We reported on the fabrication and characterization of Spindt-type Mo field emission arrays coated with ZrC thin films (ZrC FEAs). ZrC thin films with a thickness of 5-10 nm were deposited by electron beam evaporation immediately after Mo tips were formed in situ. After loading the sample into a testing system, arrays were normally treated by heating and an aging process of emission-stimulated desorption to remove surface adsorbates. Comparisons between the emission data taken from Mo FEAs and ZrC FEAs with similar cell geometry were made. It was found that the turn-on voltage of ZrC FEAs was reduced by a 30% possibly due to the lower work function of ZrC films, while the emission fluctuation for ZrC FEAs was also reduced from 20% to 5% after an aging process for 800 min. (c) 2006 American Vacuum Society.