Nanodiamond Coating for Field Emission Filaments

Nanodiamond is very important for autoemission applications because it allows investigators to reduce electric field for electron emission current generation. Moreover, we can also consider nanodiamonds as “bricks” for new method of diamond coating growth. In this paper we describe the formation and investigation of nanodiamond-based coating on Mo needles. Manipulation of nanodiamond particles with high electric fields allows us to prepare systems of isolated diamond quantum dots on a conductive surface. Localization of an isolated single-crystalline diamond particle ∼5 nm in size on the «tip of a needle» presents an unique opportunity for studies of correlations between the structural and emission properties of individual diamond nanoparticles. Combinations of TEM observations, field emission measurements, and repeated diamond depositions on the same emitter provided a direct comparison of the effects of various amounts of nanodiamond particles on the emission properties of a coated metal field emitter. By utilizing Z-contrast and EELS technique we investigated distribution of nitrogen impurity inside individual nanoparticle and aging effect (increasing of s p2 fraction on the surface of nanodiamond with time).