Two-step synthesis of novel Cu2S nanoflowers for field emission application

Abstract

Self-mosaic flower-like Cu2S nanocrystals with the diameter of about 2μm have been fabricated via a two-step hydrothermal method for the first time without using any additives or surfactants. The crystal structures of self-mosaic Cu2S nanoflowers and original Cu2S nanoflowers are both highly crystalline cubic crystal systems with similar diffraction peak from XRD measurement. Because of the large quantities of small and thin edges, self-mosaic Cu2S nanostructure can serve as an efficient edge emitter for field emission (FE). FE properties of self-mosaic Cu2S nanoflowers were investigated and compared with original Cu2S nanoflowers. The results indicate that self-mosaic Cu2S nanostructure has enhanced field emission performance with turn-on field of about 4.4V/μm and threshold field of about 7.6V/μm on Si substrate. The results suggest that the self-mosaic flower-like Cu2S nanocrystal is a good candidate for effective and high performance FE devices.