STRUCTURAL INVESTIGATION OF 2 CARBON NITRIDE SOLIDS PRODUCED BY CATHODIC ARC DEPOSITION AND NITROGEN IMPLANTATION

Carbon nitride materials have been the focus of research efforts world wide. Most materials studied have been amorphous, with only a few grou ps claiming to have found a crystalline material. We investigate the s tructure of amorphous carbon nitride solids produced by two different techniques: cathodic are deposition and high dose nitrogen implantatio n of glassy carbon. Transmission electron microscopy, electron energy loss spectroscopy, energy filtered electron diffraction, Rutherford ba ckscattering, infrared, and Raman spectroscopy are all used to derive structural information. It was found that the carbon nitride materials prepared by both techniques have similar structures and [N]/[C] ratio s (0.3). The materials appear to have a primarily sp(2) bonded carbon structure with a smaller bond length than found in amorphous carbon. T his is explained by nitrogen substituting into ''rings'' to a saturati on level of about one nitrogen per three carbon atoms. We have found n o evidence for a C3N4 crystalline structure, nor any amorphous derivat ive of it. (C) 1995 American Institute of Physics.