Influence of substrate temperature and N2/Ar flow ratio on the stoichiometry,structure and hardness of TaNx coatings deposited by DC reactive sputtering

The effect of substrate temperature and N2/Ar flow ratio on the stoichiometry, structure and hardness of TaN_x coatings prepared on (111) Si substrates by DC reactive sputtering was investigated. For the structural, chemical and morphological analysis, X‐ray diffraction (XRD), Auger electron scanning and atomic force microscopy were respectively used. Hardness values of thin films were determined using the work of indentation model from nanoindentation measurements. TaN stoichiometric coatings were obtained for samples deposited at room temperature. The stoichiometric TaN phase was not obtained by increasing the temperature up to 773 K, even when increasing the N₂/Ar flow ratio. Even when a saturation in nitrogen content was achieved, nitrogen vacancies are still present in those samples. For coatings prepared at 773 K and low N₂/Ar flow ratio, a phase mixture between TaN_x and cubic α‐Ta was observed, while a cubic structure δ‐TaN was formed by increasing the N₂/Ar flow ratio. A maximum in hardness and (38 GPa) was obtained for the sample deposited at 773 K and a N₂/Ar flow ratio of 0.2, which presented a δ‐TaN cubic crystalline structure and a roughness value of 1.6 nm. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Structural and thermal investigation of Ta–25 mass% Cu alloy prepared by mechanosynthesis route

A mixture of Ta and 25 mass% Cu elemental powders was subjected to mechanical alloying in a high-energy ball mill up to 60 h. The results are composite particles formed by nanocrystalline Cu and amorphous Ta phases. Thermal stability of amorphous was investigated by DSC. The XRD, FTIR and EDX analyses of Ta–25 mass% Cu powder milled for 60 h performed after DSC at 800 and 900 °C have revealed large amounts of Ta nitride and Ta oxides even though the milling process was done in Ar atmosphere. This is due to high reactivity of Ta fine particles with oxygen and nitrogen from air. During manipulations of the powder (taking samples from vials and its investigation), the adsorption phenomena on its surface occur, and both surface-adsorbed N₂ and O₂ are processed with powder and embedded in it. While heating of Ta–25% Cu milled powder in DSC, nitrogen and oxygen diffusion into tantalum is activated, and Ta₂N and TaO₂/Ta₂O₅ compound forms.

     

Direct measurement of the nitrogen content by XPS in self‐passivated TaNx thin films

The nitrogen content in tantalum nitride (TaN_x) thin films, where x indicates that TaN_x is not generally stoechiometric, can be measured directly by XPS. This is the purpose of the present study. However, the XPS spectra of TaN_x present electron energy loss spectroscopy (EELS) peaks that lead to a complex peak fitting, particularly for self‐passivated thin films. A complete peak fitting procedure based upon Tougaard's background, the Doniach‐Sunjic Function and EELS peaks, is presented. It is applied to two self‐passivated TaN_x thin films elaborated by reactive sputtering and presenting a different nitrogen content. The physical properties of these surfaces are interpreted in terms of Ta 4f_7/2 chemical states directly dependent on the nitrogen content. The main results are discussed and improvements are proposed to the method. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Re‐evaluation of the X‐ray Crystal Structure of [Ta4F20] and the Synthesis and Characterization of a Series of Mixed‐Metal Pentafluorides of Niobium and Tantalum

The direct fluorination of intimately mixed niobium and tantalum powders gives a range of mixed‐metal pentafluorides [Nb_xTa_4‐xF₂₀] (x = 1 2 , 2 3 , 3 4 ) as discreet species isostructural with tantalum pentafluoride (x = 0 1 ). The crystal structures of 1–4 are indistinguishable by X‐ray crystallography. Complex 1 crystallizes in the monoclinic space group C2/m with a = 9.5462(13), b = 14.3578(19), c = 5.0174(7) Å, β = 97.086(2)°, Z = 2. The geometry about the tantalum atom is distorted octahedral with 2 short and 2 slightly longer Ta‐F_terminal, and 2 Ta‐F_bridging distances. The angles at the bridging fluorine atoms are 172.9(5)°.     

