Field Dependence of the Refrigerant Capacity for La_0.6Ca_0.4MnO₃ Manganite

The magnetocaloric effect in La0.6Ca0.4MnO3 manganite has been investigated. The isothermal magnetization versus applied magnetic field at various temperatures in the vicinity of Curie temperature was measured, and the temperature dependence of magnetic entropy change was determined using Maxwell's relation. This value is comparable to that in Gd. Nevertheless, the relative cooling power of La0.6Ca0.4MnO3 was shown to be considerably lower than that of Gd. The experimental results have been analyzed in frames of a phenomenological statistical model. This model considers explicitly Jahn-Teller interactions and allows prediction of the field dependences of the magnetic entropy change and the relative cooling power.