APPLIED PHYSICS LETTERS, cilt.91, sa.25, 2007 (SCI-Expanded)
We study the temperature dependence of strain under constant magnetic fields in Ni-Mn based ferromagnetic Heusler alloys in the form Ni-Mn-X (X: Ga, In, Sn, and Sb) which undergo a martensitic transformation. We discuss the influence of the applied magnetic field on the nucleation of ferromagnetic martensite and extract information on the easy axis of magnetization in the martensitic state. (c) 2007 American Institute of Physics.