15N/14N Isotopic Exchange in the Dissociative Adsorption of N2 on Tantalum Nitride Cluster Anions Ta3N3-

Adsorption and activation of dinitrogen (N₂) is an indispensable process in nitrogen fixation. Metal nitride species continue to attract attention as a promising catalyst for ammonia synthesis. However, the detailed mechanisms at a molecular level between reactive nitride species and N₂ remain unclear at elevated temperature, which is important to understand the temperature effect and narrow the gap between the gas phase system and condensed phase system. Herein, the ¹⁴N/¹⁵N isotopic exchange in the reaction between tantalum nitride cluster anions Ta₃¹⁴N₃^- and ¹⁵N₂ leading to the regeneration of ¹⁴N₂/¹⁴N¹⁵N was observed at elevated temperature (393-593 K) using mass spectrometry. With the aid of theoretical calculations, the exchange mechanism and the effect of temperature to promote the dissociation of N₂ on Ta3N3? were elucidated. A comparison experiment for Ta₃¹⁴N₄^-/¹⁵N₂ couple indicated that only desorption of ¹⁵N₂ from Ta₃¹⁴N₄¹⁵N₂^- took place at elevated temperature. The different exchange behavior can be well understood by the fact that nitrogen vacancy is a requisite for the dinitrogen activation over metal nitride species. This study may shed light on understanding the role of nitrogen vacancy in nitride species for ammonia synthesis and provide clues in designing effective catalysts for nitrogen fixation.     

Synthesis of crystallized TaON and Ta3N5 by nitridation of Ta2O5 thin films grown by pulsed laser deposition

TaON and Ta₃N₅ thin films of different thicknesses were prepared by pulsed laser deposition of tantalum oxide followed by ex situ thermal nitridation under ammonia. The nitridation was carried out in flowing gas in the 600–800 °C temperature range. The dependence of tantalum oxynitride and nitride crystalline phases formation on nitridation reaction parameters was investigated. Structural and microstructural characteristics were investigated by X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM).     

Tantalum isocyanide complexes: TaI(CNDipp)6 (Dipp is 2,6‐diisopropylphenyl) and ionic [Ta(CNDipp)7][Ta(CNDipp)6], a formal disproportionation product of the 17‐electron Ta0 metalloradical Ta(CNDipp)6

Treatment of tetraethylammonium hexacarbonyltantalate, [Et₄N][Ta(CO)₆], with 1.1 equivalents of molecular iodine (I₂) in tetrahydrofuran (THF) at 200 K, followed by the addition of 6.0 equivalents of 2,6‐diisopropylphenyl isocyanide (CNDipp) and slow warming to 293 K over a 24 h period gave the tantalum(I) iodide derivative hexakis(2,6‐diisopropylphenyl isocyanide‐κC)iodidotantalum(I), [TaI(C₁₃H₁₇N)₆] or TaI(CNDipp)₆, 1 . Recrystallization of this substance from pentane provided deep‐red nearly black parallelepipeds of the product, which was characterized by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction. Addition of 1 in THF at 200 K to a suspension of an excess (5.8 equivalents) of caesium graphite (CsC₈), followed by warming, filtration, and solvent removal, afforded a dark‐green oily solid of unknown composition, from which several red–brown rhombohedral plates of the ditantalum salt heptakis(2,6‐diisopropylphenyl isocyanide‐κC)tantalum hexakis(2,6‐diisopropylphenyl isocyanide‐κC)tantalate, [Ta(C₁₃H₁₇N)₇][Ta(C₁₃H₁₇N)₆] or [Ta(CNDipp)₇][Ta(CNDipp)₆], 2 , were harvested. Salt 2 is a unique substance, as it is the only known example of a salt containing a homoleptic cation, [ML_x]⁺, and a homoleptic anion, [ML_y]^?, with the same transition metal and π‐acceptor ligand L. In solution, 2 undergoes full comproportionation to afford the recently reported 17‐electron paramagnetic zerovalent tantalum complex Ta(CNDipp)₆, the only known isolable TaL₆ complex of Ta⁰.     

Depth profiles of Ta2O5/SiO2/Si structures: a combined X-ray photoemission, Auger electron, and secondary ion mass spectroscopic study

Summary We prepared thin films of tantalum oxide on SiO₂/Si substrates by thermal oxidation of tantalum. The different oxide layers and their interfaces were characterized by SIMS, AES, and XPS. Characteristic structures were obtained after different oxidation procedures. The comparative discussion of AES and SIMS depth profiles makes possible an unequivocal characterization of the reactive interfaces between the oxides of Ta and Si. The Ta₂O₅/SiO₂ interface in particular shows non-stoichiometries which depend on the oxidation procedures and which determine the performance characteristics of pH-sensitive Ta₂O₅ field-effect transistors.

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Tiefenprofile von Ta₂O₃/SiO₂/Si-Strukturen: Eine kombinierte Untersuchung mit Röntgen-Photoemissions-, Auger-Elektronen- und Sekundär-Ionen-Massen-Spektrometrie

     

N-doped NaTaO3: novel visible-light-driven photocatalysts synthesised by a sol–gel method

N-doped NaTaO₃ catalysts were synthesized via a sol–gel method followed by a subsequent calcination process under NH₃ atmosphere. The as prepared samples were characterized by XPS, XRD, UV–Vis DRS, and BET analyses. All XRD peaks of the sample calcined at 900 °C matched with pure perovskite NaTaO₃ while peaks of TaON and Na₂Ta₄O₁₁ were found for that calcined at 1,000 °C. The DRS of samples shown cutoff edge has red shifted, from 315 nm of pure to 391 nm of N-doped NaTaO₃. N-doping helps to narrow the band gap, and the prepared sample was visible light sensitive. The XPS spectrum of Ta4p3&N1s shown two new peaks at 398.3 and 401.4 eV appear in the N-doped sample corresponding to Ta–N bonds and adsorption nitride, respectively. Photocatalytic activity of the catalysts was evaluated using Rhodamine B dye. The result demonstrated that the sample calcined under NH₃ had a higher photocatalytic activity than that of P25 under visible light. The NaTaO₃/TaON heterojunction played an important role on promoting photoactivity.     

Analysis of the composition of tantalum nitride in CMOS metallization trenches using parallel angle-resolved XPS

We demonstrate the utilization of parallel angle-resolved X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (pAR-XPS) as a useful tool to analyze ultrathin sputtered tantalum nitride (TaN) thin films in complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor (CMOS) trenches. The chemical composition of TaN was estimated by pAR-XPS using a Theta 300i from Thermo Fischer. An improved lateral resolution was achieved by analyzing periodic structures. The XPS data was correlated with transmission electron microscopy (TEM) in combination with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDX) and time-of-flight secondary ion mass spectrometry (ToF-SIMS) data. The results show that the nitrogen content in the TaN thin films was about 6% higher at the sidewall compared with the top and bottom of the trench.     

Ta(CNDipp)6: An Isocyanide Analogue of Hexacarbonyltantalum(0)

Hexakis(2,6‐diisopropylphenylisocyanide)tantalum is the first isocyanide analogue of the highly unstable Ta(CO)₆ and represents the only well‐defined zerovalent tantalum complex to be prepared by conventional laboratory methods. Two prior examples of homoleptic Ta⁰ complexes are known, Ta(benzene)₂ and Ta(dmpe)₃, dmpe=1,2‐bis(dimethylphosphano)ethane, but these have only been accessed via ligand co‐condensation with tantalum vapor in a sophisticated metal‐atom reactor. Consistent with its 17‐electron nature, Ta(CNDipp)₆ undergoes facile one‐electron oxidation, reduction, or disproportionation reactions. In this sense, it qualitatively resembles V(CO)₆, the only paramagnetic homoleptic metal carbonyl isolable under ambient conditions.     

