Quantum confinement effect and field emission characteristics of ultrathin 3C–SiC nanobelts

Abstract: We report on the quantum confinement effect and field-emitting characteristics of ultrathin 3C–SiC nanobelts synthesized by a simple and low-cost microwave method. Morphological analysis indicates that the nanobelts are tens of micrometers in length, tens of nanometers in width and only several nanometers in thickness. Under 325nm excitation, a broad emission peaked at 391nm has been observed in the spectrum of the nanobelts, which reveals an obvious blueshift of bandgap. Field-emission measurements show that the nanobelts are promising field-emitting materials with a low turn-on field of ∼3.2V/μm. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]