Journal of Magnetism and Magnetic Materials 254255 (2003) 275277

Modelling detwinning of martensite platelets under magnetic

and (or) stress actions on NiMnGa alloys
L. Hirsinger*, C. Lexcellent
Laboratoire de M!ecanique Appliqu!ee, Institut des Microtechniques de Franche-Comt!e, C.N.R.S., Universit!e de Franche-Comt!e,
24 Chemin de lEpitaphe, F-25000 Besanc-on, France

Abstract
Coupled thermo-magneto-mechanical behaviour of ferromagnetic shape memory alloy is modelled using the theory
of thermodynamic of irreversible process with internal variables. Driving forces acting on twin boundaries and on
domain walls are studied for NiMnGa alloys subjected to magnetic and/or stress actions. Evolutions of volume
fractions and ratio of magnetic domain width of two twinned martensites during their rearrangement are particularly
examined.
r 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
Keywords: Phase transitionsmartensitic-like; Magneto-mechanical coupling; Magnetisation models

Different models have been proposed in literature by

OHandley, Murray [1], Tickle [2] and Likhachev [3] to
describe the mechanism of eld-induced large strain in
NiMnGa alloys. In this paper, a phenomenological
model of thermo-magneto-mechanical behaviour of
these ferromagnetic shape memory alloys (FSMA) is
presented. From the knowledge of twinned martensite
variants repartition and magnetic domain ones at initial
state (see Fig. 1), this model is deduced by a changing of
observation scale via homogenisation of local physical
elds [4,5]. In the classical case of martensitic rearrangement in NiMnGa of two variants M1 and M2
between three possible variants [6]the free energy
~;
could be written as an function of the magnetic eld H
the total strain e; the temperature T and two internal
%
variables, i.e. volume
fraction z of martensite M2 (1
z
of M1 ) and ratio a of domain wall width (see Fig. 2),
such that
~ ; e; z; a; T fChem: fMech: fMag: fTher:
fH
1
%
with
fChem: T u0
Ts0 ;

*Corresponding author. Tel.: +33-381-66-6024; fax: +33381-66-6700.

fMech: e; z; D
%
1
e; z; ktw
emz : L : e
zktw
emz ;
2r % %
%
%
%
% %

~ M
~ z; a;
~ ; z; a
1 m0 H
fMag: H
r


T
fTherm: T cv T
T0
T ln
;
T0

where u0 ; s0 ; r; em ; L; m0 and cv ; respectively, denote

% % entropy, mass density, magnespecic internal energy,
tostriction strain tensor, elastic tensor, magnetic permeability of vacuum and heat capacity.
For twinned martensite rearrangement M1 into M2 ;
two different expressions of the strain tensor ktw could
be taken depending on twin boundary orientation [6]. In
NiMnGa, only one type of twin boundaries is
generally observed at the same time [2,7], and ktw could
be chosen indifferently as being
0
1
A

B
A=2 0
B
C
ktw @

B
0 A ~
x; ~
y; ~
x 4~
y
6
%
sym:
0

0304-8853/03/$ - see front matter r 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.
PII: S 0 3 0 4 - 8 8 5 3 ( 0 2 ) 0 0 7 7 3 - 4

L. Hirsinger, C. Lexcellent / Journal of Magnetism and Magnetic Materials 254255 (2003) 275277

276

22

Intrinsic dissipation Di and Clausius Duhem inequality can be written in a classical way as

12

sT

D1
rf

M2
11

11

M1
M2

M1
M2

12

22

Fig. 1. Twin martensitic boundaries (dash line) and domains

walls (ne line) in NiMnGa alloys subjected to magnetic eld
~ and mechanical stresses sij :
H

X0;
~
~ H
9
s : e
m0 M
% %
where s denotes entropy and X the derivative of X in
respect to time t: According to the second thermodynamics law, this latter inequality which must be
satised for any physically admissible evolution implies
the following state laws, e.g. denitions of specic
entropy s and stress tensor s
s

qf
;
qT

qf
sr
L : e
zktw
em L : ee ;
qe
%
%
%
%
%
% %
%
~
r qf m0 Ms 2a
11
z~
x z~
y ;
m0 M
~
qH

M1 (volume
fraction: 1-z)

H
M2

(volume
fraction: z)

n+

x
Fig. 2. Denition of internal variables: volume fraction z of
martensite M2 and ratio a of magnetic domain width.

