Field emission (FE) properties of double-walled carbon nanotubes (DWCNTs) treated by polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) elastomer with different heating temperature have been systematically studied. The current density of treated DWCNT films decreases with the increase of heating temperature. The screen-printed DWCNTs treated by PDMS elastomer with drying temperature 150 degrees C for 20 min have the best FE performance with a marvelous field enhancement factor (beta = 20194). The optimized FE performance is attributed to the morphological change of DWCNT films after PDMS elastomer treatment and the change of separation energy for the CNT-substrate interface. It is proved that the PDMS treatment is a facile and effective method for field emission display (FED) application, especially for low-temperature FED preparation. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.