Development of ballistic electron cold cathode by a low-temperature processing of polycrystalline silicon films

A novel cold cathode is fabricated on a glass substrate by anodization and the subsequent electrochemical oxidation (ECO) treatment at practical low temperatures. Existence of Si nanocrystallites with a diameter of 5-10 nm are observed in anodized porous poly Si (PPS) films as in the case of PPS formed on a Si substrate at higher temperatures. A matrix-type cold cathode is fabricated on glass substrates. The obtained ballistic electron emission property is almost the same as that of PPS cold cathode fabricated on Si substrates we reported previously. It is also shown that postanodization ECO is very useful for this subject. (C) 2002 Published by Elsevier Science B.V.