Electron traps in bulkn‐type Hg0.7Cd0.3Te were investigated near the HgCdTe/SiO2interface by use of deep level transient spectroscopy on metal‐insulator‐semiconductor structures [D. V. Lang, J. Appl. Phys.45, 3022 (1974)]. Three electron traps are found with activation energies (relative to the conduction band edge) of 0.12, 0.172, and 0.079 eV, and corresponding capture cross sections of 3.5×10−18, 1.1×10−16, and 1.2×10−18cm2. Depth profiles from the surface to ∼1.0 &mgr;m show the concentration of the 0.172‐eV trap to be uniform while the 0.12‐eV trap shows a strong depth dependence. It is undetectable at the surface, rising in concentration to twice its bulk value at ∼0.5 &mgr;m depth then falling to a value comparable with that of the 0.172‐eV trap in the bulk (1 &mgr;m). Divalent trapping behavior has also been detected. In this case, the deeper state significantly depopulates, enabling a shallower state to then depopulate [J. S. Blakemore,SemiconductorStatistics(Pergamon, London, 1962), p. 156].