Synthesis and characterization of molybdenum carbonitride nanoplates*

Molybdenum carbide (MoC/Mo₂C) in bulk is chemically stable, corrosion resistant, metallic, and superconducting. Due to advancements in the nanotechnology field and synthesis procedures, single-crystal MoC/Mo₂C in a nanoplate morphology has been fabricated and retains the properties of bulk down to a few nanometers in thickness. Further tuning the electronic properties could potentially be achieved by alloying with nitrogen through ammonolysis. Nonetheless, a structural characterization tied to the ammonolysis treatment must be undertaken to obtain single crystalline molybdenum carbonitride (MoCN). We implemented a two-step procedure: MoC/Mo₂C was synthesized by chemical vapor deposition then converted to MoCN by ammonolysis, with varied temperature and time to study the conversion. Scanning electron microscopy was used to analyze the morphology of the nanoplates. Selected area electron diffraction and X-ray diffraction were used to evaluate the crystallinity. We established that high temperatures and long durations cause rapid diffusion of nitrogen, leading to a polycrystalline structure. Future work includes optimizing the ammonolysis treatment and characterizing the electronic properties of single-crystal MoCN.