Molecular dynamics simulations of field emission from a planar nanodiode and prolate spheroidal tip

Summary form only given. High resolution molecular dynamics simulations with full Coulomb effect are used to investigate field emission in planar nanodiodes and from a prolate-spheroidal tip. The effects of space charge and emitter radius in a planar nanodiode are examined and compared to previous results concerning transition from Fowler-Nordheim to Child-Langmuir current^1,2. Similarly, different geometries for the prolate-spheroidal tips are investigated to determine the influence of space-charge and Coulomb effects on emission current and beam quality from the tip. The Fowler-Nordheim law is used to determine the current density injected into the system and the Metropolis-Hastings algorithm to find a favourable point of emission on the emitter surface.