JP2003151500A - Glow discharge lamp, lighting equipment and electrode for glow discharge lamp - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a glow discharge lamp such as a glow starter essentially improving spattering of an electrode activator and improving starting characteristics under a dark place condition by shortening lighting required time and lighting equipment using it. SOLUTION: This glow charge lamp is furnished with an discharge container 1, a pair of electrodes 2, 3, an discharge medium and an electron emission material 4 made of zinc alloy supported at least by the one 3 of a pair of the electrodes 2, 3. It is possible to use, for example, zinc - nickel alloy as the zinc alloy. In this case, 2-15 mass % is within a favorable range of the contents of nickel. The zinc alloy to be used as the electron emission material 4 raises its melting point in comparison with zinc, its dissipation due to spattering is restrained, and accordingly, electric discharge starting time is shortened for a longevity guaranteeing period, and as gas emission is reduced, rise of electric discharge starting voltage is extremely small.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a glow discharge lamp suitable as a glow starter for starting a fluorescent lamp, a lighting fixture using the same, and an electrode for a glow discharge lamp.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Glow discharge lamps have been widely used as glow starters and display lamps for starting discharge lamps such as fluorescent lamps.

However, a glow discharge lamp such as a glow starter tends to have a long lighting time in a dark place, and it is necessary to improve it. The required lighting time is the discharge delay time in the case of a glow starter,
It is the sum of glow discharge duration, closure time and pulse generation time. The reason why the required lighting time is long in a dark place is that the discharge delay time becomes long because the supply of initial electrons is insufficient.

Therefore, conventionally, the discharge delay time has been improved by the following means using a radioactive isotope.

A trace amount of a radioisotope such as ¹⁴⁷ Pm is applied to the vicinity of the electrode or is electrochemically coated, and N
A metal such as i is plated (prior art 1).

A gaseous radioisotope such as ⁸⁵ Kr and ³ H is enclosed in the discharge vessel as an ionization filling gas (prior art 2).

[0007] In each of the prior arts 1 and 2, the filling gas in the discharge vessel can be always ionized by the radioactive isotope, and as a result, the discharge is quickly started at the time of lighting, so that the discharge delay time is reduced. The improvement effect is remarkable. However, when a radioactive substance is used, even if the amount is very small, there is a problem that a facility that meets the radiation safety standard in manufacturing and handling and strict control for safe handling are required.

On the other hand, means for not using a radioisotope is being sought, and Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 10-255724 discloses an electrode that emits afterglow in a dark place by using a phosphor having a long afterglow property. A technique is disclosed in which initial electrons are supplied by photoelectron emission by making them incident on the surface portion to improve the discharge delay time. (Prior Art 3) Since the prior art 3 does not use a radioactive substance, it is effective for the above-mentioned problem. However, even though it is a phosphor exhibiting a long afterglow property, there is a limit to the period in which the required amount of afterglow can be maintained. In the above literature, 100 lx of FL15 type fluorescent lamp was irradiated for 30 minutes and left in the dark 6
It is stated that the limit is 0 hour (2.5 days) to 90 hours (3.75 days). In addition, since a phosphor having a long afterglow property needs to be provided in a portion where external light reaches, there is a restriction that it cannot be used in a glow starter provided with a light-shielding case.

JP-A-54-64873 discloses that electrodes are coated with zinc by electroplating or the like.
A technique for reducing the starting time in the dark is disclosed. (Prior Art 4) In the prior art 4, a surface layer of zinc is sputtered by glow discharge, thereby forming a clean and fairly active surface. Further, the scattered zinc atoms adsorb the impurity gas in the gas and adhere to the inner wall of the glass tube to clean the gas and suppress the release of the impurity gas from the glass tube. It is described that these facilitate the emission of initial electrons from the electrode surface.

Thus, according to the prior art 4, the problems of the prior arts 1 to 3 described above are solved.

[0011]

However, according to the research by the present inventor, in the prior art 4, when the bimetal or the fixed electrode is coated with zinc, the zinc is scattered by the sputtering accompanying the glow discharge or the high-voltage pulse discharge. It may be consumed so much that it disappears from the electrode within the guaranteed blinking number of times of the glow starter, making it impossible to maintain the desired lighting required time characteristics. On the other hand, although it is improved by increasing the film thickness of zinc to be within a predetermined range, it is not an essential solution because it may be a cause of problems such as difficulty in manufacturing and fluctuation of electric characteristics.

The present invention is a glow discharge lamp which is essentially improved in the sputtering of an electron emissive material and is shortened in the time required for lighting to improve the starting characteristics in a dark place, a lighting fixture using the same and a glow discharge. It is intended to provide an electrode for a lamp.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a glow starter in which the required lighting time is shortened to improve the starting characteristics under dark conditions, a lighting fixture using the same, and an electrode for a glow discharge lamp. To do.

Further, the present invention provides a glow starter in which residual impure gas is removed to suppress discharge delay and undesired increase in discharge starting voltage, a lighting fixture using the glow starter, and an electrode for glow discharge lamp. Other purposes.

[0015]

A glow discharge lamp of the present invention comprises a discharge vessel; a pair of electrodes sealed in the discharge vessel; a discharge medium mainly containing a rare gas sealed in the discharge vessel; And an electron emissive substance made of a zinc alloy formed on at least one of the pair of electrodes.

In the present invention and the following respective inventions, the definitions and technical meanings of terms are as follows unless otherwise specified. The glow discharge lamp of the present invention is equipped with a discharge vessel, a pair of electrodes, a discharge medium and an electron emissive substance as constituent elements as described above, and enables glow discharge such as a display glow lamp, a cold cathode fluorescent lamp and a glow starter. It includes a discharge lamp that operates when it occurs. Hereinafter, each component will be described.

<Discharge Vessel> The discharge vessel is formed of a material having airtightness, workability and preferably heat resistance, such as glass, and has a discharge space inside.
Among glass materials, soft glass is excellent in workability and cost.

<Regarding a Pair of Electrodes> As the pair of electrodes, a so-called cold cathode that does not include a thermoelectron emissive substance can be used. In the case of a glow discharge lamp for display, a fixed type pair of electrodes is used. On the other hand, in the case of the glow starter, at least one of them is a movable electrode having a bimetal. That is, one of the pair of electrodes may be a movable electrode and the other may be a fixed electrode, or both electrodes may be a movable electrode. In addition, in any discharge lamp,
The pair of electrodes is sealed in the discharge vessel.

Next, as a bimetal suitable as a glow starter, for example, a thin plate made of Fe-Ni alloy, Ni-Cr-Fe alloy, Ni-Mn-Fe alloy, M
A thin plate made of an n-Cu-Ni alloy or a Cr-Cu-Ni alloy is formed directly or indirectly by interposing a third thin plate having an intermediate coefficient of thermal expansion therebetween by welding or the like. be able to. The pair of electrodes come into contact with each other when the movable electrode is displaced due to the heat generated by the glow discharge generated between the electrodes as the temperature rises and the temperature reaches 50 to 150 ° C. Since the electrodes are short-circuited by the contact, when the glow discharge is stopped, the temperature of the movable electrode is lowered and the pair of electrodes are separated from each other again.

In the case of a glow starter, the pair of electrodes are arranged so that the duration of glow discharge is as short as possible.
The distance between the electrodes is set to be about 0.1 to 2 mm.

Furthermore, in order to seal the pair of electrodes at a predetermined position in the discharge vessel while maintaining a predetermined distance between the electrodes, it is possible to use a mount assembled in advance with a predetermined distance between the electrodes using a stem. it can. The stem is a flare stem,
A bead stem or the like can be appropriately used. In addition, in order to suppress the occurrence of creeping discharge on the surface of the stem between the electrodes and the reduction of the pulse voltage, the surface of the portion can be coated with an insulating material.

