Electron Field Emission Properties Research Articles

Synthesis of ultra-nano-carbon composite materials with extremely high conductivity by plasma post-treatment process of ultrananocrystalline diamond films

Needle-like diamond grains encased in nano-graphitic layers are an ideal granular structure of diamond films to achieve high conductivity and superior electron field emission (EFE) properties. This paper describes the plasma post-treatment (ppt) of ultrananocrystalline diamond (UNCD) films at low substrate temperature to achieve such a unique granular structure. The CH4/N2 plasma ppt-processed films exhibit high conductivity of σ = 1099 S/cm as well as excellent EFE properties with turn-on field of E0 = 2.48 V/μm (Je = 1.0 mA/cm2 at 6.5 V/μm). The ppt of UNCD film is simple and robust process that is especially useful for device applications.

High-Performance Stable Field Emission with Ultralow Turn on Voltage from rGO Conformal Coated TiO2 Nanotubes 3D Arrays.

A facile method to produce conformal coated reduced graphene oxide (rGO) on vertically aligned titanium oxide (TiO2) nanotubes three dimensional (3D) arrays (NTAs) is demonstrated for enhanced field emission display applications. These engineered nano arrays exhibit efficient electron field emission properties such as high field emission current density (80 mA/cm2), low turn-on field (1.0 V/μm) and field enhancement factor (6000) with high emission current stability. Moreover, these enhancements observed in nano arrays attribute to the contribution of low work function with non-rectifying barriers, which allow an easy injection of electrons from the conduction band of TiO2 into the Fermi level of reduced graphene oxide under external electric field. The obtained results are extremely advantageous for its potential application in field emission devices.

Enhanced electron field emission from CuO nanoplate arrays decorated with Au nanoparticles

A simple and controllable method was reported for the decoration of CuO nanoplate arrays with Au nanoparticles. It had been achieved through the reaction between Sn2+ and AuCl4− in the presence of CuO nanoplate arrays. The structure and electron field emission properties of CuO nanoplate arrays decorated with different amounts of Au nanoparticles were investigated. The results demonstrated a remarkable enhancement of field emission performance of CuO nanoplate arrays decorated with Au nanoparticles. The effect of Au amount on the field emission performance was studied in detail, and excellent field emission properties such as a low turn-on electric field of 6.7 V/μm and a high field enhancement factor of 516 could be realized from the optimized sample. On the basis of experimental results, a possible mechanism for the formation of the CuO nanoplate arrays decorated with Au nanoparticles was speculated.

Highly Conductive Diamond-Graphite Nanohybrid Films with Enhanced Electron Field Emission and Microplasma Illumination Properties.

Bias-enhanced nucleation and growth of diamond-graphite nanohybrid (DGH) films on silicon substrates by microwave plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition using CH4/N2 gas mixture is reported herein. It is observed that by controlling the growth time, the microstructure of the DGH films and, thus, the electrical conductivity and the electron field emission (EFE) properties of the films can be manipulated. The films grown for 30 min (DGHB30) possess needle-like geometry, which comprised of a diamond core encased in a sheath of sp(2)-bonded graphitic phase. These films achieved high conductivity of σ = 900 S/cm and superior EFE properties, namely, low turn-on field of 2.9 V/μm and high EFE current density of 3.8 mA/cm(2) at an applied field of 6.0 V/μm. On increasing the growth time to 60 min (the DGHB60), the acicular grain growth ceased and formed nanographite clusters or defective diamond clusters (n-diamond). Even though DGHB60 films possess higher electrical conductivity (σ = 1549 S/cm) than the DGHB30 films, the EFE properties degraded. The implication of this result is that higher conductivity by itself does not guarantee better EFE properties. The nanosized diamond grains with needle-like geometry are the most promising ones for the electron emission, exclusively when they are encased in graphene-like layers. The salient feature of such materials with unique granular structure is that their conductivity and EFE properties can be tuned in a wide range, which makes them especially useful in practical applications.

Low temperature synthesis of diamond-based nano-carbon composite materials with high electron field emission properties

A diamond-based nano-carbon composite (d/NCC) material, which contains needle-like diamond grains encased with the nano-graphite layers, was synthesized at low substrate temperature via a bias enhanced growth process using CH4/N2 plasma. Such a unique granular structure renders the d/NCC material very conductive (σ = 714.8 S/cm), along with superior electron field emission (EFE) properties (E0 = 4.06 V/μm and Je = 3.18 mA/cm2) and long lifetime (τ = 842 min at 2.41 mA/cm2). Moreover, the electrical conductivity and EFE behavior of d/NCC material can be tuned in a wide range that is especially useful for different kind of applications.

