Silicon rice-straw array emitters and their superior electron field emission.
Free standing and vertically aligned silicon rice-straw- like array emitters were fabricated by modified electroless metal deposition (EMD), using HF-H(2)O(2) as an etching solution to reduce the emitter density and to make the emitter end of the formed silicon rice-straw arrays shaper than those formed by conventional EMD. These silicon rice-straw array emitters can be turned on at E(0) = 4.7 V/μm, yielding an EFE (electron field emission) current density of J(e) = 139 μA/cm(2) in an applied field of 12.8 V/μm. According to a simple simulation, the excellent EFE performance of the silicon rice-straw array emitters originates in not only the favorable distribution of emitter arrays, but also the shape of the emitter apexes. The modified-EMD method is easily scaled up without expensive equipment, so silicon rice-straw array emitters are a promising alternative to silicon-based field emitters.
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Department of Power Mechanical Engineering, and Center for Nanotechnology, Materials Science, and Microsystems, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 30013, Taiwan, Republic of China.
Hung-Chi
HC
Wu
Hung-Yin
HY
Tsai
Hsin-Tien
HT
Chiu
Chi-Young
CY
Lee