LOW VOLTAGE ELECTRON EMISSION FROM BaTiO₃ FERROELECTRIC THIN FILMS

ABSTRACT

Electron emission from sol-gel derived thin films is demonstrated in this paper. The electron emission measurements have been performed using 1 μ m ferroelectric cathodes based on BaTiO₃ spin coated thin films. Ferroelectric thin film capacitors were obtained onto a nichrome substrate using a very thin Au layer like top electrode. Then, an a.c. voltage is applied to the bottom electrode and electron emission is observed using a parallel cathode – positively biased anode arrangement in a vacuum chamber at 10^{− 4} Pa. Stable electron emission was obtained using both sine or square-wave voltage in a wide range of frequencies with the turn-on voltage of 50 V.

Keywords:

• BaTiO₃
• electron emission
• sol-gel
• AFM
• X-ray diffraction

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors would like to thank S. Yamashita and K. Matsubara for their technical support.