<Discharge Medium> The discharge medium is mainly composed of a rare gas and is enclosed in the discharge vessel. Argon is generally used as the rare gas, but hydrogen or an organic gas can be mixed with argon for the purpose of increasing the glow discharge current or suppressing the decrease in the re-operation voltage during the life. Alternatively, instead of argon, a mixed gas utilizing the Penning effect of neon or neon-argon can be used. Further, a mixed gas of krypton and / or xenon with either or both of neon and argon can be used.

<Regarding Electron Emissive Material> The electron emissive material, which is also referred to as an electrode activator, contains at least a zinc alloy in the present invention. The electrodes are arranged so as to cover a part or almost the entire surface of at least one of the pair of electrodes. The zinc alloy is not limited in the kind of metal that forms an alloy with zinc. For example, Ag, Al, A
u, Ba, Be, Ce, Co, Ca, Cr, Cu, F
e, Ge, La, Mn, Mo, Ni, Pd, Pt, T
A zinc alloy containing one or more kinds selected from the group of e, Ti, W and Zr as the other component can be used. However, among the above groups, when Ni is used as a component, the action is most excellent, and the zinc alloy can be obtained easily and inexpensively. Also, Co, Fe, C
u, Al, Mn, Cr and Mo are relatively easy to obtain.

On the other hand, the zinc alloy preferably has a melting point of 450 ° C. or higher in order to improve the sputtering resistance. However, in order to facilitate the manufacturing process of the zinc alloy, the melting point is preferably in the range of 550 to 830 ° C. Also,
In order to obtain the desired electron emission characteristics, the zinc content is 5
It is preferably 0% by mass or more, and more preferably 65 to 98% by mass.

Next, in order to arrange the zinc alloy on the electrode, preferably in the form of a film, means such as electroplating, hot dipping, vacuum deposition, CVD or ion plating can be used. Further, this makes it possible to form a zinc alloy film which is easy to control to a desired film thickness, is dense, and has less impurities mixed therein. However, electroplating is the most economical. In the case of electroplating, a zinc alloy film is directly formed on the electrode of the glow discharge lamp by the eutectoid electroplating method in which an alloy-forming metal such as zinc and nickel is used as one electrode and the electrode of the glow discharge lamp is used as the other electrode. be able to. It is also possible to first electroplate an alloy-forming metal such as nickel and then zinc, or first zinc, and then an alloy-forming metal such as nickel, and then heat treat the zinc. A two-step plating method for forming an alloy film can also be used.

As the electron emitting substance, it is allowed to add another electron emitting substance in addition to the zinc alloy. According to the study of the present inventor, carbon nanotubes have an electron emissivity, and therefore, they can be added to a zinc alloy as an electron emissive substance in the present invention. However, carbon nanotubes can also be used alone.

<Regarding Other Configurations> Although not an essential element of the present invention, the following configurations can be selectively added if desired.

1 Getter If impure gas is released into the discharge vessel during the life of the glow discharge lamp, the startability is deteriorated. Therefore, a performance getter can be arranged inside the discharge vessel as a getter material for adsorbing gas.

About 2 Cases The case is to protect the glow starter mechanically.
It is a means for surrounding the periphery of the discharge vessel. Further, the case can be formed by using a material having a required mechanical strength such as metal, synthetic resin or ceramics.
Furthermore, in order to facilitate attachment / detachment of the glow starter to / from the socket, the case can be formed with an operation assisting portion such as a non-slip ridge so that it can be easily grasped.

3 Regarding the base, a screw base such as E17 type or a pin base such as P21 type can be used as the base depending on the rating of the compatible fluorescent lamp.

<Regarding Operation of the Present Invention> In the present invention, the zinc component of the electron emissive material made of a zinc alloy is activated to easily emit electrons. The initial electron emission performance of zinc alloy is almost the same as that of zinc. Therefore, the starting characteristics of the glow discharge lamp under dark conditions can be improved.

Further, since the electron emissive substance is a zinc alloy, the melting point of the electron emissive substance is high, so that the sputtering is remarkably reduced, and the characteristic is deteriorated as the electron emissive substance is consumed. Be improved. Therefore, a zinc alloy having a melting point higher than that of zinc is selectively used. Further, it was found that the amount of the impure gas released from the zinc alloy was smaller than that in the case where a film of zinc alone was used as the electron emitting substance. It is considered that this is due to the fact that the amount of impure gas mixed in during plating production is reduced. Therefore, the electron emission action of the zinc alloy is favorably continued during the life of the glow discharge lamp, and the deterioration of the startability due to the emission of the impure gas is small, and the life of the glow discharge lamp is extended.

A glow discharge lamp according to a second aspect of the present invention is characterized in that, in the glow discharge lamp according to the first aspect, the electron emitting substance is a zinc-nickel alloy.

The present invention defines a preferable example of the constitution of the zinc alloy. That is, in the case of a zinc alloy containing Ni as the other component, the melting point of 8
It becomes NiZn ₃ having a melting point of 81 ° C., and when it contains about 19 mass% of Ni, it becomes NiZn ₂₁ having a melting point of about 870 ° C. Further, when it contains about 11 mass% of Ni, it becomes NiZn ₈ having a melting point of about 790 ° C. Both form stable intermetallic compounds. As described above, various forms of the zinc-nickel alloy can be applied without departing from the spirit of the present invention, and for example, the form of solid solution is also acceptable.

Thus, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a glow discharge lamp provided with an electron emitting substance which is easily available on an industrial scale and is inexpensive.

When the electron emissive material is formed by the eutectoid electroplating method, since the zinc alloy has a high melting point, the amount of hydrogen generated during plating is reduced, and the impurity gas concentration in the electron emissive material is reduced. The current efficiency in the plating process is increased.

A glow discharge lamp according to a third aspect of the present invention is characterized in that, in the glow discharge lamp according to the second aspect, the zinc-nickel alloy contains 2 to 15 mass% of nickel.

The present invention defines a preferred composition range for zinc-nickel alloys. That is, when the composition of nickel is within the above range, a zinc alloy having a melting point of about 550 to 830 ° C. can be obtained. As is clear from the melting point of zinc alone which is 419.4 ° C., the zinc alloy of the present invention has a sufficiently high melting point. Therefore, the sputtering resistance is improved. However, when Ni is less than 2 mass%, the melting point is too low. On the other hand, when Ni exceeds 15 mass%, the melting point tends to be saturated.

Further, the above zinc alloy can be directly formed in the form of a film on the electrode by the eutectoid electroplating method, so that the electron emitting substance can be easily arranged. However, the present invention may form the zinc-nickel alloy by, for example, a hot dip plating method, and is not limited to forming the electron emissive material by the eutectoid electroplating method.

Further, since the electron emitting substance made of the above zinc alloy contains a large amount of zinc, it has sufficient electron emitting property.

A glow discharge lamp according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is the glow discharge lamp according to the first aspect, wherein the zinc alloy is
It is characterized by being made of a ternary zinc alloy containing zinc and two kinds of metals selected from the group of cobalt, copper, nickel, tin and molybdenum as main components.

The present invention defines a structure in which the electron emissive material is a ternary zinc alloy. As a ternary zinc alloy,
For example, Zn-Co-Mo, Zn-Co-Cr, Zn-
Ni-Co or the like can be used. Zn-Co-M
In o, Co: 1-3%, Mo: 0.1-0.5
%, Balance Zn. In Zn-Co-Cr, C
o: 0.1 to 0.5% (for example, 0.3%), Cr:
0.01-0.1% (for example, 0.05%), balance Zn
Is. In Zn-Ni-Co, Ni: 15-2
0% (for example, 17%), Co: 0.1 to 0.5% (for example, 0.3%), and the balance Zn. All the above percentages are% by mass. In addition, these ternary zinc alloys,
For example, it can be formed by eutectoid electroplating.

