Fabrication of clean carbon nanotube field emitters

We have developed a method for fabricating a good carbon nanotube (CNT) field emitter using electrophoretic deposition and fissure formation techniques. A thin film of CNTs was deposited on a Ti substrate, by electrophoresis, from an aqueous mixture of CNT and detergent, dried naturally, and then pressed on the surface to make it smooth. By firing, it was changed to numerous microsized islands. As a result very clean CNT tips were generated from the fissures formed. The film showed good field emission properties. Our method affords a process of simple steps and does not need any postdeposition or activation process for field emission. (c) 2006 American Institute of Physics.