1. The magnetocaloric effect and its applications

1.1 Principle of the magnetocaloric effect

The magnetocaloric effect (MCE) is an intrinsic property of magnetic substances that manifests itself as a reversible temperature change when subjected to a magnetic field. This effect is maximal around the magnetic ordering temperature, or transition temperature (this may be the Curie temperature for ferromagnetic ordering, or the Néel temperature for antiferromagnetic or ferrimagnetic ordering). At this point, the variation in the magnetization of the material undergoing magnetic ordering is maximal, resulting...