Thus, in the present invention, since the zinc alloy is made of the ternary zinc alloy, the same action and effect as those of the binary zinc alloy can be obtained.

A glow discharge lamp according to a fifth aspect of the present invention is the glow discharge lamp according to the first aspect, wherein the electron emissive material is a zinc-nickel alloy, a work function is 4 eV or less, and a melting point is 500 ° C. or more. It is characterized in that it is configured to include a metal.

The present invention defines a discharge lamp provided with an electron emitting substance which is composed of a zinc-nickel alloy and another metal (including an alloy) which satisfies the above-mentioned predetermined conditions. Other metals satisfying the predetermined conditions include Mg,
Ca, Sr, Ba, Sc, Y, La, Zr, Hf, Th
And one or more selected from the group of Ce. It should be noted that the phrase “composed of a metal having a work function of 4 eV or less and a melting point of 500 ° C. or higher” means that some or all of these metals and the components of the zinc-nickel alloy are alloys. It is meant to include the state of being formed. Further, when La is selected, it may be a compound with B.

Further, the ratio of the zinc-nickel alloy and the other metal satisfying the above-mentioned predetermined conditions is arbitrary. Therefore, if necessary, the latter may be the main component and the former may be the sub-component, and vice versa.

Thus, in the present invention, the zinc-nickel alloy is included as a part of the electron emissive material, so that the zinc-nickel alloy has the above-mentioned excellent functions and effects and the effect of the metal under the predetermined conditions. , The effect is obtained together.

A glow discharge lamp according to a sixth aspect of the present invention is characterized in that, in the glow discharge lamp according to any one of the first to fifth aspects, the electron emissive material is supported by the electrode via an underlayer. There is.

The underlayer can act so as to suppress interference between the constituent material of the electrode and the electron emitting substance.

In the present invention, the electrodes may be either movable or fixed, but the Fe--Ni alloy and Mn--C may be used.
In the case of a movable electrode using a bimetal composed of a u-Ni alloy, it is considered that the bimetal deteriorates due to the reaction with the zinc alloy of the Mn component, and this deterioration is suppressed.
Especially effective. This deterioration of the bimetal occurs particularly when the zinc alloy is formed by electroplating. However, the bimetal is not limited to the above, and may be composed of an Fe-Ni alloy and a Ni-Mn-Fe alloy, a Ni-Cr-Fe alloy, or a Cr-Cu-Ni alloy.

A glow discharge lamp according to a seventh aspect of the present invention is the glow discharge lamp according to any one of the first to sixth aspects, wherein the zinc alloy is electroplated at a current density of 1 to 15 A / dm ² (square decimator). It is characterized by being formed.

The present invention defines a glow discharge lamp constructed using a zinc alloy with reduced outgassing of hydrogen. In glow discharge lamps with a small internal volume such as a lighting tube, the stored gas emitted from the sealing members such as electrodes has a relatively large effect on the lamp characteristics of the glow discharge lamp. Need to be as small as possible.

On the other hand, it can be understood from the preceding claims that the zinc alloy is extremely suitable as the electron emitting substance. Further, it is effective to dispose the zinc alloy on the electrode by depositing it on the electrode by electroplating.

However, even when the zinc alloy is manufactured by electroplating, it has been found that the current density during plating has a great influence on the hydrogen gas releasing performance. That is, in a glow discharge lamp in which an electrode formed by electroplating a zinc alloy with a large current density is sealed, a discharge delay occurs after initial flashing. This is because if the current density during electroplating is high, the plating rate will be high, but the structure of the zinc alloy formed will be rough and the amount of hydrogen stored will be large.
Then, when the glow discharge lamp operates, it is considered that the discharge start voltage rises and a discharge delay occurs because the amount of stored hydrogen released is large.

Then, the present inventor has completed the present invention as a result of the examination based on the above consideration. That is, the zinc alloy formed by electroplating within the above current density range has a denser structure and less hydrogen absorption. In the glow discharge lamp manufactured by incorporating the electrode in which the zinc alloy having a small amount of absorbed hydrogen is arranged, the gas release of hydrogen during the operation is reduced to the range where it is practically acceptable. Further, if it is within the above range, the precipitation efficiency of the zinc alloy is relatively high, and the industrial production can be endured.
Incidentally, it is preferably 1 to 10 A / dm ² , and optimally 5
The range is around A / dm ² .

On the other hand, when the current density during electroplating exceeds 15 A / dm ² , the production efficiency of electroplating becomes high. However, in a glow discharge lamp in which the zinc alloy structure becomes too rough and hydrogen gas is significantly released, and the internal volume of the discharge vessel is small, such as a lighting tube,
Outgassing of hydrogen deviates from the permissible range. Conversely,
If the current density is less than 1 A / dm ² , the production efficiency is too low, which is not practical.

In this way, according to the present invention, it is possible to obtain a glow discharge lamp in which the amount of hydrogen gas released during working is small and the discharge delay is less likely to occur.

A glow discharge lamp according to an eighth aspect of the present invention is the glow discharge lamp according to any one of the first to seventh aspects, wherein the zinc alloy is provided on the electrodes by electroplating and has a hydrogen storage capacity of 0. It is characterized by being a zinc-nickel alloy in the range of 1 to 50 PPM.

It has been found that when the zinc alloy is a zinc-nickel alloy, it is possible to reduce the amount of hydrogen stored during the electroplating process. This is because nickel has a high plating efficiency as a characteristic. On the contrary,
When electroplating a simple substance of zinc, the hydrogen storage amount may be about 100 PPM because the plating efficiency is low.

By the way, in a glow discharge lamp such as a glow starter, there is a problem that the discharge starting voltage becomes high when the amount of released hydrogen is large. However, it has been found that there is no practical problem if the hydrogen storage amount of the electroplated electrode portion is suppressed to 50 PPM or less. In addition, since it is difficult to manufacture the hydrogen storage amount of less than 0.1 PPM in the manufacturing process, the hydrogen storage amount is set to 0.1 to 5 in the present invention.
It was defined as 0 PPM. However, the preferred range is 1.0-
It is within the range of 10 PPM.

Thus, in the present invention, it is possible to reduce the release of hydrogen during the use of the glow discharge lamp by the above-mentioned structure, and therefore, even when the glow discharge lamp is used as a glow starter, the discharge start voltage is reduced. It is possible to suppress an undesired increase in

A glow discharge lamp according to a ninth aspect of the present invention is the glow discharge lamp according to any one of the first to eighth aspects, further comprising a getter material disposed inside the translucent discharge vessel for adsorbing gas. It is characterized by

The following structure can be used as the getter material. That is, Ba or its alloy, or Z
r, Al or alloys thereof can be disposed inside the translucent discharge vessel. As the alloy of Ba, for example, BaAl ₄ can be used. In addition, BaN ₆ (barium azide) can also be used as the compound of Ba. Then, when BaAl ₄ or BaN ₆ is flushed after encapsulation, Ba alone becomes a getter action. As an alloy of Zr and Al, for example, Z
rAl can be used. Further, BaO ₂ (barium peroxide) can be used as a hydrogen getter.

The getter material may be shaped into a ring or a plate and fixed to the electrode, or may be powdered and attached to the stem or the translucent discharge vessel in a film shape.

Thus, by using the zinc alloy as the electron emitting substance, the spattering of zinc is remarkably reduced as described above. For example, when the zinc alloy is attached to the electrode by the electroplating method, A little H ₂
Impure gas such as H ₂ O is occluded. Then, the impure gas may be released from the zinc alloy during the life, and the startability may be adversely affected to some extent. On the other hand, in the present invention, by encapsulating the getter material described above inside the translucent discharge vessel, a slight amount of the zinc alloy, which is an electron emissive material, is emitted into the translucent discharge vessel during its life. The impure gas can be adsorbed and removed satisfactorily. Further, the getter material also adsorbs an impure gas such as H ₂ O emitted from the wall surface of a member such as a translucent discharge vessel.
Therefore, it is possible to extremely well suppress the deterioration of the startability during the life of the discharge lamp.

