Barocaloric effect in metamagnetic shape memory alloys

We report on calorimetric measurements under hydrostatic pressure in a series of composition related metamagnetic shape memory alloys. We show that metamagnetic shape memory alloys exhibit a barocaloric effect whose magnitude compares well to the magnetocaloric effect exibited by this kind of alloys. While in metamagnetic alloys the magnetocaloric effect is inverse, the barocaloric effect has been found to be conventional. The values obtained for the pressure-induced entropy changes at moderate pressures are in the range of those reported for giant caloric materials. (C) 2014 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim