| Abstract: | The effect of annealing treatment on the interface diffusion and reaction between Zr3N4/stainless steel was studied by AES depth profiling along with line shape analysis. The Zr3N4 film was deposited on stainless‐steel substrates by reactive magnetron sputtering. Scanning electron microscopy, electron diffraction, AES and UV–VIS reflection were performed to characterize the deposited film. The results indicated that the interface diffusion between Zr3N4 and stainless steel took place during deposition and can be promoted by annealing treatment, but no interface reaction took place before or after annealing treatment. High‐temperature and long‐time annealing treatment resulted in obvious oxidation of the Zr3N4 layer. The UV–VIS reflection results indicated that the absorption band of Zr3N4 film shifted to shorter wavelength after annealing treatment. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. |
