Nanometer-order base length, sharp and uniform field emitter arrays fabricated by transfer mold method

In this paper nanometer-order base length, sharp and uniform field emitter arrays with 64 nm base length and 2.5 nm tip radius, which is the smallest and sharpest FEAs ever reported, have been developed by transfer mold method to realize the uniform and stable field emission characteristics. The reverse-pyramidal shape mold with thin SiO₂ layer for sharpness was fabricated by using e-beam lithography. It was formed on Si substrates by anisotropic etching, on which emitter materials Ni thin-film are deposited using ultrafine electroplating method. The emitter film was bonded to another substrate, and then the Si-mold substrate was removed entirely. Resultantly, the sharpened emitter array could be obtained reproducibly and uniformly.Thus nanostructure Ni-FEAs have been developed using by transfer mold method with high uniformity and reliability. The nanostructure transfer mold FEAs with 64-nm-base length can be useful for field emission device and vacuum nanodevice.