The glow discharge lamp according to the invention of claim 10 is
The glow discharge lamp according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the glow discharge lamp is provided with a zinc alloy thin film body formed inside a discharge vessel.

The present invention defines a structure suitable as a getter material for adsorbing gas. That is, it was found that the zinc alloy thin film body formed inside the discharge vessel had a getter action.

Since the zinc alloy thin film body has the same constituent material as the zinc alloy of the electron emissive material, it can be formed inside the discharge vessel by, for example, forming the zinc discharge thin film body without forming the zinc alloy thin film body. After manufacturing, a part of zinc alloy as an electron emissive material disposed on the electrode may be sputtered into the discharge vessel by blinking a glow discharge lamp in aging or the like. However, if necessary, the electrode mount may be sealed in the discharge vessel after forming the zinc alloy thin film on the inner surface of the discharge vessel in advance before sealing the electrode.

The zinc alloy thin film body can be formed on the inner surface of the discharge vessel and / or the surface of the stem. Furthermore, the zinc alloy thin film body may be allowed to form an oxide partially or entirely.

Thus, in the present invention, when the zinc alloy thin film body is formed inside the discharge vessel, the surface area is increased and a gas adsorption function, that is, a getter function is exhibited, so that the zinc alloy thin film body is discharged inside the discharge vessel. The inside of the discharge vessel can be cleaned up by adsorbing residual impure gas such as water or hydrogen. For this reason, undesired discharge delay and increase in discharge start voltage are less likely to occur.

The glow discharge lamp according to the invention of claim 11 is
The glow discharge lamp according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein the discharge medium contains hydrogen in an amount of 0.05 to 10%.

The present invention defines a structure in which the amount of hydrogen contained in the discharge medium is set within a predetermined range so that the characteristics of the glow discharge lamp fall within a desired value range. That is, when hydrogen is contained in the discharge medium, discharge delay occurs or the discharge starting voltage rises, so hydrogen is generally tried to be removed. However, it has been found that the increase in the discharge start voltage due to the inclusion of hydrogen can be a means of improvement when the re-operation voltage is too low. For example, in the case where the discharge medium has a structure in which neon is mixed with xenon, the re-operation voltage tends to decrease during the working period, and in an extreme case, it may deviate from the standard value.

In the present invention, the hydrogen content is regulated by the partial pressure as described above, so that the decreasing tendency of the re-operation voltage can be canceled and the re-operation voltage can always be kept within the required range. The preferred range of hydrogen content in the discharge medium is
It is 0.05 to 5%. The content of hydrogen in the discharge medium is determined by analyzing the discharge medium using a mass spectrometer. In addition, the hydrogen released from the zinc alloy during the work is adsorbed by the getter when the getter is arranged inside the discharge vessel, but the hydrogen stored in the electron emitting substance of the zinc alloy is By gradually releasing, it is possible to make up for the decrease. In this case, the amount of hydrogen stored in the electrode formed with the zinc alloy before being sealed in the discharge vessel is 0.1 to 50 PPM (0.1 to 50 μm per 1 g of the electrode).
g) is suitable.

The glow discharge lamp according to the invention of claim 12 is
The glow discharge lamp according to claim 1, wherein at least one of the pair of electrodes is a movable electrode having a bimetal, the bimetal is displaced by heat generated by glow discharge, and the pair of electrodes contact each other. The electron-emitting substance is supported by the bimetal of the movable electrode.

The present invention defines a structure as a glow starter. The bimetal can be provided in one or both of the pair of electrodes. When both are provided with a bimetal, the electron emissive material can be supported by one or both of the bimetals. In addition to the bimetal, the electron emissive material may be supported by the wells supporting the bimetal (for example, the rod-shaped metal 3a in FIG. 2). Further, if a predetermined electron emission characteristic is obtained, the electron emissive substance may be attached only to the wells supporting the bimetal, without supporting the bimetal.

Thus, in the present invention, by supporting the electron emissive substance on the bimetal, a required amount of the electron emissive substance can be easily supported.

The glow discharge lamp according to the invention of claim 13 is
The glow discharge lamp according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein at least one of the pair of electrodes is a movable electrode having a bimetal and the other is a fixed electrode, and the pair of electrodes are displaced by the heat generated by glow discharge. The electrodes are capable of contacting each other; the electron emissive material is directly supported by the fixed electrode.

The present invention is different from the invention of claim 12 in that the electron emitting substance is directly supported by the fixed electrode. That is, since the fixed electrode has few restrictions on the material to be used, it is possible to select a metal that does not easily react with the zinc alloy. Therefore, the underlayer is not needed,
It is easy to manufacture and the cost can be kept low.
Further, since the fixed electrode has few restrictions on the shape and does not deform, it is easy to support the electron emissive substance.

A lighting fixture according to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention is a lighting fixture main body; and the lighting fixture main body is provided in the lighting fixture main body.
And a glow discharge lamp as described above.

In the present invention, the "luminaire main body" means
The rest of the lighting equipment excluding the glow discharge lamp. Therefore, the discharge lamp and the discharge lamp lighting device may be included in the luminaire main body, or one or both of them may not be included in the luminaire main body. The luminaire does not matter its use and structure. When the glow discharge lamp is a glow starter, for example, a fluorescent lamp is arranged in the main body of the luminaire, and the fluorescent lamp is started and lit by the glow starter. When the glow discharge lamp is a display glow discharge lamp, it itself serves as a light source.

The electrode for glow discharge lamps according to the fifteenth aspect of the present invention is characterized in that an electron emissive substance containing a zinc alloy is disposed in the portion sealed in the discharge vessel.

The present invention defines an effective structure as an electrode sealed in a glow discharge lamp.

If the glow discharge lamp electrode of the present invention is sealed together with the discharge medium in a known discharge vessel, the time required for lighting is shortened to improve the starting characteristics under dark conditions, and the electron emissive substance is emitted. The sputtering is substantially improved, and the amount of impure gas emitted from the zinc alloy is reduced, so that a glow discharge lamp having a long life can be obtained.

[0084]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows the first part of the glow discharge lamp of the present invention.
3 is a front view showing a glow starter as an embodiment of FIG.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged front view showing the same electrode mount.

In each drawing, 1 is a discharge vessel, 2 is a fixed electrode, 3 is a movable electrode, 4 is an electron emitting substance, 5 is a case,
Reference numeral 6 is a base, and 7 is a noise prevention capacitor. This embodiment is a P-type glow starter. That is, when the glow starter is a P type, the noise preventing capacitor 7 is built in the case 5, and the mouthpiece 6 is a P21 type pin mouthpiece.

The discharge vessel 1 is made of soft glass and has a glass bulb 1a, a stem portion 1b and an exhaust tip-off portion 1.
c, and the discharge space 1d is formed inside. Although not shown, the glass bulb 1a is previously integrally formed with an open end at one end and a relatively thin exhaust pipe at the other end. The stem portion 1b is integrated with the glass bulb 1a by sealing a flare stem HS described later to the open end of the glass bulb 1a. The exhaust tip-off portion 1c is formed when the exhaust pipe formed at the other end of the glass bulb is chipped off.

The discharge vessel 1 is filled with a neon-xenon mixed gas as a discharge medium.

