This letter presents a quantum model showing the transition of electron field emission at low current to space-charge-limited emission at high current in a nanogap. It is found that the classical transition models are no longer valid when the electron de Broglie wavelength is comparable to the gap spacing. The transition from the Fowler-Nordheim law at low current to the quantum Child-Langmuir law at high current in a nanogap is calculated for various conditions.
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