Application of lanthanum hexaborate target 

Source: Alice target

Lanthanum borate, also known as lanthanum hexaborate or LaB6, is a compound of rare earth metal element La and non-metallic element B. its crystal structure is a simple cube, and B atoms surround lanthanum atoms to form an octahedral structure. Because of its crystal structure, the LaB6 ceramic film made of lanthanum borate sputtering target has good conductivity.

Lanthanum borate sputtering target has high melting point, high strength and high hardness. The free electrons in LaB6 structure also give it good conductivity and thermal conductivity like metal. LaB6 sputtering target has high chemical stability, only reacts with aqua regia and nitric acid at room temperature, and has low oxidation between 600 ℃ and 900 ℃.

Lanthanum borate for solar energy industry

 

As we all know, lanthanum borate is a kind of thermionic material with the ability to emit electrons. Since Lafferty's pioneering work in sintering hexaboride ceramics, it has been widely developed in the past 60 years. Lanthanum borate has been used to manufacture hot cathodes for various applications, including electron guns in cathode tubes, plasma production cathodes, and electron microscopes. Lanthanum borate sputtering targets have been used for coating electronic components.

 

Renewable energy, especially the development of solar energy, is a key topic in the future. At present, the main technologies of concentrated solar energy system are solar thermal power generation and concentrated photovoltaic power generation. However, recently, a new method has been proposed to generate electric energy directly from the concentrated sunlight by using hot electrons and thermoelectric effects.

 

 

For thermodynamic solar applications, knowledge of the optical properties of LaB6 is important. LaB6 is a thermionic material with endothermic properties. It can be used not only as a direct high-temperature solar absorber, but also as an electronic source, significantly reducing the system complexity of the future concentrating solar thermal electronic system, and bringing real innovation in this field.

 

Other applications of lanthanum borate

 

Hot electron emission (cathode), plasma source of plasma enhanced coating (PECVD), vacuum electron beam welding machine, electron beam surface modification device, electron beam lithography device, transmission electron microscope, scanning electron microscope, surface analysis device, radiotherapy equipment.