Pore structure of sintered niobium after reaction with hydrogen and nitrogen

Compact structures obtained by vacuum sintering of niobium powder are widely used in electronic engineering as metal plates in oxide semiconductor capacitors, which realise electrical capacity in an Nb anodic, Nb2O5 solid state MnO2 electrolyte metal dielectric semiconductor Nb-MDS system. This paper presents the method for stabilising porosity in these structures by using both Nb powder hydrogenation and nitriding of niobium hydride sintered pellets for their production. The effect obtained is explained in terms of the sintered powder porous structure.