Thermally induced transitions of CrN thin films

Annealing of CrN thin films in an inert atmosphere causes dissociation into Cr2N with N2 release with an activation energy, Ea, of ∼4.39 eV atom−1 in the temperature range 1000–1250 °C. At higher temperatures the Cr2N dissociates into Cr and N2 with Ea≈ 3.15 eV atom−1. These processes occur after recovery and recrystallization during which the lattice parameter decreases (from 4.162 to 4.142 Å) and the mean crystallite feature size increases (from 21 to 104 nm) compared to the as-deposited values.