Size effect of nanometer vacuum gap thermionic power conversion device with CsI coated graphite electrodes

作者：Lee Jeong Ik; Jeong Yong Hoon^*; No Hee Cheon; Hannebauer Rob; Yoo Sang Keun

来源：Applied Physics Letters, 2009, 95(22): 223107.

DOI：10.1063/1.3266921

• caesium compounds
• electrodes
• graphite
• size effect
• thermionic conversion
• work function

Cesium iodide (CsI) coated graphite is a good candidate for an electrode material of a thermionic power generation device due to its low work function. In this letter, a thermionic device with a nanometer-scale vacuum gap between a CsI coated graphite emitter and a collector will be investigated while considering various gap-size effects. It is shown that a nanometer scale gap-size not only affects electron transport but also photon transport, and that all of these effects must be taken into account when estimating the device's performance.

• 出版日期2009-11-30