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Carbon-in-Al4C3 nanowire superstructures for field emitters
1State Key Laboratory of Optoelectronic Materials and Technologies, School of Physics Science and Engineering, Sun Yat-sen (Zhongshan) University, Guangzhou 510275, People's Republic of China.
ACS Nano
|January 15, 2011
Summary
Aluminum carbide (Al(4)C(3)) nanowires with embedded carbon nanolayers show excellent field emission performance. These novel superstructures offer a promising new material for vacuum microelectronic devices.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Nanotechnology
- Solid State Physics
Background:
- Aluminum carbide (Al(4)C(3)) is an ionic carbide traditionally limited to structural applications.
- Its unique crystal structure suggests untapped potential for active functionalities.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the feasibility of Al(4)C(3) for field-emission applications.
- To develop Al(4)C(3)-based nanowire superstructures for cold electron emission.
Main Methods:
- Fabrication of Al(4)C(3)-based nanowire superstructures with embedded amorphous carbon (a-C) nanolayers.
- Characterization of field emission performance, including turn-on and threshold fields.
Main Results:
- The Al(4)C(3) nanowire superstructures exhibited excellent field emission.
- Achieved low turn-on fields (0.65-1.3 V/μm) and threshold fields (2.1-2.6 V/μm).
- Performance potentially surpasses that of carbon nanotubes.
Conclusions:
- The unique crystal structure of Al(4)C(3) and enhanced electron transport from a-C nanolayers contribute to superior emission characteristics.
- These emitters are easily fabricated on large substrates using a simple, broadly applicable synthesis process.
- Presents new opportunities for Al(4)C(3) in vacuum microelectronic devices.
