Topic and aim. The data on the latest achievements of authors on the development and investigation of field emitters for electron-beam microwave devices of millimeter and submillimeter wavelengths range are presented. Methods. The methods for creating and characteristics of new type cathodes, that are of great practical interest, are described: multi-tip silicon cathodes with two-layer metal-fullerene coatings and multilayer nano-structured cathodes, whose emission is determined by the fields at the contacts of materials with a different work function.