Field emission from silicon tips embedded in a dielectric matrix

Electron transmission through suspended graphene membranes measured with a low-voltage gated Si field emitter array

“…In this work, we instead use atomically sharp Si emitters with self-aligned gates to extract electrons at voltages of less than 20 V as a separate electron source. Such devices have been reported previously in [10,15], having tip radius, r ∼ 3-8 nm, self-aligned poly-Si gate apertures of approximately 350 nm in diameter, and integrated high aspect ratio nanowires current limiters; arrays (10 8 emitters/cm 2 ) of these emitters have low turn-on voltage, V ON , of 8.5 V, low operating voltage (40 V), high current density (150 A•cm −2 ) and long lifetime (> 300 hours) [15]. Using this low-voltage gated Si field emission source, we characterize the low-energy electron transmission through suspended membranes with different number of graphene layers.…”

“…UHV is essential for reliable field emission performance due to the barrier height sensitivity to adsorption/desorption of gas molecules, and variations in this barrier height cause exponential variations in current [9]. In addition, a non-pristine vacuum can also lead to the generation of energetic ions that erode the emitter tips, rendering the tips blunt and deteriorating electrical performance [10]. Operation in poor vacuum using a graphene-encapsulated field emitter device at voltages less than 50 V was demonstrated in our previous work, which showed promise for poor vacuum electron transport [11].…”

Vacuum Tunneling Transistor with Nano Vacuum Chamber for Harsh Environments

“…Moreover, the sealing size level is still at the micrometer level or even a millimeter scale. Recently, emerging materials were used for vacuum enclosure such as graphene which has high transparency and ultrathin thickness. − Therefore, it is possible to pass the electric field and electrons. So, it works as an electrode (grid) and as vacuum encapsulation.…”