Magnetic Properties of Nanocrystalline CoW Thin Film Alloys Electrodeposited from Citrate Baths

Magnetic CoW thin film alloys were electrodeposited from citrate baths to investigate the resulting microstructure and magnetic properties. Deposit tungsten (W) content in the films electrodeposited at $70^{\circ}C$ were independent of current density, while coercivity decreased from hard $(H_{c,//}\~150\;Oe\;and\;H_{c.{\bot}}\;\~240\;Oe)$ to soft magnetic properties $(H_{c,//}\~20\;Oe\;and\;H_{c.{\bot}}\;\~30\;Oe)$ with increasing current densities from $10\;to\;100mA{\cdot}cm^2$, with deposit W content $(\~40\%)$ relatively unaffected by the applied current density. X-ray diffraction analysis indicated that hcp $Co_3W$ phases [(200), (201) and (220) planes] in the CoW films electrodeposited at $70^{\circ}C\;and\;10mA{\cdot}cm^{-2}$ were dominant, whereas amorphous CoW phases with small amount of hcp $Co_3W$ [(002) planes] were dominant with deposition at $70^{\circ}C\;and\;100mA{\cdot}cm^{-2}$. At intermediate current densities $(25\;and\;50mA{\cdot}cm^{-2}),\;hop\;Co_3W$ phases [(200), (002), (201) and (220)] were observed. The average grain size was measured to be 30 nm from Sheller formula. It is suggested that the change of the deposit coercivities in the CoW thin films electrodeposited at $70^{\circ}C$ is attributed to the change of microstructures with varying the current density. Nanostructured $Co_3W/amorphous-CoW$ multilayers were fabricated by alternating current density between 10 and $100 mA{\cdot}cm^{-2}$, varying the individual layer thickness. The magnetic properties of $Co_3W/amorphous-CoW$ multilayers were strongly dependent on the thickness of the alternating hard and soft magnetic thin films. The nanostructured $Co_3W/amorphous-CoW$ multilayers exhibited a shift from low to high coercivities suggesting a strong coupling effect.