We have grown high-quality GaN films on sapphire using a new nitrogen precursor, hydrazoic acid (HN3). Films were grown at 600 °C on (0001) sapphire substrates in a low-pressure chemical-vapor-deposition system using triethylgallium and hydrazoic acid as precursors. Subsequently, we have conducted a complete study of the surface, structural, electrical, and optical properties of these GaN films, and our early results are very encouraging. All films were of wurtzite crystal structure, slightly polycrystalline, andntype at about 2×1017cm−3. We find the films to be efficient light emitters in the near-band edge region of the spectrum. Analysis of the emission energies and kinetics suggests that the midgap emission results from a superimposed deep-donor-to-shallow-acceptor emission and a deep-donor-to-valence-band emission, where the deep donor consists of a distribution of energy levels, thereby yielding a broad emission band. ©1997 American Institute of Physics.