The fixed electrode 2 and the movable electrode 3 are assembled in advance as an electrode mount EM, as shown in FIG.
By sealing this on the open end of the glass bulb 1a, it is airtightly supported at a predetermined position in the discharge vessel 1.
That is, the electrode mount EM is configured by assembling the flare stem HS, the fixed electrode 2, the movable electrode 3, the external introduction lines OL1 and OL2, and the electron emitting substance 4 in a predetermined positional relationship. Then, the discharge vessel 1 is formed by sealing the flare portion of the flare stem HS to the open end of the glass bulb 1a, and the fixed electrode 2 and the movable electrode 3 are sealed in the discharge vessel 1.

The fixed electrode 2 is made of a rod-shaped metal and has a base end sealed to the flare stem HS and connected to the external lead-in wire OL1.

The movable electrode 3 is composed of a rod-shaped metal 3a and a bimetal 3b. The rod-shaped metal 3a is longer than the fixed electrode 2, and its base end is sealed at a position facing the fixed electrode 2 of the flare stem HS in a separated manner and connected to the external introduction line OL2. In addition, the bimetal 3b is bent in a V-shape, as shown in FIG.
The upper end is welded to the upper part of the rod-shaped metal 3a,
In the cooled state, the lower end is in contact with and locked by the rod-shaped metal 3a.

The electron emissive material 4 is made of a zinc-nickel alloy composed of 90% by mass of zinc and 10% by mass of nickel, and is formed on the surface of the bimetal 3b in a thickness range of 1.0 to 20 μm.

The case 5 is made of a polycarbonate resin having an appropriate light-diffusing property by adding an appropriate amount of urea resin or titanium oxide fine particles having a light-shielding property, and is molded into a cylindrical shape with a bottom. They are engaged and fixed by an adhesive. In addition, the knurled part 5 for picking around the head edge
b.

The base 6 is composed of an insulating substrate 6b and a pair of base pins 6c, 6c. The insulating substrate 6b is
The open end of the case 5 is closed. A pair of base pins 6c,
6c is fixed to the insulating substrate 6b so as to face the insulating substrate 6b.
The locking protrusion 6c1 protruding to the outside of the case 5 and the case 5
And a connecting portion 6c2 projecting inwardly are integrally provided.

The noise prevention capacitor 7 has its lead wire 7
It is connected to the connection portion 6c1 of the pair of pins 6c and 6c so as to be connected in parallel to the fixed electrode 2 and the movable electrode 3 via a.

The electrical characteristics of the examples of the glow starter as the first embodiment of the glow discharge lamp of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 3 to 6 in comparison with comparative examples. In the figure, a solid line a is a graph showing an example, and a dotted line b is a graph showing a comparative example. The example is a glow starter for a 40 W type fluorescent lamp in which a zinc alloy of an electron emitting substance is attached to a bimetal in a film thickness of 5 μm. On the other hand, the comparative examples all have the same specifications as the examples, except that the electron emissive material is zinc alone having a film thickness of 5 μm. In addition, each drawing was prepared based on the results of measuring the electrical characteristics of 20 pieces for each of the example and the comparative example. The relative occurrence rate on the vertical axis represents the number of discharge start times per 20 in total, which is expressed as a percentage. The blinking is on for 25 seconds and off for 35 seconds.

FIG. 3 is a graph showing the variation in the discharge start time at 0 blinks.

FIG. 4 is a graph showing the variation in the discharge start time after 6000 blinks.

At 0 blinks, the discharge start time was extremely short in the example, which was about 0.1 second at the longest, and the comparative example was about 0.2 second at the longest. Has little difference.

On the other hand, after 6000 blinks, in most of the examples, discharge started within 1 second, but in the comparative example, large variation occurred within 4 seconds. this is,
It is considered that the comparative example using zinc alone as the electron emissive material consumed the electron emissive material due to the sputtering accompanying the blinking.

FIG. 5 is a graph showing the variation in the discharge start voltage at 0 blinks.

FIG. 6 is a graph showing the variation in the discharge starting voltage after 6000 blinks.

At zero blinks, the discharge start voltage is 1
The variation was about 10 V around 50 V, and the curve was sharper in the example. On the other hand, after 6000 blinks, the embodiment is 15
The discharge starting voltage varied in the range of 150V to 170V centered on 5V. On the other hand, the comparative example is 1
The discharge start voltage varied from 160 V to 180 V with 70 V as the center. This is because the amount of gas released from the electron emissive material is larger than that in the embodiment, and thus the rise in the discharge starting voltage is relatively high.

FIG. 7 shows the first part of the glow discharge lamp of the present invention.
Flashing 100 in the glow starter as an embodiment of
It is a graph which shows the zinc residual amount after 0 times, comparing with a bimetal and a place other than that with that of a comparative example. In the figure, the horizontal axis represents the first and second embodiments having the same configuration as the above embodiment.
And the bimetals of Comparative Examples 1 to 3 having the same configuration as the above comparative example are shown on the left side, those other than the bimetal are on the right side, and the vertical axis shows the zinc residual amount (relative value).

As can be understood from the figure, in Examples 1 and 2, more electron emitting material remained in the bimetal than in Comparative Examples 1 to 3, and therefore, the number of electron emitting materials other than the bimetal was small. This indicates that according to the present invention, the scattering of the electron emissive substance by sputtering is less than that of the comparative example in which zinc alone is used as the electron emissive substance.

FIG. 8 shows the first part of the glow discharge lamp of the present invention.
5 is a graph showing the gas release amount per bimetal of the example in the glow starter as the embodiment of the present invention together with that of the comparative example. In the figure, the horizontal axis represents Example 1 of the present invention, Comparative Examples 1 and 2, and Reference Example, and the vertical axis represents the total gas release pressure (Pa). In addition, the reference example shows the result of analyzing the gas emission amount of only the bimetal which does not support the electron emissive material.

As can be understood from the figure, according to the present invention, by using the zinc alloy as the electron emitting substance, the gas emission amount is remarkably reduced as compared with the comparative example in which only zinc is used as the electron emitting substance. Is almost the same as the reference example which does not support.

The glass used for the discharge vessel 1 or the stem portion 1b is a glass or Al ₂ O containing 2% by mass of MgO and 10% or less of Na ₂ O in mass%.
_When the glass having ₃ of more than 1.8% and Na ₂ O of 10% or less is used, the required lighting time is further shortened. It is thought that this is because MgO or Al ₂ O ₃ in the glass emits exo (Exo) electrons and acts as an electron source for starting. Na ₂ O is 10
If the content is more than%, even if MgO or A
Even if a predetermined amount of 1 ₂ O ₃ was mixed, the effect of shortening the lighting required time was reduced. It is considered that this is because a large amount of Na mixed in the glass increases the electrical conductivity of the glass. In other words, from MgO to Exo
In order for electrons to be emitted, mechanical stimulation, electrical stimulation, and the like are necessary. However, since a large amount of Na is contained in the glass, the leak current passes through the inside instead of the surface, which causes electrical leakage. It is speculated that it may be because no stimulation is given.

Next, Table 1 shows an example of glass satisfying the above composition. This glass is a so-called leadless glass that does not substantially contain a lead component, and when this glass was used for the stem portion 1b of the glow starter, the discharge start time was further shortened.

[0111]

Table 1 SiO ₂ 60 to 75% by mass Li ₂ O 1 to 5% by mass Na ₂ O 10% by mass or less K ₂ O 3 to 8% by mass SrO 4 to 8% by mass BaO 1 to 4.5% by mass MgO 2 ˜8% by mass FIG. 9 is a graph showing the results of measuring the amount of hydrogen released from the electrodes electroplated with a zinc alloy at different current densities in the first embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, the abscissa represents nine samples each having a current density of 10 A / dm ² and 5 A / dm ² , and the ordinate represents the hydrogen release amount (relative value).
Are shown respectively. The zinc alloy is electroplated on the surface of the bimetal 3b in FIG. Then, each of the nine electrodes was set in a vacuum, heated to 1000 ° C. to release the gas, and the amount of hydrogen was determined by a mass spectrometer.

