Abstract
An electron-emission mechanism for cold cathodes is described based on the enhancement of electric fields at metal–diamond–vacuum triple junctions. Unlike conventional mechanisms, in which electrons tunnel from a metal or semiconductor directly into vacuum, the electrons here tunnel from a metal into diamond surface states, where they are accelerated to energies sufficient to be ejected into vacuum. Diamond cathodes designed to optimize this mechanism exhibit some of the lowest operational voltages achieved so far.
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Acknowledgements
We thank K. Walters for suggesting the possibility of surface states on NEA semiconductors, R. Parker for suggesting the triple-junction mechanism for electron injection, H. Gray and J. Cuomo for discussion, and D. Lennon for technical assistance. This work was supported by the Ballistic Missile Defence Office through the Office of Naval Research and the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency. Opinions, interpretations, conclusions and recommendations are those of the authors and are not necessarily endorsed by the United States Air Force.
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Geis, M., Efremow, N., Krohn, K. et al. A new surface electron-emission mechanism in diamond cathodes. Nature 393, 431–435 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1038/30900
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/30900
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