Intensive emission processes in the high and ultrahigh electric fields

Abstract

This invited talk is devoted to the discovery of the explosive electron emission, the recognition of which already dates back 50 years. We outline the history of discovery, principal characteristics of the explosion emission, and various possible applications of this effect. We also describe the first experimental results on the excitation of a fundamentally new kind of the electric field-driven high current emission from carbon nanoclusters. The explosive emission effect allowed to design a novel class of the portable X-ray equipment. The most recent information about construction of such devices is also discussed.