A nonoxidic sol-gel route to titanium nitride and carbonitride films by primary amine condensation

A solution phase route to films of nanocrystalline titanium nitride and carbonitride is reported. Transamination of Ti(NMe2)(4) with primary amines results in primary amide groups which can self condense forming alkylimide bridges. The use of controlled amounts of amine results in sols in tetrahydrofuran; these can be coated onto silica substrates via a dip coating method. Pyrolysis of these films under ammonia or nitrogen leads to TiN and Ti( C, N) respectively.