As is clear from the figure, the amount of hydrogen released is smaller when electroplating is performed at a lower current density. Then, as a result of manufacturing a lighting tube using electrodes with the same specifications as these,
Even after 6000 blinks, the lighting delay time in the dark was as short as desired.

In each of the lighting tubes according to the first embodiment of the present invention described above, the thin film body is formed on the inner surface of the discharge vessel by sputtering. When the attached thin film body was peeled off and analyzed, it was found that the zinc alloy thin film body was composed mainly of zinc alloy. Then, hydrogen was adsorbed on the zinc alloy thin film body. The zinc alloy thin film body was partially oxidized.

Further, as a result of analyzing the amount of hydrogen in the discharge medium mainly containing neon and xenon enclosed in the ignition tube in the first embodiment of the present invention, hydrogen is 0.3
Was 2.8%.

Other embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. In each figure, the same parts as those in FIGS. 1 and 2 are designated by the same reference numerals and the description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 10 is an enlarged front view showing the electrode mount of the glow starter as the second embodiment of the glow discharge lamp of the present invention.

The present embodiment is different in that the electron emissive material 4 is supported by the fixed electrode 2. In addition, an exo electron emissive material Exo is attached to the flare stem HS. This Exo electron emissive material Ex
o is a powder of Al ₂ O ₃ , MgO and Be applied and formed using a binder. In this way, exo (E
xo) Using the electron emissive material Exo, even if a problem that a large amount of impure gas is released from the zinc alloy should occur, the exo electron emissive material Exo
It has been confirmed that the effect of shortening the discharge start time by the zinc alloy is reliably maintained because it compensates for the lack of initial electrons.

FIG. 11 is an enlarged front view showing the electrode mount of the glow starter as the third embodiment of the glow discharge lamp of the present invention.

In this embodiment, the getter material 8 is used as the fixed electrode 2.
It is different in that it is supported by. That is, the getter material 8
Is made of a ZrAl alloy plate piece and is fixed to the outside of the fixed electrode 2 near the base by spot welding. The getter agent 8 mainly adsorbs a slight amount of H ₂ gas released from the electron emitting material 4 during its life.

FIG. 12 is a partially sectional front view showing a glow starter as a fourth embodiment of the glow discharge lamp of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a sectional front view of the same main portion.

This embodiment is an E-type glow starter.

The case 5 is formed into a bottomed cylindrical shape by molding a polycarbonate resin having an appropriate amount of titanium oxide fine particles added thereto so as to have an appropriate light diffusivity, and a plurality of ridges 5a are formed on the peripheral edge. is doing. Then, a pair of electrodes 2 and 3 and an electron emissive substance 4 are sealed in the inside thereof, and a discharge vessel 1 in which a discharge medium is sealed is housed. The pair of electrodes 2, 3, the electron emissive substance 4, and the discharge medium have the same configuration as in the first embodiment.

The base 6 is made of an E17 type screw base, is attached to the opening end of the case 6, and is fixed to the opening end of the case 5 by caulking. In addition, 6a in the drawing is a crimping mark, which is formed at the time of crimping.

FIG. 14 is a front view showing a wire bulb in a glow discharge lamp for display as a fifth embodiment of the glow discharge lamp of the present invention.

The pair of electrodes 2, 2 are both fixed electrodes.

The electron emissive substance 4 is supported by the pair of electrodes 2, 2. It was sometimes formed.

FIG. 15 is a partially cutaway vertical sectional view showing a cold cathode fluorescent lamp as a sixth embodiment of the glow discharge lamp of the present invention.

In this embodiment, a pair of cold cathode type electrodes 2 and 2 are sealed at both ends in the longitudinal direction of an elongated discharge vessel 1 having a phosphor layer 9 disposed on the inner surface thereof, and an electron emissive material 4 is provided in a pair. It is supported by the electrodes 2, 2.

FIG. 16 is a partially sectional front view showing a fluorescent lamp pendant as an embodiment of the lighting fixture of the present invention.

In the figure, 11 is a lighting fixture main body, 12,
13 is a glow starter.

The luminaire main body 11 includes a chassis 11a, a shade 11b, fluorescent lamps 11c and 11d, a lamp holder 11e, a night light 11f, a ballast 11g, a changeover switch 11h, a pendant cord 11i and a cord holder 11.
j and a hook ceiling cap 11k. The chassis 11a has a ballast 11g and a changeover switch 11h housed therein, and a lamp holder 11 on the side edge.
j is fixed and the upper surface supports the shade 1b. The fluorescent lamps 11c and 11d are supported by the chassis 11a via a lamp holder 11e. The night light 11f is exposed from the lower surface of the chassis 11a. The pendant cord 11i is led out from the upper surface of the chassis 11a via a cord holder 11j. Cord holder 11j
Directly enables the length of the pendant cord 11i. The hook ceiling cap 11k is connected to the tip of the pendant cord 11i, is electrically connected to the hook ceiling body installed on the ceiling of the room, and is mechanically supported, so that the lighting fixture main body is provided. 11 is hung from the ceiling.

The glow starters 12 and 13 are mounted inside the chassis fluorescent lamp 11a, and their heads are attached to the chassis 11
The fluorescent lamps 11c and 11d are exposed to the outside from a.
Start individually.

[0134]

According to each of the first to ninth aspects of the invention, the discharge container, the pair of electrodes, the discharge medium, and the electron emissive material containing the zinc alloy disposed on at least one of the pair of electrodes are provided. By shortening the lighting time and improving the starting characteristics under dark conditions, the sputtering of electron emissive material is essentially improved, and the amount of impure gas emitted from the zinc alloy is reduced. A glow discharge lamp having a long life can be provided.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, since the zinc alloy is a zinc-nickel alloy, a glow discharge lamp equipped with an electron emitting substance that is easily available on an industrial scale and is inexpensive is provided. Can be provided.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, since the zinc alloy is a zinc-nickel alloy containing nickel in an amount of 2 to 15% by mass, the melting point is high, and for example, the electrodeposited on the electrode by eutectoid electroplating. It is possible to provide a glow discharge lamp which can be directly formed into a film shape on the substrate, facilitates the disposition of the electron emissive substance, and has sufficient electron emissivity.

According to the invention of claim 4, in addition, the zinc alloy is a ternary zinc alloy containing zinc and two kinds of metals selected from the group of cobalt, copper, nickel, tin and molybdenum as main components. With such a structure, it is possible to provide a glow discharge lamp that exhibits substantially the same actions and effects as those of the binary zinc alloy.

According to the invention of claim 5, in addition, the electron emissive material is composed of a zinc alloy and a metal having a work function of 4 eV or less and a melting point of 500 ° C. or more. It is possible to provide a glow discharge lamp that can obtain both the above-described excellent action and effect of a zinc alloy and the action and effect of electron emission by a metal under predetermined conditions.

According to the invention of claim 6, in addition to the fact that the electron emissive substance is supported by the electrode through the underlayer, it is possible to provide a glow discharge lamp in which interference between the electrode and the electron emissive substance is suppressed. it can.

According to the invention of claim 7, in addition, since the zinc alloy is formed by electroplating at a current density of 1 to 15 A / dm ^2, the release of hydrogen gas during the operation is small and the discharge delay occurs. It is possible to provide a glow discharge lamp that does not easily generate.

According to the eighth aspect of the present invention, in addition, the zinc alloy is disposed on the electrode by electroplating, and the hydrogen storage capacity is in the range of 0.1 to 50 PPM. It is possible to provide a glow discharge lamp that can reduce the release of hydrogen during use, and thus can suppress an undesired increase in the discharge start voltage even when used as a glow starter. it can.

