Analysis of Electron Emission from a Single Silicon Cathode to Quasi-Vacuum (Air) Using Atomic Force Microscopy
- PDF / 1,475,617 Bytes
- 7 Pages / 612 x 792 pts (letter) Page_size
- 71 Downloads / 188 Views
ICAL ELECTRONICS
Analysis of Electron Emission from a Single Silicon Cathode to Quasi-Vacuum (Air) Using Atomic Force Microscopy I. D. Evsikova,*, S. V. Mit’koa, P. Yu. Glagoleva, N. A. Djuzheva, and G. D. Demina aNational
Research University MIET, Zelenograd, Moscow, 124498 Russia *e-mail: [email protected]
Received April 16, 2020; revised April 16, 2020; accepted April 16, 2020
Abstract—Atomic force microscopy is employed in the experimental study of specific features of the field emission of electrons from a single silicon needle-type cathode to quasi-vacuum (air). Noncontact regime of the atomic force microscopy is used to measure the I–V characteristics of a single cathode with nanometerscale tip radius at distances of 10 and 20 nm between the cathode tip and the measurement probe. Electric field distributions are simulated for both surface of the tip of a single cathode and tip surfaces of single cathodes in an array, and the results are used to theoretically estimate electric field enhancement versus cathode– probe distance. It is shown that the enhancement factor calculated from the experimental I–V characteristics in the Fowler–Nordheim coordinates is greater than the result of theoretical calculations by several orders of magnitude. This circumstance indicates that additional quantum dimensional effects that play an important role in the generation of the electron emission current in the nanoscale gap must be taken into account. DOI: 10.1134/S1063784220110067
INTRODUCTION There has been considerable recent interest in the development of vacuum nanoelectronic devices due to the fact that such devices exhibit stability against radiation, allow high-temperature working regimes, and provide high efficiencies in the THz range. Such positive features are related to physical properties of vacuum that provides ballistic transport of carriers (electrons) along the conduction channel almost in the absence of collisions. The phonon scattering of carriers by crystal lattice of semiconductors in the presence of current flow leads to undesired heating of the structure and formation of additional defects in the conduction channel. Such negative effects become critical on the 10-nm scale, which impedes further scaling down of semiconductor electronics [1]. Nevertheless, positive features of vacuum nanoelectronic devices (high efficiency and stability against radiation and high temperature) the working principle of which is based on field emission of electrons to vacuum can be combined with the positive features of the CMOS silicon technology (see the results of [2–4]). Moreover, such integration has been demonstrated in [5] in which novel combined devices have been based on conventional metal–oxide–semiconductor (MOS) transistor and vacuum FET with a conduction channel length of 100 nm and a operation voltage of 10 V. A further decrease in the operation voltage and, hence, power consumption and an increase in the life time of vacuum nanosized devices can be reached using a decrease in the length of the conductio
Data Loading...
