit grain boundary migration. Except for Fe 2 VGe, the other alloys in the series are investigated to be soft ferromagnets at 5 K with saturation magnetic moment. The (M-H) graphs especially for Fe 2 V 0.75 Mn 0.25 Ge and Fe 2 V 0.5 Mn 0.5 Ge measured at 5 K reveal almost no coercive fields and easy magnetization. Namely, the system easily saturates without needing any high fields. The obtained results show that these new samples may be suitable candidates for technological applications.