Cerium hexaboride
chemical compound
Cerium hexaboride (CeB6, also called cerium boride, CeBix, CEBIX, and (incorrectly) CeB) is an inorganic chemical, a boride of cerium. It is a refractory ceramic material. It has a low work function, one of the highest electron emissivities known, and is stable in vacuum. The principal use of cerium hexaboride is a coating of hot cathodes. It usually operates at temperature of 1450 °C.
Applications
Lanthanum hexaboride (LaB6) and cerium hexaboride (CeB6) are used as coating of some high-current hot cathodes. Hexaborides show low work function, around 2.5 eV. They are also somewhat resistant to cathode poisoning. Cerium boride cathodes show lower evaporation rate at 1700 K than lanthanum boride, but it becomes equal at 1850 K and higher above that. Cerium boride cathodes have one and half the lifetime of lanthanum boride, due to its higher resistance to carbon contamination. Boride cathodes are about ten times as "bright" than the tungsten ones and have 10–15 times longer lifetime. In some laboratory tests, CeB6 has proven to be more resistant to the negative impact of carbon contamination than LaB6.
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The date and method of observation matter as much as the stated conclusion, especially where classification or consensus has changed. The source revision retrieved here is dated Oct 1, 2025. The linked authority identifier is Q3296907. None of the 0 selected statements returned an explicit reference. The first chronological checks are 1450, 1700 and 1850.
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