Victor I. Kleshch

A novel method for metal oxide nanowire synthesis.

Nanowires (NWs) of metal oxides (Fe(2)O(3), CuO, V(2)O(5) and ZnO) were grown by an efficient non-catalytic economically favorable method based on resistive heating of pure metal wires or foils at ambient conditions. The growth rate of iron oxide NWs exceeds 100 nm s(-1). Produced NWs were typically 1-5 microm long with diameters from 10 to 50 nm. The produced metal oxide NWs were characterized by means of SEM, TEM, EDX, XPS and Raman techniques. The field emission measurements from the as-produced CuO NWs were found to have a threshold field as low as 4 V microm(-1) at 0.01 mA cm(-2). The formation mechanism of the NWs is discussed.

A nano-graphite cold cathode for an energy-efficient cathodoluminescent light source

Summary The development of new types of light sources is necessary in order to meet the growing demands of consumers and to ensure an efficient use of energy. The cathodoluminescence process is still under-exploited for light generation because of the lack of cathodes suitable for the energy-efficient production of electron beams and appropriate phosphor materials. In this paper we propose a nano-graphite film material as a highly efficient cold cathode, which is able to produce high intensity electron beams without energy consumption. The nano-graphite film material was produced by using chemical vapor deposition techniques. Prototypes of cathodoluminescent lamp devices with a construction optimized for the usage of nano-graphite cold cathodes were developed, manufactured and tested. The results indicate prospective advantages of this type of lamp and the possibility to provide advanced power efficiency as well as enhanced spectral and other characteristics.

Single Crystal Diamond Needle as Point Electron Source

Diamond has been considered to be one of the most attractive materials for cold-cathode applications during past two decades. However, its real application is hampered by the necessity to provide appropriate amount and transport of electrons to emitter surface which is usually achieved by using nanometer size or highly defective crystallites having much lower physical characteristics than the ideal diamond. Here, for the first time the use of single crystal diamond emitter with high aspect ratio as a point electron source is reported. Single crystal diamond needles were obtained by selective oxidation of polycrystalline diamond films produced by plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition. Field emission currents and total electron energy distributions were measured for individual diamond needles as functions of extraction voltage and temperature. The needles demonstrate current saturation phenomenon and sensitivity of emission to temperature. The analysis of the voltage drops measured via electron energy analyzer shows that the conduction is provided by the surface of the diamond needles and is governed by Poole-Frenkel transport mechanism with characteristic trap energy of 0.2–0.3 eV. The temperature-sensitive FE characteristics of the diamond needles are of great interest for production of the point electron beam sources and sensors for vacuum electronics.

Effect of vacuum level on field emission from nanographite films

The effect of vacuum level on field emission from nanographite films obtained by plasma-chemical deposition is studied. The stable emission of electrons from the nanographite is observed at a threshold field of 1–2 V/μm, a current density of 0.1 mA/cm2, and a residual gas pressure in the measuring chamber of less than 10−5 Torr. At a higher pressure, the emission properties of the films gradually degrade with time. Repeat evacuation of the chamber to 10−5 Torr restores the emission properties. Such behavior of the nanographite emitters is explained by adsorption/desorption processes (reversible degradation of the emission) and the destruction of the film under the action of residual gas ion bombardment (irreversible changes).

Self-oscillations in an electromechanical system with a field emitter

Electromechanical oscillations have been detected in a system consisting of a vacuum diode with a field cathode made of single-walled carbon nanotubes. As a dc voltage between such a cathode and an anode is applied, stable mechanical oscillations are observed along with oscillations of the self-sustained emission current. An empirical model of this phenomenon is proposed. It is described with a system of one-dimensional equations of mechanical motion and electrical processes in the system. An analysis of these equations is performed and a qualitative consistency of theoretical and experimental results is demonstrated. It is proved that the observed phenomenon is common for all systems with field nanoemitters. The suggested mechanism of the excitation of the self-sustained oscillations can be used to explain the experimentally observed features of such nanoemitters.

