Electron emission from a lithium niobate crystal excited by ultra-violet laser

Lithium niobate is an attractive material for electron emission because of the crystal property of pyroelectricity which generates a temporarily electrical potential up to 100 kV when it is heated or cooled. So far, there are many reports concerning electron emission from pyroelectric crystals by heating and cooling, in which the energy and the current of electrons emitted from pyroelectric crystal are, however, difficult to control. Furthermore, the electron emission can not be stopped till the steady state of pyroelectric crystal. In this study, the electron emission from a lithium niobate crystal, excited by a ultra-violet (UV) laser light with a wavelength of 266 nm, has been investigated in order to fast control the electron emission from the pyroelectric crystal.