Nanostructured ZrO2 and Zr‐C‐N Coatings from Chemical Vapor Deposition of Metal‐Organic Precursors

Nanocrystalline zirconium carbonitride (Zr‐C‐N) and zirconium oxide (ZrO₂) films were deposited by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) of zirconium‐tetrakis‐diethylamide (Zr(NEt₂)₄) and ‐tert‐butyloxide (Zr(OBu^t)₄), respectively. The films were deposited on iron substrates and characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), X‐ray diffraction (XRD) and X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). The Zr‐C‐N films show blue, golden brown or bronze colours, with colour stability depending upon the precursor composition (pure metal amide or mixed with Et₂NH). The deposition temperature showed no pronounced effect on the granular morphology of the Zr‐C‐N films. The XRD data of the films correspond to the formation of carbonitride phase whereas the XPS analyses revealed a strong surface oxidation and incorporation of oxygen in the film. The films deposited using a mixture of Zr(NEt₂)₄ and Et₂NH showed higher N content, better adhesion and scratch resistance when compared to films obtained from the CVD of pure Zr(NEt₂)₄. Subject to the precursor composition and deposition temperature (550‐750 °C), the microhardness values of Zr‐C‐N films were found to be in the range 2.11‐5.65 GPa. For ZrO₂ films, morphology and phase composition strongly depend on the deposition temperature. The CVD deposits obtained at 350 °C show tetragonal ZrO₂ to be the only crystalline phase. Upon increasing the deposition temperature to 450 °C, a mixture of tetragonal and monoclinic modifications was formed with morphology made up of interwoven elongated grains. At higher temperatures (550 and 650 °C), pure monoclinic phase was obtained with facetted grains and developed texture.     

New octahedral Ta(V) hydrazido-substituted compounds for atomic layer deposition: Syntheses,X-ray diffraction structures of TaCl(NMe2)3[N(TMS)NMe2] and Ta(NMe2)4[N(TMS)NMe2], and fluxional behavior of the amido and hydrazido ligands in solution

The synthesis and structural characterization of new tantalum(V) compounds containing a single hydrazido(I) ligand are reported. Hydrazinolysis of TaCl(NMe₂)₄ using trimethylsilyl(dimethyl)hydrazine affords the compound TaCl(NMe₂)₃[N(TMS)NMe₂] in essentially quantitative yield. Metathetical replacement of the chloride ligand in TaCl(NMe₂)₃[N(TMS)NMe₂] by LiNMe₂ gives the all-nitrogen coordinated compound Ta(NMe₂)₄[N(TMS)NMe₂]. VT ¹H NMR studies support the existence of low-energy pathways involving rotation about the Ta–N bonds of the ancillary amido and hydrazido ligands in both hydrazido-substituted compounds. X-ray crystallographic analyses confirm the octahedral disposition about the tantalum metal in TaCl(NMe₂)₃[N(TMS)NMe₂] and Ta(NMe₂)₄[N(TMS)NMe₂] and the presence of an η²-hydrazido(I) ligand. Preliminary data using Ta(NMe₂)₄[N(TMS)NMe₂] as an ALD precursor for the preparation of tantalum nitride and tantalum oxide thin films are presented.     

Tetrakis­(tetra­methyl­ammonium) dodeca‐μ‐chloro‐hexa­chloro‐octahedro‐hexatantalate chloride

The title compound, (C₄H₁₂N)₄[Ta₆Cl₁₈]Cl, crystallizes in the cubic space group . The crystal structure contains two different types of coordination polyhedra, i.e. four tetrahedral [(CH₃)₄N]⁺ cations and one octahedral [(Ta₆Cl₁₂)Cl₆]³⁻ cluster anion, and one Cl⁻ ion. The presence of three different kinds of Cl atoms [bridging (μ₂), terminal and counter‐anion] in one mol­ecule makes this substance unique in the chemistry of hexanuclear halide clusters of niobium and tantalum. The Ta₆ octahedron has an ideal O_h symmetry, with a Ta—Ta interatomic distance of 2.9215 (7) Å.     

