Half-metals are particular ferromagnetic materials which can be considered as hybrids between metals and semiconductors. A particular feature of these materials is that electrons at the Fermi level show complete spin polarization making them prime targets for research into suitable divices for spin electronics. This book is both an introduction and state-of-art survey of the latest advances in the understanding and applications of Heusler alloys and related compounds.

This volume provides a detailed treatment of half-metallic materials and their properties from both an experimental and theoretical point of view. It discusses the methods used to understand and predict the properties of half-metals and the gamut of other materials amenable to these techniques. It also offers an expansive bibliography to facilitate further and deeper research. This book provides the precise definitions of all key terminology used in the vast and varied literature.This is the first comprehensive monograph on the subject and will serve as a starting point for graduate students and senior researchers who wish to enter the field. This book will also be an invaluable reference to those already working in the areaof half-metallic materials.

This volume provides a detailed treatment of half-metallic materials and their properties from both an experimental and theoretical point of view. It discusses the methods used to understand and predict the properties of half-metals and the gamut of other materials amenable to these techniques. It also offers an expansive bibliography to facilitate further and deeper research. This book provides the precise definitions of all key terminology used in the vast and varied literature.This is the first comprehensive monograph on the subject and will serve as a starting point for graduate students and senior researchers who wish to enter the field. This book will also be an invaluable reference to those already working in the areaof half-metallic materials./a

This book gives an overview of the physics of Heusler compounds ranging from fundamental properties of these alloys to their applications. Especially Heusler compounds as half-metallic ferromagnetic and topological insulators are important in condensed matter science due to their potential in magnetism and as materials for energy conversion. The book is written by world-leaders in this field. It offers an ideal reference to researchers at any level.

Ternary Mn-based Heusler alloys often exhibit a ferromagnetic shape memory effect,which is best studied in Ni2MnGa, a prototype of Heusler alloys. Heusler Alloys: Structure, Properties and Applications opens by analyzing how by substituting nickel for iron, another Heusler alloy emerges, Fe2MnGa, with much richer structural and magnetic properties than Ni2MnGa and a large ferromagnetic shape memory performance in slightly off-stoichiometric compositions.Next, the effects of atomic site disorder on the transport, magnetic, optical, and magneto-optical properties and electronic structures of metallic Cu2MnAl, Ni2MnGa and Ni2MnIn and half-metallic Co2CrAl, Co2MnGa and Co2CrGa Heusler alloy films are been investigated and the findings are discussed.The concluding study presents first-order reversal curve diagrams of the full-Heusler alloy nanoparticles synthesized by co-precipitation method, followed by thermal annealing at 700 °C under Ar/H2 atmosphere. Interacting single domain particles were dominantly detected from analysis.

Spintronics is an emerging technology exploiting the spin degree of freedom and has proved to be very promising for new types of fast electronic devices. Amongst the anticipated advantages of spintronics technologies, researchers have identified the non-volatile storage of data with high density and low energy consumption as particularly relevant. This monograph examines the concept of half-metallic compounds perspectives to obtain novel solutions and discusses several oxides such as perovskites, double perovskites and CrO2 as well as Heusler compounds. Such materials can be designed and made with high spin polarization and, especially in the case of Heusler compounds, many material-related problems present in current-day 3d metal systems, can be overcome. Spintronics: From Materials to Devices provides an insight into the current research on Heusler compounds and offers a general understanding of structure–property relationships, including the influence of disorder and correlations on the electronic structure and interfaces. Spintronics devices such as magnetic tunnel junctions (MTJs) and giant magnetoresistance (GMR) devices, with current perpendicular to the plane, in which Co2 based Heusler compounds are used as new electrode materials, are also introduced. From materials design by theoretical methods and the preparation and properties of the materials to the production of thin films and devices, this monograph represents a valuable guide to both novices and experts in the fields of Chemistry, Physics, and Materials Science.

Covering fundamental research as well as real-world applications, this first book on CMAs at an introductory level treats everything from atomistic details to surface processing. Comprehensive, self-contained chapters provide readers with the latest knowledge on the most salient features of the topic, selected in terms of their relevance to potential technological applications. Edited by one of the most distinguished authorities on quasicrystals and this most important of their subclasses, the contributions elucidate aspects of CMAs from a particular viewpoint: physical and chemical characteristics in the sub-nanometer regime, mesoscale phenomena, preparation and processing of thin films, and large-scale engineering properties. The whole is rounded off by a look at the commercial potential of CMA-based applications. For PhD students and lecturers alike.