Field electron emission from CdTe deposited tungsten tip: light-induced effects

Cadmium telluride (CdTe) film has been deposited on tungsten field emitter tip by metal-organic chemical vapor deposition method. The deposited film on tungsten tip was characterized by scanning electron microscopy and energy dispersive X-ray analysis. In an all-glass field emission microscopy experiment, current–voltage characteristics were recorded after annealing the tip at ∼950 K for 30 s. Field emission current stability was recorded for 1, 3 and 5 μA current levels. While recording the stability, the field emitter was also exposed to the light (incandescent lamp, power ∼500 W) from a distance of ∼23 cm for 5 min. This resulted into enhancement in the current levels up to 40%. After switching off the lamp, current decreased to its originally set value with a finite decay time. The results are discussed in the light of existing literature and properties of CdTe and other solar energy materials.