JP2001332194A - Electron beam generator and image forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a electron beam generator for forming a good display image while preventing discharge at image display resulting from the outside of an image region, and an image forming device. SOLUTION: The electron beam generator comprises a rear plate 1015 having a cold cathode element 1012 for emitting electrons and a face plate 1019 having a fluorescent film 1018 on which the electrons are irradiated, opposed thereto to form a vacuum container. It also has a spacer 1020 for keeping a space between the rear plate 1015 and the face plate 1019 and a spacer fixing member 14 for supporting the spacer 1020 in a vacuum container and outside the image region, the spacer fixing member 14 being electrically connected to both the rear plate 1015 and the face plate 1019.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an electron beam generating apparatus and an image forming apparatus such as a display apparatus to which the apparatus is applied.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, two types of electron emitting devices, a hot cathode device and a cold cathode device, are known. Among these, among the cold cathode devices, for example, a surface conduction type emission device, a field emission type device (hereinafter referred to as FE type), a metal / insulating layer / metal type emission device (hereinafter referred to as MIM type), and the like are known. I have.

As a surface conduction type emission device, for example,
M. I. Elinson, RadioEng. Elec
Tron Phys. , 10, 1290, (1965)
Also, other examples described later are known.

The surface conduction electron-emitting device utilizes a phenomenon in which an electron is emitted when a current flows in a small-area thin film formed on a substrate in parallel with the film surface. As this surface conduction type emission element, Sn described by Elinson et al.
In addition to those using the O ₂ thin film, those using the Au thin film [G. Dittmer: “Thin Solid Fi
lms ", 9,317 (1972)] and In ₂ O ₃ / S
nO ₂ thin film [M. Hartwell and
C. G. FIG. Fonstad: "IEEE Trans.
ED Conf. , 519 (1975)] and those using carbon thin films [Hisashi Araki et al .: Vacuum, Vol. 26, No. 1
No. 22 (1983)].

[0005] As a typical example of the element structure of these surface conduction electron-emitting devices, FIG. Hartwel
1 shows a plan view of an element according to the present invention. FIG. 19 is a schematic plan view showing an example of a conventionally known surface conduction electron-emitting device.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 3001 denotes a substrate;
Reference numeral 4 denotes a conductive thin film made of a metal oxide formed by sputtering. The conductive thin film 3004 is formed in an H-shaped planar shape as shown. This conductive thin film 3004
Then, an electron emission portion 3005 is formed by applying an energization process called energization forming described later.

The interval L in the figure is set to 0.5 to 1 [mm], and the width W is set to 0.1 [mm]. In addition, for convenience of illustration, the electron emitting portion 3005 is shown in a rectangular shape at the center of the conductive thin film 3004, but this is a schematic one, and the position and shape of the actual electron emitting portion are faithfully represented. Not necessarily.

M. In the above-described surface conduction electron-emitting device including the device by Hartwell et al., The electron-emitting portion 3005
It was common to form

That is, the energization forming means that a constant DC voltage or, for example, 1
A DC voltage that is boosted at a very slow rate of about V / min is applied and energized to locally destroy, deform, or alter the conductive thin film 3004, and the electron emitting portion 3005 in an electrically high resistance state Is to form

[0010] A crack is generated in a part of the conductive thin film 3004 which is locally broken, deformed or altered.
When an appropriate voltage is applied to the conductive thin film 3004 after the energization forming, electrons are emitted in the vicinity of the crack.

As an example of the FE type, see, for example, P. D
yke & W. W. Dolan, "Field emis
zone ", Advance in Electron
Physics, 8, 89 (1956), or
C. A. Spindt, “Physical prop
artists of thin-film field
emission cathodes with mo
lybdenum cones ", J. Appl. Ph.
ys. , 47, 5248 (1976).

As a typical example of this FE type device configuration, FIG. A. 1 shows a cross-sectional view of a device by Spindt et al. FIG. 20 is a schematic plan view showing an example of a conventionally known FE element. In FIG.
Reference numeral 10 denotes a substrate; 3011, an emitter wiring made of a conductive material; 3012, an emitter cone; 3013, an insulating layer;
014 is a gate electrode.

In the present device, an appropriate voltage is applied between the emitter cone 3012 and the gate electrode 3014 to cause field emission from the tip of the emitter cone 3012.

As another element structure of the FE type, FIG.
There is also an example in which an emitter and a gate electrode are arranged on a substrate almost in parallel with the plane of the substrate, instead of a laminated structure like 0.

As an example of the MIM type, for example,
C. A. Mead, “Operation of tu
nnel-emission Devices, "J.
Appl. Phys. , 32, 646 (1961).

FIG. 21 shows a typical example of an MIM type device configuration.
Shown in FIG. 21 is a schematic plan view showing an example of a conventionally known MIM element. The figure is a sectional view, in which 3020 is a substrate, 3021 is a lower electrode made of metal, 3022 is a thin insulating layer having a thickness of about 100 °,
Reference numeral 23 denotes an upper electrode made of a metal having a thickness of about 80 to 300 °.

In the MIM type, by applying an appropriate voltage between the upper electrode 3023 and the lower electrode 3021,
Electrons are emitted from the surface of the upper electrode 3023.

The above-described cold cathode device can obtain electrons at a lower temperature than the hot cathode device, and therefore does not require a heater for heating. Therefore, the structure is simpler than that of the hot cathode element, and a fine element can be produced. Further, even when a large number of elements are arranged on a substrate at a high density, problems such as thermal melting of the substrate hardly occur. Also, unlike the response speed is slow because the hot cathode element operates by heating the heater,
In the case of a cold cathode device, there is also an advantage that the response speed is high.

For this reason, research for applying the cold cathode device has been actively conducted. For example, the surface conduction electron-emitting device has the advantage that a large number of devices can be formed over a large area because the structure is particularly simple and the production is easy among the cold cathode devices.

For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.
As disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 4-31332, a method for arranging and driving a large number of elements has been studied.

With respect to the application of the surface conduction electron-emitting device, for example, an image forming apparatus such as an image display device and an image recording device, and a charged beam source have been studied.

Particularly, as an application to an image display apparatus, for example, US Pat. No. 5,066,883, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2-257551, and Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 4-28137 by the present applicant.
As disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. H11-107, an image display device using a combination of a surface conduction electron-emitting device and a phosphor that emits light by collision with electrons has been studied. An image display device using a combination of a surface conduction electron-emitting device and a phosphor is expected to have better characteristics than other conventional image display devices.

For example, compared to a liquid crystal display device that has become widespread in recent years, it can be said that it is excellent in that it is a self-luminous type and does not require a backlight and has a wide viewing angle.

A method of driving a large number of FE types is disclosed in US Pat. No. 4,904,8, filed by the present applicant.
No. 95. Further, as an example in which the FE type is applied to an image display device, for example, R.F. A flat panel display reported by Mayer et al. Is known. [R. M
eyer: “Recent Development
n Microtips Display at LE
TI ", Tech. Digest of 4th In
t. Vacuum Microelectronic
s Conf. , Nagahama, pp .; 6-9 (1
991)]

An example in which a number of MIM types are arranged and applied to an image display device is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.
No. 5,557,838.

Among the image forming apparatuses using the above-described electron-emitting devices, a flat display device having a small depth has been attracting attention as a replacement for a cathode-ray tube display device because of its space saving and light weight. .

There has been proposed a flat display panel section in which an electron source substrate having such electron-emitting devices arranged in a matrix is accommodated in an airtight container, and the inside of the airtight container is 1.333222 × 10 ^−. It is kept at a vacuum of about ⁴ [Pa].

[0028]

However, in the case of the above-described prior art, the following problems have occurred. However, the display panel described above has the following problems.

FIG. 22 is a schematic view of the above-mentioned display panel viewed from the horizontal direction of the image display surface, and is a schematic view of a getter portion according to the prior art.

