Electrodeposition and Characterization of Nanocrystalline Ni-Fe Alloys

Nanocrystalline Ni-Fe deposits with different composition and grain sizes were fabricated by electrodeposition. Deposits with iron contents in the range from 7 to 31% were obtained by changing the Ni2+/Fe2+ mass ratio in the electrolyte. The deposits were found to be nanocrystalline with average grain size in the range 20-30 nm. The surface morphology was found to be dependent on Ni2+/Fe2+ mass ratio as well as electroplating time. The grains size decreased with increasing the iron content, especially in case of short time electroplating. Increasing the electroplating time had no significant effect on grain size. The microhardness of the materials followed the regular Hall-Petch relationship with amaximum value (762 Hv) when applying Ni2+/Fe2+ mass ratio equal to 9.8.