Stress-free two-way thermoelastic shape memory and field-enhanced strain in Ni₅₂Mn₂₄Ga₂₄ single crystals

Stress-free and two-way thermoelastic shape memory, with 1.2% strain and 6 K temperature hysteresis, has been found in single crystalline Ni₅₂Mn₂₄Ga₂₄. The deformation can be enhanced more than three times, up to 4.0% shrinkage with a bias field 1.2 T applied along the measurement direction, or changed to 1.5% expansion by the 1.2 T applied perpendicular to the measurement direction. For achieving a large deformation, the magnetic field exhibits a more evident contribution than an external stress on this material. These characteristics can be attributed to the low level of internal stress and the preferential orientation of the martensitic variants.