Effect of Ni/Mn concentration on exchange bias properties in bulk Ni50−xMn37+xSn13 Heusler alloys

We report the effect of Ni/Mn variation on the exchange bias properties in the bulk Mn-rich Ni50−xMn37+xSn13 (0 ≤ x ≤ 4) Heusler alloys. The excess Mn content was found to increase the exchange bias field while it decreases the exchange bias blocking temperature (TEB) from 149 to 9 K. A maximum shift in the hysteresis loop of 377 Oe is observed for the Ni46Mn41Sn13 alloy. As compared to Mn/Sn variation, Ni/Mn variation strongly influences the exchange bias properties in Ni-Mn-Sn alloys. We observed that if the Mn content is above 37 at. % in Ni-Mn-Sn alloys, the TEB value would show a decreasing trend either by varying the Ni or Sn content.