Effects of thermal annealing on microstructure and magnetic properties of electrodeposited Co-Fe alloys

Thermal annealing could potentially serve as important instrument for controlling and improving the properties of the soft magnetic films. A systematic investigation is carried out in this study to determine and analyze the effects of low-temperature heat treatment on the microstructure and magnetic properties of CoFe films of different chemical compositions. The coercivity of the alloys is found to be critically influenced by surface roughness and uniaxial anisotropy, which is in turn affected by thermal annealing. The saturation magnetization on the other hand is controlled mainly by chemical compositions.