Structure and magnetic properties of Co nanowires in self-assembled arrays

Abstract

Co nanowire arrays have been electrodeposited into self-assembled anodic aluminium oxidetemplates. It is found that the crystal structure of the Co nanowires depends on the pH valueof the deposition electrolyte. The XRD results show that Co nanowires are fcc structure atpH = 2.7, amixture of structuresof fcc and hcp at pH = 3.5,and hcp structure at pH = 5.0. The effective anisotropy along the nanowire axis of the fcc Co nanowire array is obviouslystronger than that of the hcp Co nanowire array, and the coercivity of the fcc structureis also larger than that of the hcp structure when they are the same diameter.