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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 25 February 2011
Surface oxidation kinetics of an a-Si3 N4 submicron size and an amorphous nano-size powder have been studied using x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Bremsstrahlung-excited Auger electron spectroscopy (AES). The samples were oxidized by heating in air at temperatures between 850°C and 1000°C. The oxide thickness for each heating time and temperature was determined both from the relative 0 Is and N Is XPS peak intensities and from the Si02 and Si3 N4 Si KLL peak intensities. In each case, there was a good agreement between the oxide thickness value calculated from the XPS data and that obtained from the AES data. At these temperatures, oxidation followed a linear rate law. Activation energies of 15±1 kcal/mole and 27±1 kcal/mole were measured for the a-powder and the amorphous powder, respectively.