Chapter 4 - Phenomenology of shape memory alloys

The main physical characteristics of shape memory alloys (SMAs) are discussed, starting from a description of the phenomenology underlying the behavior and arriving at an introduction of the main descriptive parameters (temperatures and transformation tensions, etc.) and the mechanical characteristics associated with their two phases. SMAs are considered to be heat generators or are used to harvest energy. Applications based on magnetocaloric, elastocaloric, and barocaloric properties are proposed. Especially with reference to the first of these, over 1000 articles have been published in specialized magazines.