Characterisation of cobalt/copper multilayers obtained by electrodeposition

Electrodeposition of Co/Cu compositionally modulated multilayers was studied, using a single bath under potentiostatic conditions. The structure of the multilayers was characterised by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). Co/Cu multilayers with different sublayer thickness can be produced from a single bath as a function of different pulse potentials and deposition charges, avoiding cobalt oxidation at the start of each copper deposition. Copper sublayers are constituted of pure copper whereas ‘cobalt’ sublayers contain a low copper percentage (≤2%). The multilayered Co/Cu deposits exhibit giant magnetoresistance when the thickness of the bilayers is approximately a few nanometers.