Deposition of thin films of Ni–P and Ni–B–P by dynamic chemical plating

The dynamic chemical plating (DCP) method is a wet deposition technique that has been shown to be a good alternative to produce deposits of single metals as Cu, Ni and Ag. In this work, the capability of DCP to deposit both binary (Ni–P) and ternary nickel alloys (Ni–P–B) is evaluated. These deposits are particularly interesting because of their mechanical and magnetic properties for technological applications. Results show that the composition of the deposited alloys is dependent on the chemical nature of the reducing agent and on the deposition conditions. It is shown that homogeneous deposits of binary Ni–P (5–7%, w/w P) and ternary Ni–B–P (4%, w/w of both B and P) alloys can be obtained by the DCP technique by the use of Na2HPO2 alone or Na2HPO2 + KBH4 mixtures as the reducing agents. Results show also that the composition of the films obtained determine properties that are critical to their envisaged applications, such as the capability for corrosion protection.