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Conical beams from open nanotubes

Abstract

Electron guns are indispensable devices that are widely used in household and industrial appliances. Field electron-emitting sources (which emit electrons by tunnelling effects in electric fields), with their small size, small energy spread, high current density and no requirement for heat, have distinct advantages over thermionic emitters. We have made a field electron emitter from hollow, open-ended carbon nanotubes.

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Figure 1: Transmission electron microscope image of the open end of a multi-walled carbon nanotube.
Figure 2: Field-emission patterns from multi-walled carbon nanotubes.

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Saito, Y., Hamaguchi, K., Hata, K. et al. Conical beams from open nanotubes. Nature 389, 554–555 (1997). https://doi.org/10.1038/39221

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