As described above, the inside of the airtight container is 1.
Since it is necessary to maintain a vacuum of about 33322 × 10 ⁻⁴ [Pa], a means for maintaining a degree of vacuum is required.
Conventionally, as shown in FIG. 22, a Ba evaporation type getter member 70 is disposed outside an image area together with a getter support 71, and after the vacuum container is sealed, Ba is scattered by high frequency heating or the like to form a getter film. By doing so, the degree of vacuum was maintained.

In the drawing, 1 is a rear plate also serving as an electron source substrate, 2 is an electron source area, 10 is a support frame, 20 is a face plate, 3 is an image formed of a fluorescent film and a metal film (for example, Al) called a metal back. It is a forming member.

On the other hand, in order to accelerate the electrons emitted from the electron source, a high voltage (Va) of several hundred V to several KV or more is applied between the electron source region 2 and the image forming member 3. .

The luminance of the image forming apparatus largely depends on the Va voltage, and it is necessary to increase the Va voltage for the purpose of further increasing the luminance.

However, as the Va becomes higher, the above-mentioned getter member 70 and getter supporting member 71 outside the image area are used.
And the electric field around the edge of the getter member 70 and the getter support 71, or the interface between the getter support 71 and the rear plate 1 where the electric field tends to be concentrated has become a problem. .

For the purpose of supporting the atmospheric pressure, a structural support (spacer 13) made of a relatively thin glass plate as shown in FIG. 23 is attached to a spacer fixing member 1 provided outside the image area.
4 together with the rear plate 1 and the face plate 20 described above. FIG. 23 is a schematic view of a conventional spacer supporting portion.

Since the surface of the spacer is exposed to a high electric field, there has conventionally been a problem of discharge along the surface.

In order to solve this problem, it has been proposed to remove the charge by making a small current flow through the spacer (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Nos. 57-118355 and 6-78).
1-124031).

In this case, a high-resistance thin film is formed on the surface of the insulating spacer so that a very small current flows on the surface of the spacer, thereby reducing the charge on the surface and improving the surface breakdown voltage.

However, even if this method was extended to the spacer fixing member, the discharge at the spacer fixing member did not completely disappear.

This is because the electric field concentration is disturbed due to the complexity of the shape of the spacer fixing member, the shape effect (edge, projection), the connection between the spacer and the spacer fixing member, etc., for the plate-like spacer. Is probably the cause.

The above-described discharge occurs suddenly during image display, disturbing the image, and significantly deteriorating the electron source in the vicinity of the discharge location, resulting in a problem that the subsequent display cannot be performed normally. .

The present invention overcomes the above problems,
An object of the present invention is to provide an electron beam generator and an image forming apparatus for preventing a discharge caused outside the image area at the time of image display and obtaining a good display image.

[0043]

In order to achieve the above object, an electron beam generator according to the present invention comprises a first substrate having an electron-emitting device for emitting electrons, and a target irradiated with the electrons. In an electron beam generator that constitutes a vacuum vessel by facing a second substrate having, a spacer for maintaining an interval between the first substrate and the second substrate, and the spacer in the vacuum vessel and A spacer support for supporting outside the image area, wherein the spacer support is
It is electrically connected to both the first substrate and the second substrate.

A conductor for making electrical connection is formed between the spacer support and the first and second substrates.

The conductor has a specific resistance lower by one digit or more than that of the spacer supporting portion, the first substrate and the second substrate having the lowest specific resistance.

The spacer support is fixed to at least one of the first substrate and the second substrate by a conductive adhesive.

Further, an electrode is formed on at least one of the contact surfaces of the spacer support and the first substrate or the second substrate.

The spacer support has a high resistance film on its surface.

Further, the sheet resistance range of the high resistance film is 1
× 10 ⁷ to 1 × 10 ¹⁴ Ω / □ and a specific resistance higher by one digit or more than that of the conductor.

The spacer is made of an insulating material having a thermal expansion coefficient substantially equal to that of the first substrate or the second substrate.

The spacer has a high resistance film on its surface.

Further, the sheet resistance range of the high resistance film is 1
× 10 ⁷ to 1 × 10 ¹⁴ Ω / □.

The high-resistance film is made of a nitride, oxide, carbide or boride containing at least one kind of metal element, carbon, silicon or germanium.

The high resistance film is connected to at least one of the first substrate and the second substrate via a low resistance film.

The low-resistance film has a surface resistance lower by at least one digit than the high-resistance film.

Further, in the electron beam generating apparatus, wherein the first substrate having the electron-emitting device for emitting electrons and the second substrate having the target irradiated with the electrons are opposed to each other to constitute a vacuum vessel, A getter for maintaining the degree of vacuum of the vacuum container, and a getter support for assembling the getter inside the vacuum container and outside the image area, wherein the getter support is the first substrate and the second substrate And both are electrically connected.

Further, a conductor for making electrical connection is formed between the getter support and the first and second substrates.

Further, the electric conductor has a specific resistance lower by one digit or more than that of the getter support, the first substrate and the second substrate having the lowest specific resistance.

The getter support is fixed to at least one of the first substrate and the second substrate by a conductive adhesive.

Further, the first substrate or the second substrate,
An electrode is formed on at least one of the contact surfaces with the getter support.

The getter support has a high-resistance film on its surface.

The sheet resistance range of the high resistance film is as follows:
It is 1 × 10 ⁷ to 1 × 10 ¹⁴ Ω / □.

The electron-emitting device is a cold cathode device.

The electron-emitting device is an electron-emitting device having a conductive film including an electron-emitting portion between electrodes.

The electron-emitting device is a surface conduction electron-emitting device.

Further, in the image forming apparatus according to the present invention, an input signal is applied to the electron beam generator, and the target is irradiated with the electrons emitted from the electron-emitting device in accordance with the input signal to form an image. Form.

The target is made of a phosphor.

The applied voltage between the electrode on the first substrate side and the electrode on the second substrate side is 3 kV or more.

As described above, according to the present invention, the spacer support for supporting the spacer provided between the first substrate and the second substrate is provided on both the first substrate and the second substrate. Since it is electrically connected to the power supply, it is possible to reduce electrolytic concentration and improve image quality.

[0070]

Preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, the dimensions of the components described in this embodiment,
The materials, shapes, relative arrangements, and the like are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention only to them unless otherwise specified.

In the following drawings, the same reference numerals are given to members described in the drawings used in the description of the prior art and members similar to the members described in the above-described drawings.

(Embodiment of Electron Beam Generating Apparatus) The configuration and manufacturing method of a display panel of an image display device to which an embodiment of the electron beam generating apparatus according to the present invention is applied will be described with reference to specific examples.

First, the configuration of the entire panel will be described.
The features of the present invention will be described in detail in each embodiment.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a display panel using one embodiment of the electron beam generator according to the present invention, and a part of the panel is cut away to show the internal structure. This display panel is also applied to an embodiment of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention.

In the figure, reference numeral 1015 denotes a rear plate as a first substrate which is a component of the present invention, 1016 denotes side walls,
Reference numeral 17 denotes a face plate as a second substrate which is a component of the present invention, and an airtight container for maintaining the inside of the display panel at a vacuum is formed by 1015 to 1017. When assembling the airtight container, it is necessary to seal the joint of each member to maintain sufficient strength and airtightness, for example, apply frit glass to the joint,
Sealing was achieved by baking in air or a nitrogen atmosphere at 400 to 500 degrees Celsius for 10 minutes or more. A method of evacuating the inside of the airtight container to a vacuum will be described later.

The inside of the airtight container is 1.3332.
Since a vacuum of about 2 × 10 ⁻⁴ [Pa] is maintained, a spacer 1020 is provided as an atmospheric pressure-resistant structure for the purpose of preventing the hermetic container from being broken due to atmospheric pressure or unexpected impact. The spacer 1020 has both ends extending to an outer region where the electron source is located, and is fixed at a predetermined position in the support frame 1016 by a spacer fixing member 14 serving as a spacer support part which is a component of the present invention. Then, the spacer fixing member 14 is fixed to the RP or FP by an adhesive (details will be described later).