According to the ninth aspect of the present invention, since the getter material for adsorbing gas disposed in the light-transmissive discharge vessel is additionally provided, the zinc alloy of the electron emissive material can be transmitted during the life. Since a slight amount of impure gas released into the photo-discharge container is adsorbed and removed satisfactorily, it is possible to provide a discharge lamp that suppresses the deterioration of startability during its life very well.

According to the tenth aspect of the invention, since the zinc alloy thin film body is additionally provided inside the discharge vessel, the surface area of the zinc alloy thin film body is increased and the gas adsorption action, that is, the getter action. Therefore, it is possible to provide a glow discharge lamp in which the interior of the discharge vessel is cleaned up and an unwanted discharge delay or an increase in the discharge starting voltage is unlikely to occur.

According to the invention of claim 11, in addition, the discharge medium contains 0.05 to 5% of hydrogen.
It is possible to provide a glow discharge lamp that offsets the decrease tendency of the restart voltage and always keeps the restart voltage within the required range.

According to the twelfth aspect of the invention, in addition, the pair of electrodes is composed of a movable electrode at least one of which has a bimetal, and the bimetal is displaced by heat generated by glow discharge so that the pair of electrodes can come into contact with each other. In addition, since the electron emitting substance is supported by the bimetal of the movable electrode, it is possible to provide a glow discharge lamp suitable for a glow starter provided with a required amount of the electron emitting substance.

According to the thirteenth aspect of the invention, in addition, one of the pair of electrodes is a movable electrode provided with a bimetal, and the other is a fixed electrode. Since the electron-emissive material is directly supported by the fixed electrode while being in contact with each other, it is possible to provide a glow discharge lamp which can be easily manufactured and at a reduced cost.

According to the fourteenth aspect of the present invention, it is preferable that the luminaire main body further includes the glow discharge lamp according to any one of the first to twelfth aspects. A lighting fixture having the effects of items 1 to 13 can be provided.

According to the fifteenth aspect of the present invention, since the electron emissive material containing the zinc alloy is disposed in the portion to be sealed in the discharge vessel, it is possible to seal this together with the discharge medium in a known discharge vessel. In addition, the lighting time is shortened to improve the starting characteristics under dark conditions, the sputtering of electron emissive material is essentially improved, and the amount of impure gas emitted from the zinc alloy is reduced, resulting in a long service life. A glow discharge lamp can be obtained.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing a glow starter as a first embodiment of a glow discharge lamp of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged front view of the same electrode mount.

FIG. 3 is a graph showing variations in discharge start time at 0 blinks.

FIG. 4 is a graph showing variations in discharge start time after blinking 6000 times.

FIG. 5 is a graph showing variations in discharge start voltage at 0 blinks.

FIG. 6 is a graph showing variations in the discharge start voltage after 6000 blinks.

FIG. 7 is a graph showing the residual zinc amount after 1000 blinks in the glow starter as the first embodiment of the glow discharge lamp of the present invention, comparing the amount of remaining zinc with that of bimetal together with that of the comparative example.

FIG. 8 is a graph showing the amount of gas released per bimetal of the example in the glow starter as the first embodiment of the glow discharge lamp of the present invention together with that of the comparative example.

FIG. 9 is a graph showing the results of measuring the amount of hydrogen released from electrodes electroplated with a zinc alloy at different current densities in the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is an enlarged front view showing an electrode mount of a glow starter as a second embodiment of a glow discharge lamp of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is an enlarged front view showing an electrode mount of a glow starter as a third embodiment of a glow discharge lamp of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a partially sectional front view showing a glow starter as a fourth embodiment of a glow discharge lamp of the present invention.

FIG. 13 is a sectional front view of the same main portion.

FIG. 14 is a front view showing a wire bulb in a glow discharge lamp for display as a fifth embodiment of a glow discharge lamp of the present invention.

FIG. 15 is a partially cutaway vertical sectional view showing a cold cathode fluorescent lamp as a sixth embodiment of a glow discharge lamp of the present invention.

FIG. 16 is a partially sectional front view showing a fluorescent lamp pendant as one embodiment of a lighting fixture of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 ... Discharge container 1a ... Glass bulb 1b ... Stem part 1c ... Exhaust tip off section 1d ... Discharge space 2 ... Fixed electrode 3 ... Movable electrode 3a ... metal rod 3b ... Bimetal 4 ... Electron emissive material 5 ... Case 5b ... Knurl 6 ... Clasp 6b ... Insulating substrate 6c ... Clasp pin 6c1 ... Locking protrusion 6c2 ... Connection part 7. Noise prevention capacitor 7a ... Lead wire EM ... Electrode mount HS ... flare stem OL1 ... External lead-in line OL2 ... External lead-in line

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ───

[Procedure amendment]

[Submission date] June 26, 2002 (2002.6.2)
6)

[Procedure Amendment 1]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Name of item to be corrected] 0032

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

Further, since the electron emissive substance is a zinc alloy, the melting point of the electron emissive substance is high, so that the sputtering is remarkably reduced, and the characteristic is deteriorated as the electron emissive substance is consumed. Be improved. Therefore, the zinc alloy, a high melting point than zinc
Decoction one is selectively used. Further, it was found that the amount of the impure gas released from the zinc alloy was smaller than that in the case where a film of zinc alone was used as the electron emitting substance. It is considered that this is due to the fact that the amount of impure gas mixed in during plating production is reduced. Therefore, the electron emission action of the zinc alloy is favorably continued during the life of the glow discharge lamp, and the deterioration of the startability due to the emission of the impure gas is small, and the life of the glow discharge lamp is extended.

[Procedure Amendment 2]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Name of item to be corrected] 0127

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

The electron emissive substance 4 is supported by the pair of electrodes 2, 2. ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ───

[Procedure amendment]

[Submission date] October 3, 2002 (2002.10.
3)

[Procedure Amendment 1]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Name of item to be corrected] Claim 1

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

[Procedure Amendment 2]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Name of item to be corrected] Claim 2

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

[Procedure 3]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Name of item to be corrected] Claim 15

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

[Procedure amendment 4]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Name of item to be corrected] 0015

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

[0015]

The glow discharge lamp of the present invention comprises a discharge vessel; a pair of electrodes sealed in the discharge vessel; a discharge medium mainly containing a rare gas sealed in the discharge vessel; And an electron emissive material made of a zinc alloy having a melting point of 450 ° C. or higher formed on at least one of the pair of electrodes.

[Procedure Amendment 5]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Name of item to be corrected] 0023

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

<Electron Emissive Material> The electron emissive material is also called an electrode activator, but in the present invention, it contains at least a zinc alloy having a melting point of 450 ° C. or higher . The electrodes are arranged so as to cover a part or almost the entire surface of at least one of the pair of electrodes. The zinc alloy is not limited in the kind of metal that forms an alloy with zinc. For example, Ag, Al, Au, Ba, Be, Ce, Co, C
a, Cr, Cu, Fe, Ge, La, Mn, Mo, N
A zinc alloy containing one or more selected from the group of i, Pd, Pt, Te, Ti, W and Zr as the other component can be used. However, in the above group, the action is best when Ni is the component,
A zinc alloy having a melting point of 450 ° C. or higher can be obtained easily and inexpensively. In addition, Co, Fe, Cu, Al, M
n, Cr and Mo are also relatively easy to obtain.

[Procedure correction 6]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Name of item to be corrected] 0024

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

On the other hand, the zinc alloy used in the present invention is
Since its melting point is 450 ° C or higher, it is suitable for spatter resistance.
Can be raised. The melting point is preferably in the range of 550 to 830 ° C. in order to facilitate the manufacturing process of the zinc alloy. Further, in order to obtain a predetermined electron emission characteristic, the zinc content is preferably 50% by mass or more, and more preferably 65 to 98% by mass.

