Structure, morphology and composition of thin Pd and Ni films deposited by dc magnetron sputtering on polycrystalline Ni and Pd foils

The understanding of atomic and electronic structures is crucial for designing devices. The surface properties of bimetallic systems have been widely studied due to the possibility of applications in different areas, such as catalysis, magnetism, microelectronics and electrochemistry. The objective of this work is studying thin (10 nm) Pd and Ni films on polycrystalline Ni and Pd substrates (Pd/Ni and Ni/Pd), respectively, grown by dc magnetron sputtering. The film structure was investigated by x-ray diffraction (XRD), morphology, by atomic force microscopy and surface composition, and by x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy. The XRD indicated that the Ni/Pd film did not present an ordered structure, while the Pd/Ni had a nanocrystalline structure with a slight structural distortion. Oxide formation was detected for the Ni film, but not for the Pd film