Next, an electron-emitting device substrate that can be used in the present image forming apparatus will be described.

The electron source substrate used in the image forming apparatus of the present invention is formed by arranging a plurality of cold cathode devices on the substrate.

In the method of arranging the cold cathode devices, the cold cathode devices are arranged in parallel, and both ends of each device are connected by wiring in a ladder-type arrangement (hereinafter referred to as a ladder-type arrangement electron source substrate).
Alternatively, a simple matrix arrangement in which the X-direction wiring and the Y-direction wiring of a pair of device electrodes of the cold cathode device are connected (hereinafter, referred to as a simple matrix arrangement)
Matrix-type electron source substrate).
Note that an image forming apparatus having a ladder-type arranged electron source substrate requires a control electrode (grid electrode) which is an electrode for controlling the flight of electrons from the electron-emitting devices.

The rear plate 1015 has a substrate 1011
Is fixed, but the cold cathode element 1012 is provided on the substrate.
Are formed N × M. (N and M are positive integers of 2 or more and are appropriately set according to the target number of display pixels. For example, in a display device for displaying high-definition television, N = 3000, M It is desirable to set the number to be equal to or greater than 1000.) The N × M cold cathode elements are arranged in a simple matrix by M row-directional wirings 1013 and N column-directional wirings 1014. The portion constituted by 1011 to 1014 is called a multi-electron beam source.

The material, shape, and manufacturing method of the cold cathode device are not limited as long as the cold cathode device is a simple matrix wiring or a ladder-shaped electron source for the multi-electron beam source used in the image display device of the present invention.

Therefore, for example, a cold cathode device such as a surface conduction type emission device, an FE type, or an MIM type can be used.

Next, the structure of a multi-electron beam source in which a surface conduction electron-emitting device (described later) as a cold cathode device is arranged on a substrate and wired in a simple matrix will be described. FIG. 2 is a plan view of the multi-electron beam source used for the display panel of FIG.

On the substrate 1011, surface conduction type emission elements similar to those shown in FIG. 6 described later are arranged, and these elements are wired in a simple matrix by row-direction wiring 1013 and column-direction wiring 1014. . Row direction wiring 1013
An insulating layer (not shown) is formed between the electrodes at the intersection of the column wiring 1014 and the column wiring 1014 to maintain electrical insulation.

FIG. 3 shows a cross section taken along the line BB ′ of FIG. Note that the multi-electron source having such a structure is provided with a row-direction wiring 1013, a column-direction wiring 1014,
After forming an inter-electrode insulating layer (not shown), device electrodes of a surface conduction electron-emitting device, and a conductive thin film, a row-direction wiring 101 is formed.
The device was manufactured by supplying current to each element via the third and column direction wirings 1014 and performing an energization forming process (described later) and an energization activation process (described later).

In the present embodiment, the substrate 1011 of the multi-electron beam source is fixed to the rear plate 1015 of the airtight container.
When 11 has a sufficient strength, the substrate 10 of the multi-electron beam source is used as a rear plate of the hermetic container.
11 itself may be used.

Further, on the lower surface of the face plate 1017, the fluorescent film 1 as a target which is a constituent element of the present invention is provided.
018 are formed. Since this embodiment is a color display device, phosphors of three primary colors of red, green, and blue used in the field of CRT are separately applied to a portion of the fluorescent film 1018. As shown in FIG. 4, a black conductor 1010 is provided between the phosphors of each color. FIG. 4 is a plan view illustrating a phosphor array of a face plate of the display panel shown in FIG.

The purpose of providing the black conductor 1010 is to prevent the display color from being shifted even if the electron beam irradiation position is slightly shifted, and to prevent the reflection of external light to improve the display contrast. This is to prevent the phosphor film from being lowered and to prevent the fluorescent film from being charged up by the electron beam.

Although graphite is used as the main component for the black conductor 1010, any other material may be used as long as it is suitable for the above purpose.

A metal back 1019 known in the CRT field is provided on the surface of the fluorescent film 1018 on the rear plate side.
Is provided. The purpose of providing the metal back 1019 is
A part of the light emitted from the fluorescent film 1018 is specularly reflected to improve the light utilization rate, and the fluorescent film 101
8 to protect it, to act as an electrode for applying an electron beam acceleration voltage, and to act as a conductive path for excited electrons of the fluorescent film 1018. After forming the fluorescent film 1018 on the face plate 1017, the metal back 1019 smoothes the fluorescent film surface,
Al was formed thereon by vacuum evaporation.

FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the line AA ′ of FIG. 1, and the numbers of the respective parts correspond to those of FIG. Spacer 102
Numeral 0 indicates that a high-resistance film 111 for preventing electrification is formed on the surface of the insulating member 100 and a face plate 1017 is formed.
Inside (metal back 1019 etc.) and the surface of substrate 1011 (row direction wiring 1013 or column direction wiring 1014)
A member having a low-resistance film 121 as a conductor, which is a constituent element of the present invention, formed on the contact surface and the side surface portion of the spacer facing the substrate, the number necessary to achieve the above object, and The spacers are arranged at necessary intervals and fixed to the inside of the face plate and the surface of the substrate 1011 by a spacer fixing member (not shown).

The high-resistance film 111 is formed on the insulating member 10.
0, the film is formed on at least the surface of the airtight container that is exposed to the vacuum, and through the low resistance film 121 on the spacer 1020, the inside of the face plate 1017 (such as the metal back 1019) and the like. It is electrically connected to the surface (row direction wiring 1013 or column direction wiring 1014) of the substrate 1011.

In the embodiment described here, the spacer 1020 has a thin plate shape, is arranged parallel to the row wiring 1013, and is electrically connected to the row wiring 1013.

As the spacer 1020, the substrate 1011
Has insulating properties enough to withstand high voltage applied between the upper row direction wiring 1013 and column direction wiring 1014 and the metal back 1019 on the inner surface of the face plate 1017;
In addition, it is necessary to have conductivity enough to prevent the surface of the spacer 1020 from being charged.

Examples of the insulating member 100 of the spacer 1020 include quartz glass, glass with a reduced impurity content such as Na, soda lime glass, and ceramic members such as alumina. Note that the insulating member 100 preferably has a coefficient of thermal expansion close to that of the member forming the airtight container and the substrate 1011.

High resistance film 11 constituting spacer 1020
1, a current is obtained by dividing the acceleration voltage Va applied to the face plate 1017 (such as the metal back 1019) on the high potential side by the resistance value Rs of the high resistance film 111 serving as the antistatic film. Therefore, the resistance value Rs of the spacer is set in a desirable range from the viewpoint of antistatic and power consumption. The surface resistance R / □ is preferably 10 14 Ω or less from the viewpoint of antistatic.

In order to obtain a sufficient antistatic effect, the resistance is more preferably 10 11 Ω or less. The lower limit of the surface resistance depends on the spacer shape and the voltage applied between the spacers, but is preferably 10 7 Ω or more.

The thickness t of the antistatic film formed on the insulating material is preferably in the range of 10 nm to 1 μm. Although it depends on the surface energy of the material, the adhesion to the substrate, and the substrate temperature, a thin film of 10 nm or less is generally formed in the shape of an island, and has an unstable resistance and poor reproducibility.

As described above, the temperature of the spacer rises when a current flows through the antistatic film formed thereon or when the entire display generates heat during operation.

If the resistance temperature coefficient of the antistatic film is a large negative value, the resistance value decreases when the temperature rises, the current flowing through the spacer increases, and the temperature further rises. And the current continues to increase until the power supply limit is exceeded. The value of the temperature coefficient of resistance at which such a runaway of current occurs is empirically a negative value and the absolute value is 1% or more. That is, the resistance temperature coefficient of the antistatic film is desirably -1% or more.

