Electron energy loss near-edge structures of cubic Si3N4

Electron energy loss near-edge structures of the newly discovered cubic-Si3N4 at the Si L2,3, edge and N K edge have been measured. The same edges were calculated using a first-principles supercell approach, including the core–hole interaction. The experimental spectra at the two edges were satisfactorily reproduced by the calculations, confirming that the present calculation has sufficient predictive power. The difference in spectral shapes between c-Si3N4 and β-Si3N4 is more clear for the Si L2,3, edge. However, the difference cannot be simply explained by the difference in coordination numbers of Si.