Structural characterization of electrodeposited EuSe thin films

A simple and low-cost electrodeposition technique is used to investigate the codepostion of EuSe from aqueous acidic solutions containing europium and selenium ions on stainless steel cathodes. The europium ions are complexed with disodium ethelenediaminetetraacetic acid (Na2-EDTA). The preparative parameters such as deposition potential, deposition time, bath temperature, pH, etc., are optimized to obtain good-quality electrodeposits. The optimized preparative parameters are: deposition potential −560 mV versus SCE, deposition time 75 min, bath temperature 70°C, electrolyte bath [(0.01 M EuCl2 + 0.05 M Na2-EDTA) + 0.001 M SeO2] in 1:1 volumetric proportions at pH 4.0 The electrodeposits were bluish brown and about 1 to 2 μm thick. The EuSe films characterized by XRD studies reveal that films are polycrystalline with intense peaks along the planes (111) and (200). The ratio of complexant concentration to the metal ion concentration is 5, and is found sufficient for the material formation. SEM studies show a cauliflower-like morphology of EuSe fully covering the stainless steel substrates. The EDAX analysis shows that the EuSe electrodeposit is rich in selenium. The magnetic studies of the material reveal that the prepared films are magnetic in nature.