As a material of the high resistance film 111 having the antistatic property, for example, a metal oxide can be used.
Among metal oxides, oxides of chromium, nickel, and copper are preferred materials. It is considered that the reason is that these oxides have a relatively low secondary electron emission efficiency and are hardly charged even when electrons emitted from the cold cathode element 1012 hit the spacer 1020.

In addition to metal oxides, carbon is a preferable material having a low secondary electron emission efficiency. In particular, since amorphous carbon has high resistance, it is easy to control the spacer resistance to a desired value.

As another material of the high resistance film 111 having an antistatic property, the nitride of aluminum and a transition metal alloy can adjust the composition of the transition metal to provide a wide range of resistance from a good conductor to an insulator. It is a suitable material because it can be controlled.

Further, it is a stable material with little change in resistance value in a display device manufacturing process described later. In addition, the material has a temperature coefficient of resistance of -1% or more, and is practically easy to use. Transition metal elements include Ti, Cr, and Ta.
And the like.

The alloy nitride film is formed on the insulating member by thin film forming means such as sputtering, reactive sputtering in a nitrogen gas atmosphere, electron beam evaporation, ion plating, and ion assisted evaporation. The metal oxide film can be formed by the same thin film formation method, but in this case, oxygen gas is used instead of nitrogen gas. In addition, a metal oxide film can be formed by a CVD method or an alkoxide coating method.

The carbon film is formed by vapor deposition, sputtering, CVD
In the case where amorphous carbon is formed, in particular, when forming amorphous carbon, hydrogen is contained in the atmosphere during the film formation, or a hydrocarbon gas is used as the film formation gas.

As other materials for the high resistance film 111,
Nitride, oxide, with carbon, silicon, germanium
Carbides, borides and the like can also be used.

Low resistance film 12 constituting spacer 1020
Reference numeral 1 also functions as an electrode which is a constituent element of the present invention, and electrically connects the high resistance film 111 to the high potential side face plate 1017 (metal back 1019 etc.) and the low potential side substrate 1011 (wirings 1013, 1014 etc.). It is provided for connection, and hereinafter, the name of an intermediate electrode layer (intermediate layer) is also used. The intermediate electrode layer (intermediate layer) can have a plurality of functions listed below.

The high-resistance film 111 is formed on the face plate 1
017 and the substrate 1011.

As described above, the high resistance film 111 is provided for the purpose of preventing charging on the surface of the spacer 1020.
017 (metal back 1019 etc.) and substrate 1011
(Wirings 1013, 1014, etc.) directly or abutting material 10
When the connection is made via the connection 41, a large contact resistance is generated at the interface of the connection portion, and there is a possibility that the charge generated on the spacer surface cannot be quickly removed.

In order to avoid this, the face plate 10
17, a low-resistance intermediate layer is provided on the contact surface 3 or the side surface portion 5 of the spacer 1020 that comes into contact with the substrate 1011 and the contact material 1041.

The potential distribution of the high resistance film 111 is made uniform. Electrons emitted from the cold cathode element 1012 form electron orbits according to a potential distribution formed between the face plate 1017 and the substrate 1011. In order to prevent the electron orbit from being disturbed near the spacer 1020, it is necessary to control the potential distribution of the high resistance film 111 over the entire region. The high-resistance film 111 is coated with a face plate 1017 (metal back 1019 or the like) and a substrate 1011 (wiring 101).
3, 1014) directly or via the contact material 1041, uneven connection occurs due to contact resistance at the interface of the connection portion, and the potential distribution of the high resistance film 111 deviates from a desired value. May be lost.

In order to avoid this, a low-resistance intermediate layer is provided over the entire length of the spacer end (contact surface 3 or side surface 5) where the spacer 1020 contacts the face plate 1017 and the substrate 1011. By applying a desired potential to the substrate, the potential of the entire high resistance film 111 can be controlled.

The trajectory of the emitted electrons is controlled. The electrons emitted from the cold cathode device 1012 are
An electron orbit is formed according to a potential distribution formed between the substrate 017 and the substrate 1011. Regarding the electrons emitted from the cold cathode devices near the spacers, there may be restrictions (such as changes in wiring and device positions) associated with the installation of the spacers.
In such a case, in order to form an image without distortion or unevenness, it is necessary to control the trajectory of the emitted electrons to irradiate a desired position on the face plate 1017 with the electrons.
By providing a low-resistance intermediate layer on the side surface portion 5 of the surface in contact with the face plate 1017 and the substrate 1011, the potential distribution near the spacer 1020 can have desired characteristics,
The trajectory of the emitted electrons can be controlled.

For the low resistance film 121, a material having a sufficiently low surface resistance (at least one digit or more) as compared with the high resistance film 111 may be selected, and Ni, Cr, Au, Mo, W,
A metal or alloy such as Pt, Ti, Al, Cu, Pd, and a printed conductor composed of a metal such as Pd, Ag, Au, RuO2, Pd-Ag, a metal oxide, and glass;
Alternatively, it is appropriately selected from a transparent conductor such as In ₂ O ₃ —SnO ₂ and a semiconductor material such as polysilicon.

Further, Dx1 to Dxm and Dy1 to Dy
n and Hv are electric connection terminals having an airtight structure provided for electrically connecting the display panel and an electric circuit (not shown).

Dx1 to Dxm are electrically connected to the row wiring 1013 of the multi-electron beam source, Dy1 to Dyn are electrically connected to the column wiring 1014 of the multi-electron beam source, and Hv is electrically connected to the metal back 1019 of the face plate.

In order to evacuate the inside of the airtight container, after the airtight container is assembled, an exhaust pipe (not shown) and a vacuum pump are connected, and the inside of the airtight container is 1.333222 × 10 ^−5.
Evacuation is performed to a degree of vacuum of about [Pa]. Thereafter, the exhaust pipe is sealed, but in order to maintain the degree of vacuum in the hermetic container, a getter film (a getter as a constituent element of the present invention) is provided at a predetermined position in the hermetic container immediately before or after sealing. (Not shown).

The getter film is, for example, a film formed by heating and depositing a getter material containing Ba as a main component by means of a heater or high-frequency heating, and the inside of the airtight container is 1.333222 × 10 3 by the adsorbing action of the getter film. ^-3 [P
a] or 1.33322 × 10 ⁻⁵ [Pa].

In the image display apparatus using the display panel described above, when a voltage is applied to each cold cathode element 1012 through the external terminals Dx1 to Dxm and Dy1 to Dyn, electrons are emitted from each cold cathode element 1012. At the same time, a high voltage exceeding 3 [kV] is applied to the metal back 1019 through the external terminal Hv to accelerate the emitted electrons to collide with the inner surface of the face plate 1017. As a result, the phosphor of each color forming the fluorescent film 1018 is excited and emits light, and an image is displayed. 1012 to the surface conduction emission device of the present invention, which is usually a cold cathode device.
The applied voltage to the metal back 1 is about 12 to 16 [V].
019 and the cold cathode element 1012 have a distance d of 0.1 [m
m] to about 8 [mm], and the voltage between the metal back 1019 and the cold cathode element 1012 is 3 [kV] to 10 [kV].
It is about.

The basic configuration and manufacturing method of the display panel according to the embodiment of the present invention and the outline of the image display device have been described above.

Next, a method of manufacturing the multi-electron beam source used for the display panel of the above embodiment will be described. The material, shape, and manufacturing method of the cold cathode device are not limited as long as the multi-electron beam source used for the image display device of the present invention is an electron source in which cold cathode devices are arranged in a simple matrix. Therefore, for example, a cold cathode device such as a surface conduction type emission device, an FE type, or an MIM type can be used.

