We have investigated the oxidation behavior of MBE grown epitaxial Y(0 0 0 1)/Nb(1 1 0) films on sapphire (11 (2) over bar0) substrates at elevated temperatures under atmospheric conditions with a combination of experimental methods. At room temperature X-ray diffraction (XRD) reveals the formation of a 25 A thick YOxHx layer at the surface, while simultaneously oxide growth proceeds along defect lines normal to the film plane, resulting in the formation of a single crystalline cubic Y2O3 (2 2 2) phase. Furthermore, nuclear resonance analysis (NRA) reveals that hydrogen penetrates into the sample and transforms the entire Y film into the hydride YH2 phase. Additional annealing in air leads to further oxidation radially out from the already existing oxide channels. Finally material transport during oxidation results in the formation of conically shaped oxide precipitations at the surface above the oxide channels as observed by atomic force microscopy (AFM). (c) 2007 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved.