Role of local structural distortions in the variation of martensitic transformation temperature with / ratio in NiMnZ (Z = In, Sn or Sb) alloys.

NiMnZ (Z = In, Sn or Sb) undergo martensitic transformation with transformation temperature () scaling with the average valence electron per atom (/) ratio. However, the rate of increase of depends on the type of Z atom, with the slope of / curve increasing from Z = In to Z = Sb. Local structural distortions are believed to be the leading cause of martensitic transformation in these alloys.