Embodiments of the invention provide a method for forming tantalum nitride materials on a substrate by employing an atomic layer deposition (ALD) process. The method includes heating a tantalum precursor within an ampoule to a predetermined temperature to form a tantalum precursor gas and sequentially exposing a substrate to the tantalum precursor gas and a nitrogen precursor to form a tantalum nitride material. Thereafter, a nucleation layer and a bulk layer may be deposited on the substrate. In one example, a radical nitrogen compound may be formed from the nitrogen precursor during a plasma-enhanced ALD process. A nitrogen precursor may include nitrogen or ammonia. In another example, a metal-organic tantalum precursor may be used during the deposition process.