Title :
Progress in microminiature thermionic vacuum tube devices
Author :
Sadwick, Larry P. ; Zhang, Y.J. ; Schaeffer, D.J. ; Sandquist, G.M.
Author_Institution :
Dept. of Electr. Eng., Utah Univ., Salt Lake City, UT, USA
Abstract :
We report on the progress made in the fabrication and testing of microminiature thermionic vacuum (MTV) tube devices with ultra-small (i.e., micron-scale) dimensions. In particular, using low function material, we have been able to successfully fabricate reproducible and reliable MTV planar and vertical diodes with emission properties that obey Child´s Law for emission distances on the scale of approximately 2 /spl mu/m or greater. MTV technology is well suited for use in flat panel displays, electron beam writing sources and optics, nuclear instrumentation, aeronautical control instrumentation, space-based missions, geothermal and oil exploration, and other high temperature and harsh environment applications.<>
Keywords :
diodes; thermionic tubes; vacuum microelectronics; 2 micron; Child´s Law; aeronautical control instrumentation; electron beam writing sources; emission properties; flat panel displays; geothermal exploration; harsh environment applications; low function materials; microminiature thermionic vacuum tube; micron-scale dimensions; nuclear instrumentation; planar diodes; space-based missions; thermionic emitters; vacuum microelectronics; vertical diodes; Diodes; Electron beams; Electron tubes; Fabrication; Flat panel displays; Instruments; Materials reliability; Space technology; Testing; Writing;
Conference_Titel :
Electron Devices Meeting, 1994. IEDM '94. Technical Digest., International
Conference_Location :
San Francisco, CA, USA
Print_ISBN :
0-7803-2111-1
DOI :
10.1109/IEDM.1994.383308
