Web Release Date: December 1,
Tip Cooling Effect and Failure Mechanism of Field-Emitting Carbon Nanotubes
and
Department of Physics and Tsinghua-Foxconn Nanotechnology Research Center, Tsinghua University, Beijing 100084, China, and Key Laboratory for the Physics and Chemistry of Nanodevices and Department of Electronics, Peking University, Beijing 100871, China
Received August 23, 2006
Revised October 31, 2006
Abstract:
The cooling effect accompanying field electron emission has been considered for a single carbon nanotube (CNT) used as a field emission (FE) electron source. An improved model for the failure mechanism of field emitting CNTs has been proposed and validated. Our model predicts a maximum temperature (T-max) located at an interior point rather than the tip of the CNTs, and the failure of the CNT emitters tends to take place at the T-max point, inducing a segment by segment breakdown process. A combination of Joule heating and electrostatic force effect is proposed responsible for initiating the failure of the field emitting CNT and validated by in situ FE observation.
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