12

qf
ktw em2
em1 : s
qz
%
%
%
%

O2m0 Ms H2a
1 cos y ;

4

ph
r

11

where ee denotes elastic strain tensor. State laws

corresponding to internal variables are the following:
pf
r

10

qf
2m0 Ms H1
z cos y z sin y;
qa

13
14

where emi and y; respectively, denote magnetostriction

strain of martensite M (i 1 or 2) and angle between
~ and x, (see Fig. 1).
vectors H
It comes that ph and pf are driving forces acting on
twin boundaries and on domain walls, respectively [5,8].
It must be noticed that the second term in Eq. (13) is the
magnetic pressure on twin boundaries also given by the
Zeeman energy difference between twin variants [9].
Moreover, according to Clausius Duhem inequality
(rewrite from Eq. (9)(14))
Di pf z ph a X0

15

which one chooses to split into two as

with
A

ph a X0 and pf zX0;
Z2
Z1 12
Z1

Z22
;
Z22

Z2
Z1 12
Z1

Z22
;
Z22

where, ~
x; ~
y ; Z1 and Z2 ; respectively, denote vectors
parallel to wedges of austenite cell and ratios between
lattice parameters of martensite (for instance, in
Ni2MnGa alloy, Z1 1:013; Z2 0:934; so B > A > 0).
~ corresponds to the macroscopic
Magnetisation M
contribution of each magnetic domains, where their
magnetisation directions are supposed to be xed by a
large magneto-crystalline anisotropy energy:
~ Ms 2a
11
z~
M
x z~
y :

16

If p (or p ) reaches a positive yield value, then

associated variable a (or z) tends to increase because a
(or z) must be positive or equal to zero. Inversely, a (or
z) tends to decrease if ph (or pf ) reaches a negative yield
value. So, if one hypotheses that these yield values are
equal to zero for the sake of simplicity the evolution of
material state is known by the study of ph and pf signs.
From demagnetisation state (a 12) in NiMnGa
alloys, pure mechanical loadings, such that (see Fig. 1),
tensile s11 in direction O~
x and/or compression s22 in O~
y
one and/or shear stress (
s12 ) in plane ~
x O~
y ; could
induce M1 into M2 rearrangement zX0 because, in this

L. Hirsinger, C. Lexcellent / Journal of Magnetism and Magnetic Materials 254255 (2003) 275277
y

h
mi n

h < 0

=0

h > 0

f < 0

M1

z-1
z

/4

f > 0

/4

f < 0

(z=1)

<
1/2

f > 0

M2

h < 0

=0

h > 0

h
ma

xi
h

>
1f /2
m
ax
=
i
1/2

f
=

277

M2
(z)
x

(z=1)

=
1

f
m

/2

ax
i

M1
(1-z)

z-1
z
= Arctg ((1-z)/z)

= Arctg ((1-z)/z)
(z=0)

(z=0)

Fig. 3. Driving force ph acting on domain walls as a function of

magnetic eld orientation y in NiMnGa.

case, pf is always positive

f

p H 0 As11
Bs22 B
A
s12 > 0:

17

1
2)

From the same demagnetisation state (a and for

stress-free state (s 0), Figs. 3 and 4 give signs of ph
and pf for magnetic eld applied in a given direction. It
appears that a could increase only for p=2
boyop

b or
p=2
boyo
b (see Fig. 3) and, M1 into M2
rearrangement zX0 is unconditionally possible only
for p=4oyop=2 (or
3p=4oyo
p=2) (see Fig. 4), i.e.
whatever the value of z: As a consequence, it is possible
to magnetically control a nal volume fraction zf by
applying a large magnetic eld H , in the direction y
b Arctg1
zf =zf : The driving force pf reaches its
maximum, pfmax ; for
y

p=4 or 3p=4

b
or p
b

if bop=4 i:e: if z > 1=2;

elsewhere;

and
pfmax

8
>
<

p
2m0 Ms H

p
p

>
: 2m0 Ms H cos b
4

p
for y
o
b;
4
p
for y
b
o
:
4
18

Finally, the largest eld-induced strain in FSMA is

achieved for total M1 into M2 (or M2 into M1 )

Fig. 4. Driving force pf acting on twin boundaries as a function

of magnetic eld orientation y in NiMnGa.

rearrangement from an initial state z 0 (or z 1),

i.e. for stressed material as presented here [10,11].
The conclusion, ph and pf which has been introduced
in this paper, will be used as yield functions to initiate,
on one hand, evolution of martensitic rearrangement via
evolution of variable z [4] and, on the other hand, one of
magnetisation via evolution of a:

References
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(2001) 261.
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