Field emission (FE) from semiconducting nanowires (NWs) is studied for expanding electron gun performances and functionality in terms of stability, brightness, and pulsed emission. Here, we report on a pronounced and robust double negative differential resistance (NDR) in the FE IV characteristics measured during photoassisted field emission experiments on highly crystalline p-type silicon NWs. The main feature is a double NDR in the current saturation regime, which can be modulated by both temperature and light intensity. These results contrast with previous FE studies in which only a barely noticeable single NDR was reported. Several mechanisms for the physical explanation of the NDR are currently under consideration: photogenerated carrier instabilities in the depletion region, which give rise to a pulsed space-charge current in the nanowire or tunneling through a double quantum well formed by confinement at the NW apex. Because NDRs are signatures of pulsed currents, these results suggest new functionalities for which pulsed electron sources can potentially be achieved at high repetition rates.
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March 2022
Research Article|
February 16 2022
Negative differential resistance in photoassisted field emission from Si nanowires
Special Collection:
Vacuum Nanoelectronics
M. Choueib;
M. Choueib
1
Département de chimie, Université de Montréal
, Montréal, Québec H3T 1J4, Canada
2
Institut Lumière Matière, Université Lyon 1, CNRS, UMR 5306
, F-69622 Villeurbanne Cedex, France
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A. Derouet;
A. Derouet
2
Institut Lumière Matière, Université Lyon 1, CNRS, UMR 5306
, F-69622 Villeurbanne Cedex, France
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P. Vincent
;
P. Vincent
2
Institut Lumière Matière, Université Lyon 1, CNRS, UMR 5306
, F-69622 Villeurbanne Cedex, France
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A. Ayari
;
A. Ayari
2
Institut Lumière Matière, Université Lyon 1, CNRS, UMR 5306
, F-69622 Villeurbanne Cedex, France
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S. Perisanu;
S. Perisanu
2
Institut Lumière Matière, Université Lyon 1, CNRS, UMR 5306
, F-69622 Villeurbanne Cedex, France
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P. Poncharal;
P. Poncharal
2
Institut Lumière Matière, Université Lyon 1, CNRS, UMR 5306
, F-69622 Villeurbanne Cedex, France
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C. S. Cojocaru;
C. S. Cojocaru
3
Ecole Polytechnique LPICM, UMR 7647
, F-91128 Palaiseau, France
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R. Martel
;
R. Martel
a)
1
Département de chimie, Université de Montréal
, Montréal, Québec H3T 1J4, Canada
a)Author to whom correspondence should be addressed: stephen.purcell@univ-lyon1.fr
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S. T. Purcell
2
Institut Lumière Matière, Université Lyon 1, CNRS, UMR 5306
, F-69622 Villeurbanne Cedex, France
a)Author to whom correspondence should be addressed: stephen.purcell@univ-lyon1.fr
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a)Author to whom correspondence should be addressed: stephen.purcell@univ-lyon1.fr
b)
Electronic mail: r.martel@umontreal.ca
Note: This paper is a part of the Special Topic Collection on Vacuum Nanoelectronics.
J. Vac. Sci. Technol. B 40, 022802 (2022)
Article history
Received:
November 23 2021
Accepted:
January 14 2022
Citation
M. Choueib, A. Derouet, P. Vincent, A. Ayari, S. Perisanu, P. Poncharal, C. S. Cojocaru, R. Martel, S. T. Purcell; Negative differential resistance in photoassisted field emission from Si nanowires. J. Vac. Sci. Technol. B 1 March 2022; 40 (2): 022802. https://doi.org/10.1116/6.0001650
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