Stability of nitrogen-rich titanium nitride and zirconium nitride films

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Abstract
Thin titanium nitride (TiN) and zirconium nitride (ZrN) films containing excess nitrogen up to 62 and 65 at. % N, respectively, were deposited on austenitic stainless steel sheet substrates by triode ion plating at about 823 K. The nitrogen content of the films was determined using the nuclear resonance broadening technique based on the 15N(p,αγ)12C nuclear reaction and x‐ray diffraction was used to study the phase compositions. Annealing experiments in evacuated quartz tubes were carried out at 773 and 1173 K to test the stability of the coatings. The results showed no essential differences for TiN before and after heat treatment. Slight indications of diffusion accompanied with the transformation of remaining α‐Zr to ZrN were found in the case of ZrN films after heat treatment at the higher temperature of 1173 K.