Related Experiment Video
Updated: Mar 8, 2026

All-electronic Nanosecond-resolved Scanning Tunneling Microscopy: Facilitating the Investigation of Single Dopant Charge Dynamics
Published on: January 19, 2018
Transit-Time Oscillations in Nanoscale Vacuum Diode with a Pure Resistive Load
Bjartthór Steinn Alexandersson1, Kristinn Torfason1, Andrei Manolescu1
1Reykjavik University, Department of Engineering, Menntavegur 1, IS-102, Reykjavik, Iceland.
None:
We examine the Ramo current in a nanoscale planar vacuum diode undergoing field emission in the presence of a DC voltage supply and an external resistor. We describe a simple mechanism for generating persistent current oscillations in the diode due to the voltage drop across the external resistor (beam loading), which reduces the total field and inhibits the emission. The amplitude and the frequency, which is in the THz domain, depend on the operating parameters of the diode. Molecular dynamics simulations are used to find the characteristics and physical basis of the mechanism, and a simple analytical model is presented, in good agreement with the simulation.
Related Concept Videos
Small-signal Diode Model
Oscillations In An LC Circuit
Modeling of Diode Reverse Characteristics
When a reverse voltage applied to a Zener diode exceeds its breakdown voltage, the diode enters the breakdown region. At this point, the...
Diode: Reverse bias
Diode: Forward bias
The behavior of a diode in forward bias...
MOSFET: Depletion Mode
The primary characteristic of depletion-mode MOSFETs is their ability to conduct current between the drain and source terminals without gate bias. This inherent conductivity...

