Magnetocaloric effect in the ternary silicide Gd3NiSi2

Gd3NiSi2 annealed sample has been investigated by magnetization, electrical resistivity and specific heat measurements. This study reveals its ferromagnetic behavior below TC = 215 K; only the gadolinium carries a magnetic moment with a saturation magnetization of 7.19 μB/Gd mol. Gd3NiSi2 exhibits a magnetocaloric effect higher in magnetic entropy change than the one recently reported for Gd6Ni5/3Si3. This ternary silicide can be obtained as metallic ribbons where the structural disordering modifies strongly its magnetocaloric properties.