Published online by Cambridge University Press: 10 February 2011
Secondary electron emission spectroscopy is used to examine the emission characteristics of diamond films as a function of the bulk and surface properties. We find significant variation in the secondary electron yields measured from diamond surfaces even when energy distribution measurements indicate that a low or negative electron affinity is present. In particular, we observe that the material properties, such as bulk and surface uniformity, surface composition, and impurity and defect concentrations, have a strong affect on the secondary electron yield measurements. Furthermore, the energy distribution of the emitted electrons is found to vary with adsorbate species. In certain cases, the energy distribution changes with adsorbate coverage even though the measured electron intensity remains unchanged. From an analysis of the data, we identify bulk and surface properties needed to optimize the emission characteristics.