MODIFICATION OF SI FIELD EMITTER SURFACES BY CHEMICAL CONVERSION TO SIC

Silicon field emitters have been modified -by coating with a thin SiC film through a chemical conversion process. Silicon carbide was formed on Si emitter surfaces by reacting with ethylene gas at temperatures between 850 and 950-degrees-C using pressures as high as 5 X 10(-3) To rr. The thickness of the coatings ranged from 2 to 500 nm, determined by a combination of reaction time, pressure, and temperature. Stable e mission currents above 10 mu angstrom were measured from individual Si C coated emitters.