Ni₈₀Fe₂₀ nanotubes with optimized spintronic functionalities prepared by atomic layer deposition

Permalloy Ni₈₀Fe₂₀ is one of the key magnetic materials in the field of magnonics. Its potential would be further unveiled if it could be deposited in three dimensional (3D) architectures of sizes down to the nanometer. Atomic Layer Deposition, ALD, is the technique of choice for covering arbitrary shapes with homogeneous thin films. Early successes with ferromagnetic materials include nickel and cobalt. Still, challenges in depositing ferromagnetic alloys reside in the synthesis via decomposing the constituent elements at the same temperature and homogeneously. We report plasma-enhanced ALD to prepare permalloy Ni₈₀Fe₂₀ thin films and nanotubes using nickelocene and iron(iii) tert-butoxide as metal precursors, water as the oxidant agent and an in-cycle plasma enhanced reduction step with hydrogen. We have optimized the ALD cycle in terms of Ni : Fe atomic ratio and functional properties. We obtained a Gilbert damping of 0.013, a resistivity of 28 μΩ cm and an anisotropic magnetoresistance effect of 5.6 % in the planar thin film geometry. We demonstrate that the process also works for covering GaAs nanowires, resulting in permalloy nanotubes with high aspect ratios and diameters of about 150 nm. Individual nanotubes were investigated in terms of crystal phase, composition and spin-dynamic response by microfocused Brillouin Light Scattering. Our results enable NiFe-based 3D spintronics and magnonic devices in curved and complex topology operated in the GHz frequency regime.