Optical absorption in thin films of highly unstable cuprous azide

Abstract

The optical absorption spectrum of a thin film of highly unstable CuN₃ has been studied by a special technique in which the film is prepared in situ by a solid-state reaction between CuI and alkali azide. The spectrum shows an absorption peak at 2670 Å followed by a sharp rise at 2500 Å which may be due to a direct band-to-band transition. The reaction product has been identified by X-ray diffraction. The kinetics of reaction was studied spectrophotometrically and was found to obey the Jander equation for diffusion-controlled reaction.