FIELD EMITTED ELECTRON-ENERGY DISTRIBUTION FROM NITROGEN-CONTAINING DIAMOND-LIKE CARBON

We report on energy resolved field emission measurements of 0.3 mu m t hick nitrogen containing diamondlike carbon (DLC). The film used in th is study was deposited by filtered are deposition onto a highly p-dope d Si(100) wafer. The film showed homogeneous field emission over the e ntire wafer area with an onset field for 1 nA emission current of 20-2 5 V/mu m. The energy resolved field emission measurements were carried out with an applied electric field of 20-22 V/mu m. The field emitted electrons originate from the Fermi energy, indicating that no field p enetration occurs, The energy distribution has a FWHM of 0.63 eV at an applied field of 21 V/mu m. The spectra could be deconvoluted using s tandard tunneling theory. The results of the deconvolution indicate an electric field strength of 6500 V/mu m at the emission site. (C) 1997 American Institute of Physics.