Field emission characteristics of diamond edge-shaped emitters fabricated using nitrogen–methane plasma

We have previously reported electron field emission characteristics of edge-shaped diamond micropatterned field emission cathodes fabricated from methane–hydrogen plasma deposition having a turn-on field of 6 V/μm. Recent work has shown that nitrogen-incorporated diamond films are highly conductive and exhibit low turn-on field. In this paper, we report the improved field emission characteristics of edge-shaped diamond micropatterned devices fabricated using nitrogen–methane plasma. The edge arrays were fabricated via a mold transfer technique on a silicon substrate utilizing silicon micropatterning and etching, followed by the plasma chemical vapor deposition of diamond. Arrays of micropatterned edge-shaped diamond emitters were formed and tested for field emission. The deposited diamond film was characterized by energy dispersion spectroscopy (EDS), Raman spectroscopy and SEM. Edge emitter diodes fabricated from the nitrogen–methane plasma displayed a low turn-on field of 2 V/μm and a high emission current of 5.3 mA at 8 V/μm.