Field electron emission of nanorods of semiconductors of wide energy band gaps

It is shown that significant field emission from nanorods of wide band gap semiconductors is possible. The nanorod is assumed to have a thin surface layer containing a large number of localized states originating from defects. Taking SiC as an example, the electrostatic potential, charge distribution, conduction current, tunnelling current, and field enhancement are calculated. It is found that the field-induced insulator to semimetal transition is responsible for the efficient field emission from the nanorods and that field enhancement is not constant with applied fields but varies with the field and has a maximum.