Low turn-on field and high field emission current density from Ag/TiO2 nanocomposite

High current density of 1.24 mA/cm(2) was drawn at an applied field of 4.4 V/mu m from Ag/TiO2 nanocomposite. Also the turn-on field has been reduced from 3.9 V/mu m to 2.7 V/mu m for the emission current density of 10 mu A/cm(2). Ag/TiO2 nanocomposite was synthesized by using UV-switchable reducing agent. TiO2 nanotube wall was decorated by Ag nanoparticles with average diameter of 17 nm. To the best of our knowledge this is the first report on the field emission studies of Ag/TiO2 nanocomposite. Simple synthesis route coupled with superior field emission properties indicate the possible use of Ag/TiO2 nanocomposite for micro/nanoelectronic devices. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.