Fluid modeling for plasma-enhanced direct current chemical vapor deposition

Abstract. A self-consistent continuum (fluid) model for a direct current discharge used in a chemical vapor deposition system is developed. The model is built for a two-dimensional axisymmetric system and incorporates an electron energy balance for low-pressure Ar gas. The underlying physics of the fluid model is briefly discussed. The fluid and Poisson equations for plasma species are used as the model background. The plasma species considered in the model include electrons, Ar+ ions, and Ar atoms in ground and excited states. Nine reactions between these species are taken into account, including surface reactions. The densities of various plasma species as well as the relative contributions of generation and annihilation processes for electrons, ions, and atoms are calculated. The concentrations for electrons and Ar+ ions on the order of 1020  m−3 are obtained for the plasma in the computer simulations.

Field emission from single-walled carbon nanotubes modified by annealing and CuCl doping

In this article, we present a comparative study of field emission (FE) properties of the films of pristine, annealed and CuCl-filled single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs). The current-voltage dependencies and emission site distributions were measured in the diode configuration with a flat phosphor-coated anode. A significant increase of the threshold field was observed after annealing and doping of the films. It was explained by the selective oxidation of the small-diameter nanotubes confirmed by the Raman spectroscopy. The FE properties of annealed and filled SWCNTs were found to coincide with each other. At the same time, their Raman spectra differ significantly indicating the strong p-type doping induced by encapsulated CuCl. The obtained result reveals that the CuCl filling leads to significant changes in macroscopically averaged electronic properties but do not change the local work function at the apexes of emitting nanotubes, which is important for the further development of SWCNTs-based FE cathodes.

Field emission spectroscopy evidence for dual-barrier electron tunnelling in nanographite

Nanocarbon films with upstanding flake-like graphite crystallites of nanometre thickness were fabricated by carbon condensation from a methane–hydrogen gas mixture activated by a direct-current discharge. The nanographite (NG) crystallites are composed of a few graphene layers. The adjacent atomic layers are connected partially at the edges of the crystallites to form strongly curved graphene structures. The extraordinary field emission (FE) properties were revealed for the NG films with an average current density of a few mA/cm2, reproducibly obtained at a macroscopic applied field of about 1 V/μm. The integral FE current–voltage curves and electron spectra (FEES) of NG cathodes with multiple emitters were measured in a triode configuration. Most remarkably, above a threshold field, two peaks were revealed in FEES with different field-dependent shifts to lower energies. This behaviour evidences electron emission through a dual potential barrier, corresponding to carbon–carbon heterostructure formed as a ...

Field emission spectroscopy of nanographite films

Nanocarbon films with high aspect ratio graphite crystallites were fabricated by plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition. In order to reveal the origin of their extraordinary field emission properties, integral current-voltage curves and electron spectra from two nanographite cathodes with different morphology were measured in triode configuration. An average current density of about 1 mA/cm2 was reproducibly obtained at an applied field of 1.2-1.8 V/μm due to high field enhancement. Most remarkably, above a threshold field the electron spectra of both samples revealed two peaks with different field-dependent shift to lower energy. The role of sp3 surface states for these results will be discussed at the conference.

Photoinduced effects in field electron emission from diamond needles

We report an explicit experimental observation of photostimulated electron field emission from diamond. The electron emission properties of monocrystalline diamond needles were investigated in the dark and under illumination by nanosecond laser pulses. A prominent increase in the electron emission current was detected under illumination by light with photon energies above 5.0 eV. The linear dependence of the photoinduced emission current on the light intensity was observed in the spectral range of 5.0 to 5.9 eV, while its field dependence demonstrated saturation behavior. The remarkable feature of the observed phenomenon was the fact that illuminated and field emission areas of the diamond needles were spatially separated by about 100 μm in the used experimental setup. Possible mechanisms for the observed effects are discussed.