MICROSTRUCTURE OF MAGNETIC METALLIC SUPERLATTICES GROWN BY ELECTRODEPOSITION IN MEMBRANE NANOPORES

Magnetic metallic multilayers grown by electrodeposition in nanopores are good candidates for the study and application of giant magnetoresi stance (GMR) in the 'current perpendicular to the planes (CPP)' geomet ry. We show that, in spite of the relative simplicity of growth by ele ctrolysis, these multilayers are indeed superlattices, with single-cry stal grains including several tens of layers. We analyse their microst ructure in detail, using X-ray diffraction and analytical transmission electron microscopy. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserv ed.