Electron Emission from PLZT Ceramics Induced by Polarization Switching

Abstract

Electron emission from ferroelectrics has attracted much interest recently. However, a diverse array of results and explanations have appeared due to experimental technique and sample variation. Two different compositions in the PLZT system, which have similar dielectric constant but different hysteretic behavior, were chosen for our study under the same experimental conditions: ferroelectric 8/65/35 and nonferroelectric 15/65/35. Strong electron emission was observed from PLZT 8/65/35, however, the emission intensity degraded rapidly due to electrode destruction. Comparatively, no emission signal was detected from 15/65/35, which can be interpreted as evidence that electron emission from the 8/65/35 ceramics was not the so-called “metaldielectric” emission. Other results and SEM micrographs also suggest that the dominant source of electron emission is due to ferroelectric emission, and not due to plasma effects.

Department(s)

Materials Science and Engineering

Keywords and Phrases

Electron Emission; PLZT Ceramics; Polarization Switching

International Standard Serial Number (ISSN)

0015-0193

Document Type

Article - Journal

Document Version

Citation

File Type

text

Language(s)

English

Rights

© 1999 Taylor & Francis, All rights reserved.

Publication Date

01 Jan 1999

Link to Full Text

Share

 
COinS