Synthesis of Ordered Porous Graphitic‐C3N4 and Regularly Arranged Ta3N5 Nanoparticles by Using Self‐Assembled Silica Nanospheres as a Primary Template

Uniform‐sized silica nanospheres (SNSs) assembled into close‐packed structures were used as a primary template for ordered porous graphitic carbon nitride (g‐C₃N₄), which was subsequently used as a hard template to generate regularly arranged Ta₃N₅ nanoparticles of well‐controlled size. Inverse opal g‐C₃N₄ structures with the uniform pore size of 20–80 nm were synthesized by polymerization of cyanamide and subsequent dissolution of the SNSs with an aqueous HF solution. Back‐filling of the C₃N₄ pores with tantalum precursors, followed by nitridation in an NH₃ flow gave regularly arranged, crystalline Ta₃N₅ nanoparticles that are connected with each other. The surface areas of the Ta₃N₅ samples were as high as 60 m² g⁻¹, and their particle size was tunable from 20 to 80 nm, which reflects the pore size of g‐C₃N₄. Polycrystalline hollow nanoparticles of Ta₃N₅ were also obtained by infiltration of a reduced amount of the tantalum source into the g‐C₃N₄ template. An improved photocatalytic activity for H₂ evolution on the assembly of the Ta₃N₅ nanoparticles under visible‐light irradiation was attained as compared with that on a conventional Ta₃N₅ bulk material with low surface area.     

Formation of PPy/Ta2O5/Ta structure by electropolymerization

Electropolymerization of pyrrole on tantalum (Ta) electrodes was carried out in buffer solutions (0.04 M phosphoric acid, 0.04 M acetic acid, 0.04 M boric acid and 0.2 M sodium hydroxide) containing 0.1 M sodium ptoluenesulfonate (TsONa) under galvanostatic conditions and it was found that a polypyrrole (PPy) and a tantalum oxide (Ta₂O₅) layer are formed on a Ta electrode by an electrochemical oxidation process. The conditions of this simultaneous formation were studied in respect to current density (i_d), pyrrole concentration ([Py]), pH and the amount of electricity. Under certain conditions ([Py] = 0.25 M, pH = 1.8, i_d = 10–20 mA cm^?2, the amount of electricity = 1 C), 6–8 μm thick PPy films were efficiently formed on homogeneous 30–50 nm thick Ta₂O₅ layers. The PPy film showed a high electrical conductivity (110 s cm^?1), adhered well and covered the Ta₂O₅ layer. The resulting PPy/Ta₂O₅/Ta system is therefore proved to have excellent properties as a capacitor.     

Die Struktur der Komplexnitride NbCrN und Ta1−x Cr1+x N

The crystal structure of the isotypic compounds NbCrN and Ta_1?x Cr_1+x N has been determined from X-ray powder patterns. The tetragonal unit cell contains 12 atoms and belongs to the space group P4bm. The lattice parameters are for NbCrN:a=4.283 Å,c=7.360 Å, for Ta_0.8Cr_1.2Na=4.249 Å,c=7.334 Å. The structure is characterized by relatively close packed double layers of Nb(Ta)-atoms and Cr-atoms parallel to the base plane. The nitrogen atoms are within the octahedral interstitial sites of the niobium(tantalum) double layer.     

