Optoelectronic Characteristics and Field Emission Properties of Indium-Doped Tin Oxide Nanowire Arrays

Optoelectronic characteristics of individual indium-doped tin oxide (In--SnO₂) nanowires are investigated by performing transport measurement with UV illumination on/off circles. The current rapidly increases from 0.15 to 55nA
under UV illumination, which is ascribed to the increase of carrier concentration and the decrease of surface depletion. Efficient and stable field emission is obtained from In--SnO₂ nanowire arrays. The current density is up to 17mA/cm² at 3.4V/μm, and the fluctuations are less than 1%. The emission behaviour is perfectly in agreement with the Fowler--Nordheim theory. Our results imply that In--SnO₂ nanowires are promising candidates for UV
detectors and field emission displays.