Field-Emission Vacuum Nanoelectronics : A Bird’s Eye View of Theory and Practical Applications

Field-Emission Vacuum Nanoelectronics: A Bird’s Eye View of Theory and Practical Applications explores the field in both theoretical and practical perspectives.Field-emission devices have moved from specialized applications to become potential candidates for a future beyond-CMOS circuits, offering superior performance at extreme temperatures, in harsh environments, and at high frequencies, due to their reliance on ballistic transport in vacuum-like or nanogap air-filled environments rather than solid-state lattice transport. Beginning with the mechanisms of electron emission from materials and highlighting the role of nanotechnology in field emission, the Fowler-Nordheim theory of field emission is extensively treated.Enhancements of the Fowler-Nordheim theory and its various alternatives are addressed, with emphasis on the Schottky-Nordheim transmission barrier, the Murphy-Good theory, and efforts made to rephrase and reformulate the standard Fowler-Nordheim theory.On the practical side, the key components of field-emission devices, namely, cold cathodes, arrays, and electron guns, are described.Applications covered include field-emission displays and lamps, diodes and transistors, microwave power tubes (magnetrons, gyrotrons, klystrons, and TWTs), information storage devices, sensors, electron microscopy, spectroscopy, scanning probe lithography, X-ray tubes, electric propulsion thrusters, and charge neutralizers.The book concludes with a discussion of research challenges and the future outlook for field-emission nanoelectronics.The book will be immensely useful to graduate and research students, engineers, and scientists. Key features:Provides a simplified, and up-to-date treatment of the theory and technological applications of field-emission in nanoelectronicsShowcases each field emission application by unveiling its operation, unique benefits, fabrication process, key milestones, and emerging research directionsBrings the underlying mathematical concepts to life with abundant, easy-to-follow examples