Sol‐Gel Synthesis and Photocatalytic Study of Visible Light Active N‐Doped KSbWO6

KSbWO₆ was prepared by sol‐gel method. N‐doped KSbWO₆ (KSbWO_6–xN_x) was obtained by heating KSbWO₆ and urea at 400 °C. Both the compounds are characterized by powder X‐ray diffraction (XRD), TEM, SEM‐EDS, X‐ray photo electronic spectroscopy (XPS), and UV/Vis diffuse reflectance spectroscopy (UV‐DRS). A shift in the peak positions of powder XRD and XPS spectra was observed. The band gap energy (E_g) of KSbWO₆ and N‐doped KSbWO₆ was obtained from their diffused reflectance spectra.E_g was reduced from 3.17 eV to 2.56 eV upon nitrogen doping in KSbWO₆. The reduction of the E_g is attributed to the lifting of valence band of N‐doped KSbWO₆, due to the mixing of O 2p states with N 2p states. The photocatalytic activity of both the samples was studied by degradation of methylene blue (MB). The nitrogen doped KSbWO₆ shows higher photocatalytic activity compared to that of KSbWO₆.     

Luminescent Amphiphilic 2,6‐Bis(1‐alkylpyrazol‐3‐yl)pyridyl Platinum(II) Complexes: Synthesis,Characterization, Electrochemical,Photophysical, and Langmuir–Blodgett Film Formation Studies

Two series of novel platinum(II) 2,6‐bis(1‐alkylpyrazol‐3‐yl)pyridyl (N5Cn) complexes, [Pt(N5Cn)Cl][X] ( 1 – 9 ) and [Pt(N5Cn)(C?CR)][X] ( 10 – 13 ) (X=trifluoromethanesulfonate (OTf) or PF₆; R=C₆H₅, C₆H₄‐p‐CF₃ and C₆H₄‐p‐N(C₆H₅)₂), with various chain lengths of the alkyl groups on the nitrogen atom of the pyrazolyl units have been successfully synthesized and characterized. Their electrochemical and photophysical properties have been studied. Some of their molecular structures have also been determined by X‐ray crystallography. Two amphiphilic platinum(II) 2,6‐bis(1‐tetradecylpyrazol‐3‐yl)pyridyl (N5C14) complexes, [Pt(N5C14)Cl]PF₆ ( 7 ) and [Pt(N5C14)(C?CC₆H₅)]PF₆ ( 13 ), were found to form stable and reproducible Langmuir–Blodgett (LB) films at the air–water interface. The characterization of such LB films has been investigated by the study of their surface pressure–area (π–A) isotherms, UV/Vis spectroscopy, XRD, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), FTIR, and polarized IR spectroscopy. The luminescence property of 13 in LB films has also been studied.     

Effects of CNT‐film Pretreatment on the Characteristics of NiCo2O4/CNT Core‐shell Hybrids as Electrode Material for Electrochemistry Capacitor

NiCo₂O₄/CNT nanocomposite films were fabricated by in‐situ growing ultrafine NiCo₂O₄ nanoparticles on acid‐modified carbon nanotube (CNT) films. The effects of CNT‐film pretreatment were investigated thoroughly by various characterization outfits including Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FT‐IR), X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Raman spectroscopy, RTS‐9 four‐point probes resistivity measurement system, X‐ray powder diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and CHI660D electrochemical workstation. These results suggested that carbon nanotubes were uniformly wrapped by NiCo₂O₄ nanoparticles forming a hierarchical core‐shell structure. And the crystallinity, conductivity of the CNTs and detail structure (both morphology and size) of the NiCo₂O₄ nanoparticles varied with prolonged acid treatment time which resulted in increased functional groups and defects on CNT films and further affected the electrochemical properties. The composite film composed of the CNT film pretreated by mixed acid for 12 h exhibited excellent electrochemical properties: 828 F/g at 1 A/g and 656 F/g at 20 A/g, and maintained over 99 % of its capacitance after 3000 cycles of charge/discharge at 5 A/g. Acid treatment for either too long or too short is detrimental to the electrochemical properties of the composite films. Such work should be of fundamental importance for tailoring electrochemical properties by elaborate design of acid treatment on CNTs.