Back interface effect on the topography and magnetism relationship studied from Ni nano-coatings: role of ITO and Cu substrates

A comparative study is here reported on the role of ITO and Cu substrates in the surface growth, topography and the magnetism of mesoscopic scale thick nanocrystallized Ni electrocoatings in the thickness interval 60 < d < 1200 nm. The cathodic voltammetry (C-V) technique used for the coating formation engenders conglomerated grain patterns with ITO and spaced needle-like features with Cu. These surface configurations are particularly marked with the thinnest samples. They undergo a noticeable smoothing with the coating thickness increase. The magnetic reversal (MR) of the Ni samples on Cu is ruled by the spin rotation mechanism. A transition from the domain wall (DW) motion mechanism to the spin rotation one occurs with ITO while the d value increases. The study of the topography-magnetism relationship reveals that the spin rotation mechanism of the Ni samples is incoherent with both substrates. The co-existence of the Bloch magnetic domains (MD)_B and the Néel domain wall (DW)_N types is identified for ITO in the thinner (rougher) Ni samples associated with the DW motion MR. The same sequence occurs for Cu for the thicker (smoother) samples linked to the spin rotation MR, as long as their normalized roughness values are confined below σ _o′ ≈ 0.15. (paper)