Electron emitting barium-calcium aluminate obtained from chemical solution techniques

This paper reports a chemical technique to obtain barium-calcium aluminates used in impregnated thermionic cathodes. This procedure has been employed to improve the thermionic emission characteristics of the cathodes and to facilitate the preparation process of the emitting material. The crystallized powders were obtained using a mixed solution that contains barium, calcium, and aluminum in their chemical formula. Thermogravimetry and X-ray diffraction were used to investigate the final product of the experiments. Results reported from solid state reaction are compared with those obtained using crystallization techniques.