However, in a situation where a display device having a large display screen and an inexpensive display device is required, among these cold cathode devices, a surface conduction type emission device is particularly preferable.

Since the surface conduction electron-emitting device has a relatively simple manufacturing method, it is easy to increase the area and reduce the manufacturing cost. In addition, the present inventors, among the surface conduction type emission element,
It has been found that an electron-emitting portion or its peripheral portion formed from a fine particle film has particularly excellent electron-emitting characteristics and can be easily manufactured.

Therefore, it can be said that it is most suitable for use in a multi-electron beam source of a high-luminance, large-screen image display device. Therefore, in the display panel of the above embodiment, a surface conduction electron-emitting device in which the electron-emitting portion or its peripheral portion is formed of a fine particle film is used. Therefore, the basic configuration, manufacturing method and characteristics of a suitable surface conduction electron-emitting device will be described first, and then the structure of a multi-electron beam source in which many devices are arranged in a simple matrix will be described.

(Suitable Device Configuration and Manufacturing Method of Surface Conduction Emission Device) A typical configuration of a surface conduction electron-emitting device in which an electron-emitting portion or its peripheral portion is formed from a fine particle film is a flat type or a vertical type. Kinds are given. Here, only the planar type used for the fabrication will be actually described.

(Flat-Type Surface-Conduction-Type Emission Device) The device configuration and manufacturing method of a flat-type surface-conduction-type emission device will be described. FIG. 6 is a plan view (a) and a cross-sectional view (b) for describing the configuration of a planar surface conduction electron-emitting device. In the figure, 1101 is a substrate, 1102 and 1103 are device electrodes, 1104 is a conductive thin film, 1105 is an electron-emitting portion formed by energization forming, and 1113 is a thin film formed by energization activation.

As the substrate 1101, for example, various glass substrates such as quartz glass and blue plate glass, various ceramics substrates such as alumina, or an insulating layer made of, for example, SiO ₂ on the various substrates described above. A laminated substrate or the like can be used.

The element electrodes 1102 and 1103 provided on the substrate 1101 so as to be opposed to the substrate surface in parallel are formed of a conductive material. For example, N
i, Cr, Au, Mo, W, Pt, Ti, Cu, Pd,
A material such as Ag or the like, an alloy of these metals, a metal oxide such as In ₂ O ₃ —SnO ₂ , or a semiconductor such as polysilicon may be appropriately selected and used. .

The electrodes can be easily formed by using a combination of a film forming technique such as vacuum deposition and a patterning technique such as photolithography and etching. However, other methods (for example, printing techniques) can be used. It can be formed even if it is formed.

The shapes of the device electrodes 1102 and 1103 are appropriately designed according to the application purpose of the electron-emitting device.
Generally, the electrode interval L is usually designed by selecting an appropriate numerical value from the range of several hundreds of squares to several hundreds of μm.
m. Further, regarding the thickness d of the device electrode,
Usually, an appropriate numerical value is selected from the range of several hundreds of .mu.m to several .mu.m.

A fine particle film is used for the portion of the conductive thin film 1104. The fine particle film mentioned here is a film containing many fine particles as a constituent element (including an island-shaped aggregate).
I mean If you examine the microparticle film microscopically, usually
A structure in which the individual fine particles are spaced apart, a structure in which the fine particles are adjacent to each other, or a structure in which the fine particles overlap each other is observed.

The particle diameter of the fine particles used in the fine particle film is in the range of several to several thousand degrees, and preferably in the range of 10 to 200 degrees. Further, the thickness of the fine particle film is appropriately set in consideration of various conditions described below. That is, the conditions necessary for good electrical connection to the element electrode 1102 or 1103, the conditions necessary for good energization forming described below, and the electric resistance of the fine particle film itself to an appropriate value described later. Necessary conditions, etc.

Specifically, it is set within the range of several thousand to several thousand, but the most preferable is 10 to 500.
It is between Å.

Materials that can be used to form the fine particle film include, for example, Pd, Pt, Ru, Ag,
Au, Ti, In, Cu, Cr, Fe, Zn, Sn, T
a, W, Pb, and other metals, PdO, S
Oxides such as nO ₂ , In ₂ O ₃ , PbO, Sb ₂ O ₃ , etc., HfB ₂ , ZrB ₂ , LaB ₆ , CeB ₆ ,
Borides such as YB ₄ , GdB ₄ , etc., Ti
Carbides such as C, ZrC, HfC, TaC, SiC, WC, etc., nitrides such as TiN, ZrN, HfN, etc., semiconductors such as Si, Ge, etc., and carbon And the like, and are appropriately selected from these.

As described above, the conductive thin film 1104 is formed of a fine particle film.
It was set so as to be included in the range of 10 3 to 10 7 [Ω / sq].

The conductive thin film 1104 and the device electrode 11
Since it is desirable that the wires 02 and 1103 be electrically connected well, they have a structure in which a part of each overlaps with the other.

In the example shown in FIG. 6, the layers are stacked from the bottom in the order of the substrate, the device electrode, and the conductive thin film. However, in some cases, the substrate, the conductive thin film, and the device electrode are stacked in this order from the bottom. You can do it even if you stack them.

The electron-emitting portion 1105 is a crack-like portion formed in a part of the conductive thin film 1104, and has an electrically higher resistance than the surrounding conductive thin film. The crack is formed by performing a later-described energization forming process on the conductive thin film 1104.

In some cases, fine particles having a particle size of several to several hundreds of mm are arranged in the crack. Since it is difficult to accurately and accurately show the actual position and shape of the electron-emitting portion, they are schematically shown in FIG.

Further, the thin film 1113 is a thin film made of carbon or a carbon compound, and covers the electron emitting portion 1105 and its vicinity. The thin film 1113 is formed by performing an energization activation process described later after the energization forming process.

The thin film 1113 is made of any one of single crystal graphite, polycrystal graphite and amorphous carbon, or a mixture thereof, and has a thickness of 500 [Å] or less, but 300 [Å] or less. More preferably,

Since it is difficult to precisely show the actual position and shape of the thin film 1113, it is schematically shown in FIG. Further, in the plan view (a), the thin film 111 is formed.
The device from which a part of 3 is removed is shown.

The basic structure of the preferred element has been described above. In the embodiment, the following element is used.

That is, blue glass was used for the substrate 1101, and Ni thin films were used for the device electrodes 1102 and 1103. The thickness d of the device electrode was 1000 [Å], and the electrode interval L was 2 [μm]. Pd or PdO is used as the main material of the fine particle film, and the thickness of the fine particle film is about 100 [Å].
The width W was 100 [μm].

Next, a description will be given of a method of manufacturing a suitable flat surface conduction electron-emitting device. (A) to (d) of FIG.
Is a cross-sectional view for explaining the manufacturing process of the surface conduction electron-emitting device, and the notation of each member is the same as in FIG.

1) First, as shown in FIG. 7A, device electrodes 1102 and 1103 are formed on a substrate 1101.

Before forming, the substrate 1
After sufficiently washing 101 with a detergent, pure water and an organic solvent,
The material of the device electrode is deposited. (As a deposition method, for example, a vacuum film forming technique such as a vapor deposition method or a sputtering method may be used.) Thereafter, the deposited electrode material is patterned by using a photolithography / etching technique, and as shown in FIG. The illustrated pair of device electrodes (1102 and 110)
Form 3).

2) Next, as shown in FIG. 14B, a conductive thin film 1104 is formed. In forming, first, an organic metal solution is applied to the substrate of (a) and dried,
After heating and baking to form a fine particle film, it is patterned into a predetermined shape by photolithography and etching. Here, the organometallic solution is a solution of an organometallic compound whose main element is a material of fine particles used for the conductive thin film. (Specifically, in the present embodiment, P as a main element
d was used. In the embodiment, a dipping method is used as a coating method, but other methods such as a spinner method and a spray method may be used. )

As a method of forming a conductive thin film made of a fine particle film, a method other than the method of applying an organic metal solution used in the present embodiment, for example, a vacuum evaporation method, a sputtering method, or a chemical vapor deposition method Method may be used.

