Magnetocaloric films for microscale thermal energy harvesting

In the last couple of decades, Magnetocaloric (MC) materials studieshave undergone major advancements paving the way to novel energy conversion applications. Among them, a rather new field of research is represented by the possibility to design MEMS scale devices scavenging low grade heat to produce electric energy. The working principle relies on the thermal response of a material to the application/removal of a magnetic field. Indeed, a flexible, free-standing, magnetocaloric film can be used as an active substance in a compact, high throughput micro-device working as a generator, or as a cooler, depending on its design. A Gd film presenting all the characteristics required to be deployed in a MEMS generator has been recently produced thanks to the collaboration between the “Growth and properties of hybrid thin film systems” group, at INSP, and the “Magnetic Materials for Energy” group, at SATIE (ENS Paris Saclay).

Caption: picture of the freestanding Gd film. © INSP

Reference

“Magnetocaloric Effect in Flexible, Free-Standing Gadolinium Thick Films for Energy Conversion Applications”

Doan Nguyen Ba, Yunlin Zheng, Loic Becerra, Massimiliano Marangolo, Morgan Almanza, and Martino LoBue

Physical Review Applied 15, 064045 (2021)

Doan Nguyen Ba : badoan2309(at)gmail.com

Max Marangolo : massimiliano.marangolo(at)insp.jussieu.fr