Growth Characteristics and Properties of TiN Coating by Chemical Vapor Deposition

Titanium nitride films obtained by chemical vapor deposition with TiCl 4 , N 2 , and H 2 as gas sources at ambient pressure have been examined in this study. The results reveal that the deposition rate increases with increasing H 2 and N 2 partial pressures but has a maximum value with TiCl 4 partial pressure. The Arrhenius plots show that the transition temperature from surface limited to diffusion limited is greatly influenced by H 2 , N 2 , and TiCl 4 partial pressures. The film microstructure was characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and x‐ray diffraction (XRD). It is found that the change of topography and microstructure of TiN films responds to deposition temperature and gas concentration used. The diffusion rate of as‐deposited atoms and the total surface energy are considered as the determinant factors for the change. The growth texture of TiN films was indentified to be 〈422〉 at lower deposition temperature and 〈200〉 at high temperature. The mechanisms for texture formation are discussed.