Investigation of electroless deposition of cobalt films by EQCM in the presence of different amines

Abstract Electroless deposition (also called chemical deposition) is a commonly used chemical approach to prepare metallic layers on various substrates. Cobalt films were deposited on the copper electrode using dimethylamine borane (DMAB) as a reducing agent and different amines: diethylenetriamine (dien), triethylenetetraamine (trien), propylenediamine (prop), tetraethylenepentaamine (ttren), pentaethylenehexaamine (pnten). The deposition conditions of electroless deposition of cobalt films were investigated in more detail by means of electrochemical quartz crystal microgravimetry (EQCM). The effects of pH, temperature and concentration of the reactants on the deposition rate of cobalt films have been determined. It was found that the induction period of the deposition of cobalt films depends on solution composition, temperature, and the presence of different amines.