Electrodeposition of CuNiW alloys: thin films, nanostructured multilayers and nanowires

Abstract

Electrodeposition operating conditions were determined for the deposition of copper-nickel-tungsten alloys and compositionally, multilayered deposits. Multilayered alloys with one layer rich in Cu and the other layer rich in NiW were fabricated as both thin films and nanowires. The electrolyte contained 0.6 M Na 3 C 6 H 5 O 7 , 0.2 M Na 2 WO 4 , 0.3 M NiSO 4 and variable CuSO 4 concentration at a pH of 8 adjusted with ammonium hydroxide at 70 ± 2°C. The deposit composition and current efficiency were characterized using rotating cylinder electrodes with and without a Hull configuration. Addition of Cu(II) to the electrolyte lowered the tungsten partial current density and hence the W wt% in the deposit. Thin film multilayered alloys, with a modulation in composition, were fabricated with pulse current deposition and conditions to selectively etch one layer was determined with a view towards fabricating nanotemplates. Nanowires with modulated composition were also demonstrated, electrodeposited into alumina nanoporous templates. However, the nanowire deposition was confounded by the formation of oxide during the modulation, and results herein recommend that the potential of the more noble step be more negative than -0.9 V versus SCE to avoid this situation, despite metallic alloy formation in unrecessed electrodes.

Optimization of CuW alloy electrodeposition towards high-tungsten content

“…In comparison to the methods mentioned above, electrodeposition is rather a simple technique which does not need a sophisticated toolset or great energy expenditure. It can be used for preparation of tailored, specially designed, and complex-shape objects [5,6].…”

Experimental Design and Response Surface Analysis as Available Tools for Statistical Modeling and Optimization of Electrodeposition Processes

“…For example, electrodeposited Cu is the material of choice for the interconnects in ultra-large-scale integrated (ULSI) circuits, and electrodeposited soft magnetic alloys are an important component of magnetic recording heads (Schwarzacher, 2004;Yoshida et al, 2009). In fact, the deposition of alloy coatings is one of the most rapidly expanding topics in the current literature (Oriňáková et al, 2006;Santana et al, 2006Dubent, 2007;Ferreira et al, 2007;Silva et al, 2008;Brankovic et al, 2009;Gupta & Podlaha, 2010, Düzgün et al, 2010. Compared to the electrodeposition of a single metal, alloy coatings show better properties because their chemical composition can be varied to the required function.…”

Large-scale synthesis of Au–Ni alloy nanowires using electrochemical deposition

“…Among the various techniques for the growth of nanowires (Kumar et al 2006;Liu and Bando 2003;Liu et al 2008;Mehrez and Guo 2004;Monson and Woolley 2003;Toma et al 2010;Wang et al 2008;Zhang and Wong 2009;Choi and Park 2004;Zhang et al 2008Zhang et al , 2000Zhang et al , 2005Pan et al 2005), electrodeposition is one of the best and a cost effective method (Martin 1994;Lai and Riley 2008;Mallet et al 2005;Gupta and Podlaha 2010;Wong et al 2009). Because using the electrodeposition technique it is very easy to control the thickness of the layers.…”