| Author(s): |
John William Gadzuk; A Lucas; |
| Title: |
Field-Emission Tails and Tunneling Lifetimes |
| Published: |
June 01, 1973 |
| Abstract: |
Recent observations of high- and low-energy tails in field-emission energy distributions can be interpreted in terms of quasi-stationary-state single-particle tunneling. This imposes a restriction on the observable range of energies in such studies. The tails result from the predicted breakdown of the transfer Hamiltonian theory of tunneling when fourth-order terms in the perturbation expansion of the tunneling matrix element become large. The tunneling lifetimes ~ 10-12 sec required to fit the experimental data are consistent with both the R C time constant discussed by Thornber, McGill, and Mead and also a simple intuitive picture. Alternate theories of tunneling lifetimes are critically evaluated. |
| Citation: |
Physical Review B (Condensed Matter and Materials Physics) |
| Volume: |
7 |
| Pages: |
pp. 4770 - 4775 |
| Research Areas: |
Surface Physics |
