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Field-Emission Tails and Tunneling Lifetimes

Published

Author(s)

John William Gadzuk, A Lucas

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

Citation

, J. and Lucas, A. (1973), Field-Emission Tails and Tunneling Lifetimes, Physical Review B (Condensed Matter and Materials Physics) (Accessed October 10, 2025)

Issues

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Created June 1, 1973, Updated February 19, 2017
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