3) Next, as shown in FIG. 14C, a forming power supply 1110 supplies the device electrodes 1102 and 1102 with each other.
3, an appropriate voltage is applied, and an energization forming process is performed to form the electron-emitting portion 1105.

[0152] The energization forming treatment is to energize the conductive thin film 1104 made of a fine particle film, to appropriately break, deform, or alter a part of the conductive thin film 1104, thereby changing the structure to a structure suitable for emitting electrons. This is the process that causes

In a portion of the conductive thin film made of the fine particle film which has been changed to a structure suitable for emitting electrons (that is, the electron emitting portion 1105), an appropriate crack is formed in the thin film.

Note that, after the formation of the electron-emitting portions 1105, the device electrodes 1102 and 1111 are formed after the formation.
The electrical resistance measured between 03 greatly increases. FIG. 8 shows an example of an appropriate voltage waveform applied from the forming power supply 1110 used in the present embodiment in order to describe the energization method in more detail.

When forming a conductive thin film made of a fine particle film, a pulse-like voltage is preferable. In the case of the present embodiment, a triangular wave pulse having a pulse width T1 and a pulse interval T2 as shown in FIG. Was applied continuously. At that time, the peak value Vpf of the triangular wave pulse was sequentially increased.

In addition, monitor pulses Pm for monitoring the state of formation of the electron-emitting portion 1105 were inserted between triangular-wave pulses at appropriate intervals, and the current flowing at that time was measured by an ammeter 1111.

In this embodiment, for example, 1.33
Under a vacuum atmosphere of about 322 × 10 ⁻³ [Pa],
For example, if the pulse width T1 is 1 [msec] and the pulse interval T
2 was set to 10 [msec], and the peak value Vpf was increased by 0.1 [V] for each pulse.

Then, the monitor pulse Pm was inserted once every five pulses of the triangular wave were applied.

The monitor pulse voltage Vpm is set to 0.1 so as not to adversely affect the forming process.
[V] was set. Then, the device electrodes 1102 and 110
The stage where the electrical resistance during the period 3 becomes 1 × 10 6 [Ω], that is, the stage where the current measured by the ammeter 1111 when the monitor pulse is applied becomes 1 × 10 −7 [A] or less. Thus, the energization related to the forming process was terminated.

The above method is a preferable method for the surface conduction electron-emitting device of this embodiment. For example, the design of the surface conduction electron-emitting device such as the material and film thickness of the fine particle film or the element electrode interval L is changed. In such a case, it is desirable to appropriately change the energization conditions accordingly.

4) Next, as shown in FIG. 7D, an appropriate voltage is applied between the element electrodes 1102 and 1103 from the activating power supply 1112, and the energizing activation process is performed to perform electron emission. Improve characteristics.

The energization activation process is a process of energizing the electron emitting portion 1105 formed by the energization forming process under appropriate conditions to deposit carbon or a carbon compound in the vicinity thereof. (In the figure, a deposit made of carbon or a carbon compound is schematically shown as a member 1113.) By performing the activation process, the emission current at the same applied voltage is typically smaller than that before the activation. Specifically, it can be increased by 100 times or more.

Specifically, 1.33322 × 10 ^-2 [P
a] to 1.33322 × 10 ⁻³ [Pa], by periodically applying a voltage pulse in a vacuum atmosphere, carbon or carbon compound originating from an organic compound existing in the vacuum atmosphere can be removed. Deposit. Sediment 1113
Is any of single crystal graphite, polycrystalline graphite, amorphous carbon, or a mixture thereof, and has a thickness of 500 [Å] or less, more preferably 300 [Å] or less.

In order to explain the energization method in more detail, FIG. 9A shows an example of an appropriate voltage waveform applied from the activation power supply 1112. In the present embodiment, the energization activation process is performed by periodically applying a rectangular wave having a constant voltage, but specifically, the voltage Vac of the rectangular wave is 14 [V],
The pulse width T3 is 1 [msec], and the pulse interval T4 is 10
[Msec]. Note that the above-described energization conditions are preferable conditions for the surface conduction electron-emitting device of the present embodiment, and when the design of the surface conduction electron-emitting device is changed, it is desirable to appropriately change the conditions accordingly.

An anode electrode 1114 shown in FIG. 7D is used to capture an emission current Ie emitted from the surface conduction electron-emitting device. The anode electrode 1114 is connected to a DC high-voltage power supply 1115 and an ammeter 1116. (Note that the substrate 1101
When the activation process is performed after the display panel is incorporated into the display panel, the phosphor screen of the display panel is connected to the anode electrode 1114.
Used as While the voltage is applied from the activation power supply 1112, the emission current Ie is measured by the ammeter 1116 to monitor the progress of the energization activation process.
12 is controlled. An example of the emission current Ie measured by the ammeter 1116 is shown in FIG.
When the pulse voltage starts to be applied from 112, the emission current Ie increases with time, but eventually saturates and hardly increases.

As described above, when the emission current Ie is almost saturated, the application of the voltage from the activating power supply 1112 is stopped.
The energization activation process ends.

The above-mentioned energization conditions are preferable conditions for the surface conduction electron-emitting device of the present embodiment, and when the design of the surface conduction electron-emitting device is changed, the conditions should be changed accordingly. desirable.

For example, the voltage applied between the rear plate and the face plate is preferably 3 kV or more.

As described above, the flat surface conduction electron-emitting device shown in FIG. 7E was manufactured.

[0170]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, specific embodiments of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. (Embodiment 1) FIG. 10 is a partially broken perspective view of a first embodiment of the image forming apparatus of the present invention. FIG. 11 shows FIG.
FIG. 13 is a cross-sectional view of the vicinity of a spacer fixing member indicated by reference numeral II in FIG. FIG. 12 is a schematic plan view of a panel showing the first embodiment, and shows a configuration when viewed from above a face plate. FIG. 12 is a view in which the face plate is removed for convenience.

In FIGS. 10, 11 and 12, a substrate 32 provided with a plurality of surface conduction electron-emitting devices 40 arranged in a matrix is fixed to the rear plate 24. The surface conduction electron-emitting device 40 is connected by a row-direction wiring 31 and a column-direction wiring 33. The face plate 20 and the rear plate 24 are air-tightly joined by using the support frame 10 to form an air-tight container.

The face plate 20 includes a black matrix 21, a phosphor 22, a metal back 23 for applying an electron acceleration voltage, and the like. An area between the metal back 23 and the rear plate 24 facing the metal back 23 is defined as an image area 12.

Face Plate 20 and Rear Plate 24
A spacer 13 is inserted between the row wirings 31 as an atmospheric pressure support member. Various films may be formed on the surface of the spacer 13. In this embodiment, the spacer 1
3 is a low-resistance film for forming a high-resistance film for the purpose of preventing electrification, and for improving the electrical connection to the contact surface and the side surface of the spacer facing the metal back 23 and the row-directional wiring 31. Is formed.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 10 to 12, both ends of the spacer 13 extend to the outside of the image area 12, and the spacer 13 is fixed to a predetermined position in the support frame 10 by the spacer fixing member 14. Have been. Then, the spacer fixing member 14 is fixed to the rear plate 24 and the face plate 20 by the conductive adhesive 16.

Hereinafter, the spacer fixing member 14 which is a feature of the present invention will be described. As shown in FIG. 10, a groove for vertically standing the spacer is formed in the spacer fixing member 14 and is fixed to both ends of the spacer 13.

Then, as shown in FIG. 11, the spacer fixing member 14 is fixed to both the contact surfaces of the face plate 20 and the rear plate 24 using the conductive adhesive 16 so that the contact surfaces have the same potential. Have been.

