Diamond Triode Devices with a Diamond Microtip Emitter

Switching and other critical power management functions are presently handled the same as regular electronics, that is, through manipulation of charge in a solid semiconductor to and fro through junctions. This incurs performance-limiting heat, capacitance, breakdown and significant expense. In fact, the limiting technology for practical power networking is solid state semiconductors, whether silicon or new "beyond silicon" (e.g., silicon carbide) material.

An approach that bypasses fifty-year old transistor technology manages electron flow in a vacuum. As shown in the figure below, electrons are emitted from a highly efficient diamond tip array, which can be turned on with almost no losses and turned off with unexcelled standoff. The program has thus far demonstrated diode and gate controlled behavior and is being developed for greater power density and deployable packaging. When applied, the diamond emission devices will not require the cooling and protection infrastructure presently necessary for KVA switching. The figure on the left shows electron emission from the diamond tips (cathode), past the gate and across the vacuum gap to the anode. The electron microscope images on the right are the diamond device showing first an array of the tips and then a close up of one tip and gate. The tip radius is 5 nanometers.