Development of micro-patterned carbon nanotube field emission arrays for high current applications

This paper presents micro-patterned carbon nanotube field emission arrays cathodes with an emitting unit area only 1mum in diameter. The fabrication process began with the deposition of a buffer layer of titanium-nitride on the silicon n type(100) substrate. Then a photo-resist overlay was patterned by conventional lithography technique to form 1mum circular aperture arrays, followed by depositing iron catalyst by electron beam deposition. Finally, the resist was removed, and carbon nanotubes grown by direct current plasma enhanced chemical vapor deposition (DC- PECVD). The field emission measurements showed a turn-on field as low as IV/mum, a current density of 90mA/cm² at a field of 17V/mum, and with a fluctuation less than 5.6 percent over a period of 3.5 hours at an average current of 550 muA..