Structural modification of nanocrystalline diamond films via positive/negative bias enhanced nucleation and growth processes for improving their electron field emission properties

Electron field emission (EFE) properties of nanocrystalline diamond (NCD) films synthesized by the bias-enhanced growth (beg) process under different bias voltages were investigated. The induction of the nanographitic phases is presumed to be the prime factor in enhancing the EFE properties of negative biased NCD films. Transmission electron microscopic investigations reveal that a negative bias voltage of −300 V increases the rate of growth for NCD films with the size of the grains changing from nano to ultranano size. This effect also is accompanied by the induction of nanographitic filaments in the grain boundaries of the films. The turn-on field (E0) for the EFE process then effectively gets reduced. The EFE process of the beg-NCD−300V films can be turned on at E0 = 3.86 V/μm, and the EFE current density achieved is 1.49 mA/cm2 at an applied field of 7.85 V/μm. On the other hand, though a positive-bias beg process (+200 V) results in the reduction of grain size, it does not induce sufficient nanographitic phases to lower the E0 value of the EFE process. Moreover, the optical emission spectroscopic investigation indicates that one of the primary causes that changes the granular structure of the NCD films is the increase in the proportion of C2 and CH species induced in the growing plasma. The polarity of the bias voltage is of less importance in the microstructural evolution of the films.

The role of Hurst exponent on cold field electron emission from conducting materials: from electric field distribution to Fowler-Nordheim plots.

This work considers the effects of the Hurst exponent (H) on the local electric field distribution and the slope of the Fowler-Nordheim (FN) plot when considering the cold field electron emission properties of rough Large-Area Conducting Field Emitter Surfaces (LACFESs). A LACFES is represented by a self-affine Weierstrass-Mandelbrot function in a given spatial direction. For 0.1 ≤ H < 0.5, the local electric field distribution exhibits two clear exponential regimes. Moreover, a scaling between the macroscopic current density () and the characteristic kernel current density (), , with an H-dependent exponent , has been found. This feature, which is less pronounced (but not absent) in the range where more smooth surfaces have been found (), is a consequence of the dependency between the area efficiency of emission of a LACFES and the macroscopic electric field, which is often neglected in the interpretation of cold field electron emission experiments. Considering the recent developments in orthodox field emission theory, we show that the exponent must be considered when calculating the slope characterization parameter (SCP) and thus provides a relevant method of more precisely extracting the characteristic field enhancement factor from the slope of the FN plot.

Prevention of electron field emission from molybdenum substrates for photocathodes by the native oxide layer

Comprehensive investigations of the electron field emission (FE) properties of annealed single crystal and polycrystalline molybdenum plugs, which are used as substrates for actual alkali-based photocathodes were performed with a FE scanning microscope. Well-polished and dry-ice cleaned Mo samples with native oxide did not show parasitic FE up to a field level of 50 MV/m required for photoinjector cavities. In situ heat treatments (HT) above 400 °C, which are usual before photocathode deposition, activated field emission at lower field strength. Oxygen loading into the Mo surface, however, partially weakened these emitters. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy of comparable Mo samples showed the dissolution of the native oxide during such heat treatments. These results reveal the suppression of field emission by native Mo oxides. Possible improvements for the photocathode preparation will be discussed.

Role of carbon nanotube interlayer in enhancing the electron field emission behavior of ultrananocrystalline diamond coated Si-tip arrays.

We improved the electron field emission properties of ultrananocrystalline diamond (UNCD) films grown on Si-tip arrays by using the carbon nanotubes (CNTs) as interlayer and post-treating the films in CH4/Ar/H2 plasma. The use of CNTs interlayer effectively suppresses the presence of amorphous carbon in the diamond-to-Si interface that enhances the transport of electrons from Si, across the interface, to diamond. The post-treatment process results in hybrid-granular-structured diamond (HiD) films via the induction of the coalescence of the ultrasmall grains in these films that enhanced the conductivity of the films. All these factors contribute toward the enhancement of the electron field emission (EFE) process for the HiDCNT/Si-tip emitters, with low turn-on field of E0 = 2.98 V/μm and a large current density of 1.68 mA/cm(2) at an applied field of 5.0 V/μm. The EFE lifetime stability under an operation current of 6.5 μA was improved substantially to τHiD/CNT/Si-tip = 365 min. Interestingly, these HiDCNT/Si-tip materials also show enhanced plasma illumination behavior, as well as improved robustness against plasma ion bombardment when they are used as the cathode for microplasma devices. The study concludes that the use of CNT interlayers not only increase the potential of these materials as good EFE emitters, but also prove themselves to be good microplasma devices with improved performance.

