Incorporation of N in the TiO2 Lattice Versus Oxidation of TiN: Influence of the Deposition Method on the Energy Gap of N-Doped TiO2 Deposited by Reactive Magnetron Sputtering

N-doped TiO2 can be deposited by reactive magnetron sputtering by two methods: incorporation of nitrogen particles in the TiO2 lattice or incorporation of oxygen particles in the TiN lattice (oxidation). This paper investigates both procedures by experimental and numerical methods in order to establish the best way for incorporation of substitutional nitrogen in the TiO2 lattice. Films were deposited with different oxygen and nitrogen flow rates for fixed values of argon flow rate, working pressure, DC power, film thickness and target-to-substrate distance. After deposition, samples were chara...