Abstract: New designs of electron devices such as scanning probes and field emitters based on tip structures are proposed. The tips are prepared from whiskers that are grown from the vapor phase by the vapor-liquid-solid technology. Some new designs for preparation of field-emitters and of probes for magnetic, electrostatic, morphological, etc, investigations based on the specific technology are proposed. New designs for preparation of multilever probes are proposed, too.

Abstract: An electron source is proposed where a field emitter is formed by a whisker grown epitaxially on a substrate. A ballast resistor and an active area are placed in the body and/or on the surface of the field matter. The ballast resister can be realized as a barrier in the shape of n?n+, p?p+, p?n semiconductor junctions or insulation layer that crosses the charge carrier flow. Components for controlling such electron sources are arranged vertically. This allows to decrease significantly the area taken by the components, and, in such a way, to increase the resolving power of devices and expand fields of their applications. In so doing, owing to whisker-grown field emitters it is possible to control the emission currents by low voltages at strong electric fields.

Abstract: AFM/STM probes are based on whiskers grown by the vapor-liquid-solid (VLS) mechanism. Silicon cantilevers oriented along the crystallographic plane (111) are prepared from silicon-on-insulator structures that contain a thin layer (111) on a (100) substrate with SiO2 interposed layer. At removal of solidified alloy globules inherent in the growth mechanism sharpening of the whiskers takes place and, in such a way, the probes are formed. Cross-sections of the wiskers grown by the mechanism on the cantilevers can be controllably changed during the growth process so that step-shaped whiskers optimal for fabrication of the probes can be prepared. Also, whiskers with expansions/contractions can be formed that are important for fabrication of probes suitable for investigations in coarse surfaces, complicated cavitites, grooves typical for semiconductor microelectronics, etc.