As the conductive adhesive 16, frit glass to which metal particles or conductive fillers are added is preferable.

The height of the spacer fixing member 14 is almost the same as the gap between the face plate 20 and the rear plate 24. The spacer fixing member 14
Does not necessarily have to be an atmospheric pressure resistant structure.

Here, the reason why the height of the spacer fixing member 14 is set as described above will be described.

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing equipotential lines near the rectangular parallelepiped structure 50 arranged outside the image area. For example, when the face plate 20, the rear plate 24, and the structure 50 are made of soda lime glass and the support frame 10 is made of non-alkali glass, the potential at the point A is almost equal to that of the metal back 23 due to the difference in electric conductivity. Since the electron acceleration voltage Va is equal to this and the structure 50 has a vacuum gap between the structure 50 and the face plate 20, the potential is G, which is the potential of the row wiring 31 of the rear plate 24.
It is considered that it is almost equal to ND.

In the case where the structure 50 does not contact both the face plate 20 and the rear plate 24 as shown in FIG. 18A, the equipotential lines are as shown in FIG.
The electric field at the edge of 0 becomes strong.

Therefore, the structure 50 is mounted on the face plate 2.
0 and the rear plate 24 as shown in (b), the electron acceleration voltage Va is reduced along the surface (L1 + L2).
+ L3), and the equipotential lines are as shown in the figure, so that the electric field near the structure 50 is reduced.

From the above description, it is considered that the electric field concentration is reduced and the discharge is suppressed by configuring the spacer fixing member as shown in FIG. 13B.

As the material of the spacer fixing member 14, various materials such as glass, ceramic, and plastic can be used. However, in a heat process for manufacturing a display panel, heat resistance enough to withstand the heat is used. Must have. The spacer 1 is also used for the conductive adhesive 16.
As in the case of No. 4, the material must have heat resistance enough to withstand the heat in the heat process.

In this embodiment, the spacer fixing member 14 is made of soda lime glass, and the conductive adhesive 16 is made of conductive frit glass.

As described above, the contact surfaces of the spacer fixing member 14 are set to the same potential, and the spacer fixing member 1
4 is electrically connected to the rear plate 24 and the face plate 20, the potential distribution of the spacer fixing member 14 is made uniform over the entire region, so that the local concentration of the electric field is eliminated and the discharge is less likely to occur. As a result, the electron acceleration voltage Va could be further increased.

The image forming apparatus manufactured as described above was able to display a good image with high luminance and no discharge.

(Embodiment 2) FIG. 14 is a sectional view showing the vicinity of a spacer fixing member of an image forming apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention. Here, only portions different from the first embodiment will be described.

The feature of this embodiment is that, as shown in FIG. 14, the spacer fixing member 14 has electrodes 17 formed on both contact surfaces of the face plate 20 and the rear plate 24. The spacer fixing member 14 is fixed to the rear plate 24 by a conductive adhesive 16.

The electrode 17 may be made of a material capable of making the potential distribution uniform as described above. Ni, Cr, Au, M
It is appropriately selected from metals such as o, W, Pt, Ti, Al, Cu, and Pd, or alloys.

As the method for forming the electrode 17 on the structure, sputtering, electron beam evaporation, ion plating, ion assist evaporation, or the like can be used. Actually, the electrode 17 was formed by sputtering using Pt and Ti.

As described above, the contact surfaces of the spacer fixing member 14 are set to the same potential, and the spacer fixing member 1
4 is electrically connected to the rear plate 24 and the face plate 20 by the electrode 17 and the conductive adhesive 16, so that the potential distribution of the spacer fixing member 14 is uniform over the entire region, so that the local electric field concentration Is gone,
Discharge became difficult to occur. As a result, the electron acceleration voltage V
a could be further increased.

The image forming apparatus manufactured as described above was able to display a good image with high luminance and no discharge.

(Embodiment 3) FIG. 15 is a sectional view showing the vicinity of a spacer fixing member of an image forming apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present invention. Here, only portions different from the first and second embodiments will be described.

As shown in FIG. 15, in the spacer fixing member 14, the electrodes 17 are formed on both contact surfaces of the face plate 20 and the rear plate 24 in order to make the potential distribution uniform, as in the second embodiment. is there.

Further, a high resistance film 111 was formed on the surface of the spacer fixing member. The spacer fixing member 14
The wiring is connected to the metal back 23 and the row wiring 31 by wiring (not shown).

A high-resistance film similar to the spacer fixing member 14 is formed on the rear plate 24 and the face plate 20.
To connect to the metal back 23 and the row wiring 31.

As in the case of the spacer 13, the spacer fixing member 1
Reference numeral 4 denotes a case where a part of the electrons emitted from the vicinity of the spacer strikes the spacer fixing member 14 or ions ionized by the action of the emitted electrons adhere to the spacer fixing member 14 to cause charging and lead to discharge. was there.

Therefore, charging was prevented by applying a very small current to the surface of the spacer fixing member 14 with a high-resistance thin film. As a result, discharge can be suppressed.

In this embodiment, an electrode is formed on the spacer fixing member 14 to make electrical connection with the rear plate 24 and the face plate 20. However, as in the first embodiment, a conductive adhesive is used. Is also good.

With the above configuration, it is possible to suppress discharge due to electric field concentration on the spacer fixing member 14.

The image forming apparatus manufactured as described above was able to display a good image with high luminance and no discharge.

Embodiment 4 FIG. 16 is a schematic plan view of a panel showing a fourth embodiment of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention.
2 shows a configuration when viewed from above the face plate. FIG.
FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view of the vicinity of the getter support indicated by reference numeral II-II in FIG. FIG. 16 is a view in which the face plate is removed for convenience. FIG. 18 is a partially broken perspective view of a fourth embodiment of the image forming apparatus of the present invention. Here, only portions different from the first to third embodiments will be described.

Referring to FIG. 17 and FIG.
On the outer part, the getter member 70 and the support
Getter support 71 is formed. Getter part
The material 70 is made of a material containing Ba as a main component.
To form a film by heating and heating with a heater or high-frequency heating
I do. Due to the adsorption action of the getter film thus formed,
1.33322 × 10 in the airtight container^-3[Pa] or
1.33322 × 10 ^-Five[Pa] or higher
The degree of vacuum is maintained.

As shown in FIGS. 16 and 18, the spacer 13 is disposed only inside the image area 12, and is fixed on the row wiring 31 by an adhesive. The fixing position may be on the black matrix 21. In the present embodiment, such a fixing method is used, but a configuration as in Embodiments 1 to 4 may be used.

The getter support 71 which is a feature of the present invention will be described below. As shown in FIG. 17, the getter support 71 is provided on the getter support 71 in the same manner as in the first embodiment.
1 so that the contact surfaces 1 are at the same potential.
The conductive adhesive 16 as a conductor, which is a component of the present invention, is used for the contact surfaces of both the 0 and the rear plate 24. More preferably, the electrode 17 is used.

By adopting the above configuration, the first embodiment
Similarly, the contact surface of the getter support 71 is set to the same potential, and the getter support 71 is
In addition, by electrically connecting to the face plate 20, the electric potential distribution of the getter support 71 is made uniform over the entire region, so that the local concentration of the electric field is eliminated and the discharge is less likely to occur.

In the present embodiment, the getter support 71 has the same configuration as that of the first embodiment as described above. However, even if the configuration of the second or third embodiment is used, The same effect can be obtained.

More specifically, electrodes 17 are formed on both contact surfaces of the face plate 20 and the rear plate 24 in order to make the potential distribution uniform (Example 2). Further, a high-resistance film is formed on the surface of the getter support 71 in the same manner as the spacer 13 in order to prevent electrification (Example 3).

The image forming apparatus manufactured as described above was able to display a good image with high luminance and no discharge.

