Investigation of anomalous copper hydride phase during magnetic field-assisted electrodeposition of copper

The electrodeposition of copper in the presence of a magnetic field has previously been shown to affect both electrochemical processes and the microstructure. In this work, we report a magnetically-induced anomalous second phase in thick films deposited with a current density of 500 mA/cm2 and 0.5 T magnetic field strength. Atom probe tomography suggests the phase is a combination of CuH and CuH2. Formation of the latter phases is likely induced by the applied magnetic field and indicates its role in promoting the hydrogen evolution reaction during deposition.