Data Analysis of the Ni-Mn-Ga Single Crystal Growth Processes

Magneto-mechanical properties of multifunctional magnetic shape memory alloys such as Ni-Mn-Ga depend on the crystallographic structure which in turn is highly sensitive to composition. In Ni-Mn-Ga single crystals, the final composition deviates from the ingot composition, and the composition shift depends on various process parameters such as crystal growth rate. Current research relies heavily on experiential knowledge that is either written down in various lab notebooks or kept in the minds of those that regularly grew the crystals. This in turn causes important data mining events such as process changes to go unannounced in the data set, leaving large sets of valuable information hidden. This study seeks to eliminate this problem by creating a central database that will house all pertinent information relating to the single crystal growth process, thereby giving researchers the tools necessary to conduct detailed data analysis. By creating a highly organized searchable structure, data analysis times will decrease by several orders of magnitude and potentially ground-breaking trends can be identified. The second objective of this study is to then begin isolating compositions that are most likely to create a desired crystallographic structure. Advancements in the understanding of how to create specific crystallographic structures will enable developing reliable processes for Ni-Mn-Ga magnetic shape memory alloys. .