Structure and Field Emission Properties of CNx Powders Synthesized by a Polymerization Process

The CNx powders were prepared by a polymerization process. The phase structure and bonding structure of the as-prepared powder were analyzed by X–ray diffraction and X–ray photoelectron spectroscopy, respectively. To prepare CNx field emission cathode, the CNx powders were coated onto Ti substrate using a suspension sedimentation method, followed by an annealing treatment to form a TiC phase. A three layer (Ti substrate–TiC joint network–CNx particles) structure model was proposed to explain the electron field emission properties for the as-prepared field emission cathode. The field emission measurement shows that for the as-prepared CNx cathode, the threshold electric field is 2.04 V/μm and the emission current density at 3.73 V/μm is 158 μA/cm.

Bias-enhanced post-treatment process for enhancing the electron field emission properties of ultrananocrystalline diamond films

The electron field emission (EFE) properties of ultrananocrystalline diamond films were markedly improved via the bias-enhanced plasma post-treatment (bep) process. The bep-process induced the formation of hybrid-granular structure of the diamond (bep-HiD) films with abundant nano-graphitic phase along the grain boundaries that increased the conductivity of the films. Moreover, the utilization of Au-interlayer can effectively suppress the formation of resistive amorphous-carbon (a-C) layer, thereby enhancing the transport of electrons crossing the diamond-to-Si interface. Therefore, bep-HiD/Au/Si films exhibit superior EFE properties with low turn-on field of E0 = 2.6 V/μm and large EFE current density of Je = 3.2 mA/cm2 (at 5.3 V/μm).

Enhanced field electron emission of flower-like zinc oxide on zinc oxide nanorods grown on carbon nanotubes

For the first time, zinc oxide (ZnO) nanoflowers on ZnO nanorods were produced on carbon nanotubes (CNTs) synthesised from waste cooking palm oil precursor. First, CNTs were grown using a thermal chemical vapour deposition method. Next, ZnO nanostructures were deposited using the sonicated sol–gel immersion method and the prepared samples were characterised using electron microscopy, micro-Raman spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction. The field electron emission properties of the samples indicated that the ZnO nanoflowers grown on the CNTs had better emission performances than the pristine aligned ZnO nanorods. The resulting CNTs/ZnO nanocomposite had reasonable turn-on and threshold fields of 4.6 and 6.7V/µm, which corresponded with the electric fields required to create current densities of 1.0µA/cm2 and 0.1mA/cm 2, respectively. This study shows the important roles of CNTs in ZnO nanoflowers growth and the abilities of CNTs to enhance ZnO emission properties.

Field-induced electron emission from nanoporous carbon of various types

The influence of fabrication technology on field electron emission properties of nanoporous carbon (NPC) has been investigated. Samples of NPC derived from different carbides via chlorination at different temperatures demonstrated similar low-field emission ability with the threshold electric field strength of 2–3 V/μm. This property correlated with the presence of nanopores with the characteristic size of 0.5–1.2 nm determining high values of specific surface area (more than 800 m2/g) of the material. In most cases, voltage–current characteristics of emission were approximately linear in Fowler–Nordheim (FN) coordinates (excluding the low-current part near the emission threshold), but the plot slope angles were in notable disagreement with the known material morphology and electronic properties, and this could not be explained within the frames of FN emission theory. We suggest that the actual emission mechanism for NPC involves hot electrons generated at internal boundaries, and that emission centers may be associated with relatively large (20–100 nm) onion-like particles observed in many microscopy images.

Active vacuum brazing of CNT films to metal substrates for superior electron field emission performance

The joining of macroscopic films of vertically aligned multiwalled carbon nanotubes (CNTs) to titanium substrates is demonstrated by active vacuum brazing at 820 °C with a Ag–Cu–Ti alloy and at 880 °C with a Cu–Sn–Ti–Zr alloy. The brazing methodology was elaborated in order to enable the production of highly electrically and thermally conductive CNT/metal substrate contacts. The interfacial electrical resistances of the joints were measured to be as low as 0.35 Ω. The improved interfacial transport properties in the brazed films lead to superior electron field-emission properties when compared to the as-grown films. An emission current of 150 μA was drawn from the brazed nanotubes at an applied electric field of 0.6 V μm−1. The improvement in electron field-emission is mainly attributed to the reduction of the contact resistance between the nanotubes and the substrate. The joints have high re-melting temperatures up to the solidus temperatures of the alloys; far greater than what is achievable with standard solders, thus expanding the application potential of CNT films to high-current and high-power applications where substantial frictional or resistive heating is expected.

