Oxidation of aluminium by nitrous oxide in the temperature range 323–683 K

Abstract

This paper describes experiments on the oxidation of evaporated aluminium films by nitrous oxide in the temperature range 323–683 K. The kinetics of the reaction were followed by measuring the rate of increase in resistance of the film as it was consumed by oxidation. Experiments in which an electric field was applied across the growing oxide layer were carried out. The pressure dependence of the reaction was studied by investigating the change in oxidation rate accompanying an abrupt pressure change. The results of all these experiments indicate that the aluminium/nitrous oxide system is very complex, and no single rate determining step is operative over the whole temperature range. Four different regions of growth were identified, and possible reaction mechanism are considered.