Field and Temperature Dependence of Electron Injection Velocity Distributions and Their Effects on Space-Charge in Nanoscale Vacuum Devices
Year: 2026
Type: conference-paper
Abstract: The average kinetic energy and injection velocity of electrons emitted from metallic cathodes are obtained as a function of temperature and external electrostatic field using a recently developed algorithm that evaluates the injection velocity at a de Broglie wavelength beyond the classical turning point of the potential energy barrier. This approach yields a unified treatment across all emission regimes (thermal, thermal-field, and pure field emission), for both planar and non-planar cathode geometries. These physically accurate injection velocity distributions are then incorporated into a semiclassical framework that self-consistently solves Poisson's equation to determine the space charge limited current. Substantial quantitative differences are found in the computed emission characteristics and Miram curves when using realistic initial velocity distributions compared to those obtained under the conventional fixed average velocity assumption, demonstrating the importance of a physically accurate treatment of electron injection in space charge limited emission systems.
Language: English
Subfield: Atomic and Molecular Physics, and Optics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
OpenAlex ID: W7204186658