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Mechanism of Field Emission in Diamond and Diamond-Like Carbon

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 February 2011

J Robertson*
Affiliation:
Engineering Dept, Cambridge University, Cambridge CB2 IPZ, UK
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Abstract

It is shown that the facile electron field emission from diamond and diamond-like carbon occurs because surface groups such as C-H can produce large changes in electron affinity, so that electric fields from the anode can be focused towards unhydrogenated surface areas of high affinity, the fields ending on negative charges in an underlying depletion layer. The resulting downwards band bending creates very large fields which cause Fowler-Nordheim emission, while not exceeding the breakdown field, which is the highest for any solid.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1998

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