  The polycrystalline Mn1.26Fe0.60P0.48Si0.52 microwires were successfully
fabricated for the first time by the melt-extraction technique, and their
magnetic and magnetocaloric properties were investigated systematically. The
structural analysis shows that the microwires possess a hexagonal phase with
Fe2P type, with a homogeneous composition distribution. Magnetometry
measurements show that the microwires undergo a weak first-order magnetic phase
transition at a temperature of 142 K. The maximum magnetic entropy change of
the microwires reaches 4.64 Jkg-1K-1 for a field change of 5 T. These low-cost
Mn1.26Fe0.60P0.48Si0.52 microwires are promising for active magnetic
refrigeration in the liquid nitrogen temperature range.
