The nature of bonding in amorphous carbon nitride was studied with core level spectroscopies such as x-ray absorption, photoemission, and Auger electron spectroscopy, using synchrotron radiation as the excitation source. The changes in local structure were systematically studied as a function of sample preparation conditions. The correspondence between nitrogen local environment and spectral features is discussed. It is found that thermal annealing increases the average coordination number and decreases bond multiplicity at nitrogen sites. (C) 2003 American Institute of Physics.