Thermionic emission is a surface phenomenon that occurs when a flow of electrons is emitted from a heat metal. Experimental techniques and theoretical analysis for the current density are discussed in this paper. We present an experiment that was performed to study this effect using a simple car lamp with two filaments. From theoretical point of view we deduce the expression for the thermionic current density (Richardson-Dushman equation) and the space charge limited current (the Child-Langmuir law). We also performed quantitative measurements of current density. From measurements of the thermal current between the filaments, the thermionic effect is evidenced.
thermionic effect; Richardson-Dushman equation; Child's law
