Ultralow Voltage GaN Vacuum Nanodiodes in Air

• DOI: 10.1021/acs.nanolett.0c03959
• Publication Date: 2021-02-23T17:33:18Z
• Authors: Keshab R. Sapkota; François Leonard; A. Alec Talin; Brendan P. Gunning; Barbara A. Kazano...; Kevin S. Jones; George T. Wang
• Keywords: Nanoelectronics; Ultra-high vacuum; Wide-bandgap semiconductor

The III-nitride semiconductors have many attractive properties for field-emission vacuum electronics, including high thermal and chemical stability, low electron affinity, breakdown fields. Here, we report top-down fabricated gallium nitride (GaN)-based nanoscale diodes operable in air, with record ultralow turn-on voltages down to ∼0.24 V stable currents, tested up several microamps single-emitter devices. We leverage a scalable, GaN nanofabrication method leading damage-free smooth surfaces. Gap-dependent pressure-dependent studies provide new insights into the design of future, integrated nanogap results show promise class high-performance robust, on-chip, III-nitride-based nanoelectronics air or reduced vacuum.