[0211]

As described above, the present invention reduces the electric field concentration and suppresses the discharge by bringing the structure assembled in the vacuum vessel into contact with both the first substrate and the second substrate. Is made possible. This allows
It is possible to provide an electron beam generator and an image forming apparatus capable of displaying a good image with high luminance.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a partially cutaway perspective view of a display panel using an embodiment of an electron beam generator according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a substrate of a multi-electron beam source used for the display panel shown in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view of a substrate of the multi-electron beam source shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a plan view illustrating a phosphor array of a face plate of the display panel shown in FIG. 1;

5 is a sectional view of the display panel shown in FIG. 1, taken along the line AA ′.

FIG. 6 is a structural diagram of a planar surface conduction electron-emitting device used for the display panel shown in FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view showing a step of manufacturing the planar surface-conduction emission type electron-emitting device shown in FIG.

FIG. 8 is an applied voltage waveform in the energization forming process used in an embodiment of the electron beam generator according to the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a graph showing a change in an applied voltage waveform and a change in an emission current during the activation process in the embodiment of the electron beam generator according to the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of the image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment of the present invention, in which a part of a panel is cut away.

11 is a sectional view of the vicinity of a fixing member of the spacer shown in FIG.

FIG. 12 is a schematic plan view of the panel shown in FIG.

FIG. 13 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a change in an electric field due to a structure in an embodiment of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 14 is a cross-sectional view showing the vicinity of a fixing member of a spacer of the second embodiment of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a sectional view showing the vicinity of a spacer fixing member of a third embodiment of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a schematic plan view of a panel showing a fourth embodiment of the image forming apparatus according to the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a sectional view of the vicinity of a support of the getter shown in FIG. 16;

FIG. 18 is a perspective view of the display panel shown in FIG. 16 with a part cut away.

FIG. 19 is a schematic plan view showing an example of a conventionally known surface conduction electron-emitting device.

FIG. 20 is a schematic plan view showing an example of a conventionally known FE element.

FIG. 21 is a schematic plan view showing an example of a conventionally known MIM type device.

FIG. 22 is a schematic view of a getter portion according to the related art.

FIG. 23 is a schematic view of a conventional spacer supporting portion.

[Explanation of symbols]

REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 rear plate also serving as electron source substrate 2 electron source area 3 image forming member 10, 1016, 3116 support frame (side wall) 12 image area 13, 1020, 3120 structural support (spacer) 14 spacer fixing member 16 conductive adhesive 17 Electrode 20, 1017, 3117 Face plate 21 Black stripe 22 Phosphor 23, 1019, 3119 Metal back 24, 1015, 3115 Rear plate 30, 1105, 1019 Electron emission section 31, 1013, 3113 Row direction wiring 32, 1011, 1101, 3001, 3010, 3
020, 3111 substrate 33, 1014, 3114 column direction wiring 40 surface conduction electron-emitting device 50 structure 70 getter member 71 getter support 100 insulating member 111 high resistance film 121 low resistance film 1010 black conductor 1012, 3112 cold Cathode element 1016, 1017, 1102, 1103 Device electrode 1018, 3118 Fluorescent film 1041 Contact material 1104, 3004 Conductive thin film 1110 Power supply for forming 1111, 1116 Ammeter 1112 Power supply for activation 1113 Thin film 1114 formed by current activation process Anode electrode 1115 DC high voltage power supply 3005 Electron emission section 3011 Emitter wiring 3012 Emitter cone 3013, 3022 Insulating layer 3014 Gate electrode 3021 Lower electrode 3023 Upper electrode

Claims (26)

[Claims] 1. An electron beam generator comprising: a first substrate having an electron-emitting device for emitting electrons; and a second substrate having a target to which the electrons are irradiated, wherein the first substrate has an electron-emitting device. A spacer for maintaining a distance between the first substrate and the second substrate, and a spacer support for supporting the spacer in a vacuum vessel and outside the image area, wherein the spacer support is An electron beam generator electrically connected to both the first substrate and the second substrate. 2. The electron beam generator according to claim 1, wherein a conductor for making an electrical connection is formed between the spacer support and the first substrate and the second substrate. 3. The conductor according to claim 2, wherein the conductor has a specific resistance lower by one digit or more than that of the spacer supporting portion, the first substrate, and the second substrate having the lowest specific resistance. Electron beam generator. 4. The electron beam according to claim 1, wherein the spacer support is fixed to at least one of the first substrate and the second substrate by a conductive adhesive. Generator. 5. The electron according to claim 1, wherein an electrode is formed on at least one of a contact surface of the spacer support and the first substrate or the second substrate. Line generator. 6. The electron beam generator according to claim 1, wherein the spacer support has a high resistance film on a surface thereof. 7. A sheet resistance range of said high resistance film is 1 × 1.
^{0 7 ~1 × 10 14 Ω /} □ and, and an electron beam generator according to high claim 6 resistivity an order of magnitude more than the conductor. 8. The electron beam according to claim 1, wherein the spacer is made of an insulating material having a thermal expansion coefficient substantially equal to that of the first substrate or the second substrate. Generator. 9. The electron beam generator according to claim 1, wherein the spacer has a high resistance film on a surface thereof. 10. The sheet resistance range of the high resistance film is 1 ×
The electron beam generator according to claim 9, wherein the electron beam generation rate is 10 ⁷ to 1 × 10 ¹⁴ Ω / □. 11. The high-resistance film has at least one kind of metal element, carbon, silicon or germanium,
The electron beam generator according to any one of claims 6 to 10, comprising a nitride, an oxide, a carbide, or a boride. 12. The device according to claim 6, wherein the high resistance film is connected to at least one of the first substrate and the second substrate via a low resistance film. Electron beam generator. 13. The electron beam generator according to claim 12, wherein the low resistance film has a surface resistance lower by at least one digit than the high resistance film. 14. An electron beam generator comprising: a first substrate having an electron-emitting device for emitting electrons; and a second substrate having a target to be irradiated with the electrons, the electron beam generating device comprising a vacuum vessel. A getter for maintaining the degree of vacuum of the vacuum container, and a getter support for assembling the getter inside the vacuum container and outside the image area, wherein the getter support is the first substrate and the second substrate And an electron beam generator electrically connected to both. 15. The electron beam generator according to claim 14, wherein a conductor for making electrical connection is formed between the getter support and the first substrate and the second substrate. . 16. The method according to claim 16, wherein the conductor is the getter support,
The electron beam generator according to claim 15, wherein the specific resistance is lower by one digit or more than one of the first substrate and the second substrate having the lowest specific resistance. 17. The method according to claim 14, wherein the getter support is fixed to at least one of the first substrate and the second substrate by a conductive adhesive.
Item 10. An electron beam generator according to item 9. 18. The electrode according to claim 14, wherein an electrode is formed on at least one of a contact surface of the first substrate or the second substrate and the getter support. Electron beam generator. 19. The electron beam generator according to claim 14, wherein said getter support has a high resistance film on its surface. 20. A sheet resistance range of the high resistance film is 1
^{× 10 7 ~1 × 10 1 4} Ω / □ and is electron-beam generating apparatus according to claim 19. 21. The electron beam generator according to claim 1, wherein the electron-emitting device is a cold cathode device. 22. The electron beam generator according to claim 1, wherein the electron-emitting device is an electron-emitting device having a conductive film including an electron-emitting portion between electrodes. 23. The electron beam generator according to claim 1, wherein the electron-emitting device is a surface conduction electron-emitting device. 24. An electron beam generating apparatus according to claim 1, wherein an input signal is applied to the electron beam generating apparatus, and the target is irradiated with electrons emitted from the electron-emitting device in accordance with the input signal. An image forming apparatus for forming an image by using the image forming apparatus. 25. The image forming apparatus according to claim 24, wherein the target is made of a phosphor. 26. The image forming apparatus according to claim 24, wherein an applied voltage between the electrode on the first substrate side and the electrode on the second substrate side is 3 kV or more.