Synthesis of CuBO2 Nano/Microrods via Easy Molten Salt Route and Study of Its Field Emission Properties

Nanostructures of copper based delafossites, which are p-type transparent conducting oxides (p-TCO), are technologically very important. Nanorods of CuBO2, the latest member in the family of p-TCO, were prepared via easy molten salt method for the first time. The synthesis was optimized by varying the molarity of the precursor and synthesis parameters. The prepared samples were characterized by X-ray diffraction for structural information. Field emission scanning electron microscopy and transmission electron microscopy revealed the morphological nature of the samples. Compositional analyses were performed by energy dispersive analysis of X-rays. UV–vis–NIR spectrophotometric studies determined reflectance of the samples. Growth of CuBO2 nanorods was correlated with synthesis duration. Photoluminescence properties of the sample were studied using a fluorometer. The electron field emission properties of the samples were measured using our laboratory-made high vacuum setup. Finite element based simulation st...

Au nanoparticles decorated ZnO nanoarrays with enhanced electron field emission and optical absorption properties

Au nanoparticles decorated ZnO nanoarrays have been successfully synthesized by a facile, low-temperature hydrothermal route. Scanning electron microscopy images of the products reveal that the ZnO nanoarrays are coated with Au nanoparticles. The XPS spectra suggested that the Au species are present in the metallic state. A low turn-on electric field of 3.2V/μm and a high field enhancement factor of about 3415 for Au nanoparticles decorated ZnO nanoarrays ensure the superior electron field emission behavior compared to bare ZnO nanoarrays. In addition, Au nanoparticles decorated ZnO nanoarrays show enhanced optical absorption property in the visible region.

Field electron emission enhancement of graphenated MWCNTs emitters following their decoration with Au nanoparticles by a pulsed laser ablation process

A plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) process was adapted to alter the growth of multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) so that graphene sheets grow out of their tips. Gold nanoparticle (Au-NP) decoration of graphenated MWCNTs (g-MWCNTs) was obtained by subsequent decoration by a pulsed laser deposition (PLD) process. By varying the number of laser ablation pulses (NLp) in the PLD process, we were able to control the size of the gold nanoparticles and the surface coverage of the decorated g-MWCNTs. The presence of Au-NPs, preferentially located at the tip of the g-MWCNTs emitters, is shown to significantly improve the field electron emission (FEE) properties of the global g-MWCNT/Au-NP nanohybrid films. Indeed, the electric field needed to extract a current density of 0.1 μA cm−2 from the g-MWCNT/Au-NP films was decreased from 2.68 V μm−1 to a value as low as 0.96 V μm−1. On the other hand, UV photoelectron spectroscopy (UPS) characterization revealed a decrease in the global work function of the Au-decorated g-MWCNT nanohybrids compared to that of bare g-MWCNT emitters. Surprisingly, the work function of g-MWCNT was found to decrease from 4.9 to 4.7 eV with the addition of Au-NPs—a value lower than the work function of both materials worth 5.2 and 4.9 eV for gold and g-MWCNT, respectively. Our results show that the NLp dependence of the FEE characteristics of the g-MWCNT/Au-NP emitters correlates well with their work function changes. Fowler-Nordheim-theory-based calculations suggest that the significant FEE enhancement of the emitters is also caused by the Au-NPs acting as nanoscale electric field enhancers.

Gold nanoparticle-ultrananocrystalline diamond hybrid structured materials for high-performance optoelectronic device applications.

Hybridization of gold nanoparticles in the ultrananocrystalline diamond materials improves the electrical conductivity of the materials to a high level of 230 (Ω cm)(-1) with a sheet carrier concentration of 8.9 × 10(20) cm(-2). These hybrid materials show enhanced electron field emission (EFE) properties, viz. a low turn-on field of 2.1 V μm(-1) with a high EFE current density of 5.3 mA cm(-2) (at an applied field of 4.9 V μm(-1)) and the life-time stability up to a period of 372 min. The fabrication of these hybrid materials with high conductivity and superior EFE behaviors is a direct and simple process which opens new prospects in flat panel displays and high brightness electron sources.

Enhanced electron field emission properties from hybrid nanostructures of graphene/Si tip array

High efficiency with excellently stable electron field emitters based on monolayer graphene coated on well-aligned Si tip (graphene/SiT) arrays fabricated by a simple transfer method is demonstrated.

Catalytically induced nanographitic phase by a platinum-ion implantation/annealing process to improve the field electron emission properties of ultrananocrystalline diamond films

Pt nanoparticles catalytically induce nanographitic phases in grain boundaries achieving highly conducting ultrananocrystalline diamond films with enhanced EFE properties.