A Monolithic Nanodiamond Lateral Field Emission Vacuum Transistor

A nanocrystalline-diamond-based monolithic lateral-type vacuum transistor is reported. The device, fabricated by a single-mask approach, incorporates a fingerlike emitter, integrated with gate and anode electrodes, in a lateral triode geometrical configuration. The device demonstrates transistor characteristics with gate-controlled current modulation showing distinct cutoff, linear, and saturation regions. The transistor with a single emitter has a gate turn-on voltage of 40 V, anode current (I_a) of 1.1 muA (current density of ~ 1A/cm²⁾ with a small gate intercepted current (I_g) of less than 0.001%, transconductance of 22 nS/finger, dc voltage gain of 200, and high output impedance of 10 GOmega. This demonstration of a lateral vacuum transistor at microelectronic scale is essential to the development of the vacuum electronic integrated circuit.