Field emission properties of carbon nanotubes grown on silicon nanowire arrays

Carbon nanotubes are synthesized oil the silicon nanowire arrays which are fabricated on silicon substrate by chemical vapor depositing SiCl4 and H-2 gases in the presence of An catalysts. The silicon nanowires are single-crystal with lengths up to 100 mum and diameters ranging from 50 to 500 run. The tangled carbon nanotubes; are grown directly from the surface of Si nanowires. The field emission properties of the carbon nanotubes are investigated at the gap of 200 pm. The low turn on and threshold fields are obtained. The stabilization of the emission currents is also presented. (C) 2004 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.