[Procedure Amendment 7]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Name of item to be corrected] 0025

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

Next, in order to arrange the above zinc alloy on the electrode, preferably in the form of a film, for example, electroplating, hot dipping,
Means such as vacuum deposition, CVD or ion plating can be used. Further, this makes it possible to form a zinc alloy film which is easy to control to a desired film thickness, is dense, and has less impurities mixed therein. However, electroplating is the most economical. In the case of electroplating, a zinc alloy film is directly formed on the electrode of the glow discharge lamp by the eutectoid electroplating method in which an alloy-forming metal such as zinc and nickel is used as one electrode and the electrode of the glow discharge lamp is used as the other electrode. be able to. It is also possible to first electroplate an alloy-forming metal such as nickel and then zinc, or first zinc, and then an alloy-forming metal such as nickel, and then heat treat the zinc. A two-step plating method for forming an alloy film can also be used.

[Procedure Amendment 8]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0026

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

As the electron emitting substance, it is permitted to add another electron emitting substance in addition to the above zinc alloy. According to the study of the present inventor, carbon nanotubes have an electron emissivity, and therefore, they can be added to a zinc alloy as an electron emissive substance in the present invention. However, carbon nanotubes can also be used alone.

[Procedure Amendment 9]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0031

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

<Regarding Operation of the Present Invention> In the present invention, the zinc component of the zinc alloy contained in the electron emissive substance is activated to easily emit electrons. The initial electron emission performance of zinc alloy is almost the same as that of zinc. Therefore, the starting characteristics of the glow discharge lamp under dark conditions can be improved.

[Procedure Amendment 10]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Name of item to be corrected] 0032

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

The zinc alloy according to the present invention has a melting point.
When the point is 450 ° C. or higher , the melting point of the electron emissive material is increased, so that the sputtering is remarkably reduced, and the problem that the characteristics are deteriorated due to the consumption of the electron emissive material is essentially solved. Further, it has been found that the zinc alloy in the present invention has a smaller amount of impure gas released therefrom, as compared with the case where a film of zinc alone is used as the electron-emitting substance. It is considered that this is due to the fact that the amount of impure gas mixed in during plating production is reduced. Therefore, the electron emission action of the zinc alloy is favorably continued during the life of the glow discharge lamp, and the deterioration of the startability due to the emission of the impure gas is small, and the life of the glow discharge lamp is extended.

[Procedure Amendment 11]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0033

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

The glow discharge lamp of the invention of claim 2, release
An electric container; a pair of electrodes enclosed in a discharge container; an electric discharge
A discharge medium mainly containing a rare gas enclosed in a container;
Zinc disposed on at least one of the pair of electrodes-
Electron emissive material containing zinc alloy consisting of nickel alloy
It is characterized by having and;

[Procedure Amendment 12]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0034

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

The present invention is suitable for use as an electron emitting substance.
It defines the structure of glow discharge lamps containing lead alloys . That is, in the case of a zinc alloy containing Ni as the other component, the melting point 881 is
C. NiZn _{3 at a} temperature of ℃, and by containing about 19 mass% of Ni, it becomes NiZn ₂₁ having a melting point of about 870 ° C.,
Further, by containing about 11 mass% of Ni, the melting point is 79
NiZn _{8 of} about 0 ℃, melting point is 450 ℃
Above, the stable intermetallic compound is formed. As described above, various forms of the zinc-nickel alloy can be applied without departing from the spirit of the present invention, and for example, the form of solid solution is also acceptable.

[Procedure Amendment 13]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0081

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

The glow discharge lamp electrode according to the invention of claim 15 has a melting point of 450 ° C. or higher in the portion sealed in the discharge vessel.
It is characterized in that an electron emissive material containing the above zinc alloy is disposed.

[Procedure Amendment 14]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Name of item to be corrected] 0083

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

When the glow discharge lamp electrode of the present invention is sealed together with the discharge medium in a well-known discharge container, the time required for lighting is shortened to improve the starting characteristics under dark conditions, and the electron emissive substance is emitted. Sputtering is essentially improved, and the zinc alloy has a melting point of 450
Since the temperature is not lower than 0 ° C, the amount of impure gas released from the zinc alloy is reduced, and it becomes possible to obtain a glow discharge lamp having a long life.

[Procedure Amendment 15]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0093

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

The electron emissive substance 4 has a melting point of 450 ° C. or higher.
Contains zinc alloy. This zinc alloy is a zinc-nickel alloy composed of 90% by mass of zinc and 10% by mass of nickel, and has a thickness of 1.0 to 20 μm on the surface of the bimetal 3b.
It is formed within the range of m.

[Procedure Amendment 16]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0108

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

As can be understood from the figure, according to the present invention, the use of a zinc alloy having a melting point of 450 ° C. or higher as the electron-emitting substance results in a significantly higher gas release amount than in the comparative example using zinc alone as the electron-emitting substance. It is almost the same as the reference example which does not support the electron emissive material.

[Procedure Amendment 17]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0111

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

[0111]

[Table 1] SiO_Two    60-75 mass% Li_TwoO 1-5% by mass Na_TwoO 10 mass% or less K_TwoO 3-8 mass% SrO 4-8% by mass BaO 1-4.5 mass% MgO 2-8% by mass FIG. 9 shows that in the first embodiment of the present invention, different currents are used.
In densityWith a melting point of 450 ° C or higherElectroplated zinc alloy
A graph showing the results of measuring the amount of hydrogen released from the electrode
is there. In the figure, the horizontal axis represents the current density of 10 A / dm^TwoAnd
And 5 A / dm ^TwoEach of 9 samples, the vertical axis is water
The elementary release amount (relative value) is shown. In addition,the abovezinc
The alloy is electroplated on the surface of the bimetal 3b of FIG.
There is. Then, each of the 9 electrodes is set in a vacuum and
Heat up to 00 ° C to release gas and use hydrogen with a mass spectrometer.
The amount was calculated.

[Procedure 18]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0117

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

The present embodiment is different in that the electron emissive material 4 is supported by the fixed electrode 2. In addition, an exo electron emissive material Exo is attached to the flare stem HS. This Exo electron emissive material Ex
o is a powder of Al ₂ O ₃ , MgO and Be applied and formed using a binder. In this way, exo (E
xo) By using the electron emissive material Exo, the melting point is 4
In the unlikely event that a large amount of impure gas is released from a zinc alloy at 50 ° C or higher, Exo
Since the electron emissive material Exo makes up for the lack of initial electrons,
It was confirmed that the effect of shortening the discharge start time by the zinc alloy was reliably maintained.

[Procedure Amendment 19]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0134

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

[0134]

According to each of the first to ninth aspects of the present invention, an electron containing a zinc alloy having a melting point of 450 ° C. or higher disposed in at least one of the discharge vessel, the pair of electrodes, the discharge medium, and the pair of electrodes. Equipped with a radioactive material, the lighting time is shortened to improve the starting characteristics under dark conditions, the sputtering of electron radioactive material is essentially improved, and the emission of impure gas from the zinc alloy is improved. The quantity is reduced, and a long-life glow discharge lamp can be provided.

[Procedure amendment 20]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Name of item to be corrected] 0135

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

According to the invention of claim 2, a discharge vessel, a pair
At least one of the electrodes, the discharge medium, and the pair of electrodes
Zinc alloy made of zinc-nickel alloy disposed on either side
By providing the electron emissive material containing gold, it is possible to provide a glow discharge lamp including an electron emissive material that is easily available on an industrial scale and is inexpensive.

[Procedure correction 21]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Name of item to be corrected] 0148

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

According to the fifteenth aspect of the present invention, since the electron emissive material containing a zinc alloy having a melting point of 450 ° C. or more is arranged in the portion sealed in the discharge vessel, this can be applied to a known discharge vessel. By encapsulating with the discharge medium, the lighting time can be shortened to improve the starting characteristics under dark conditions, and the sputtering of electron emissive material can be essentially improved, and the amount of impure gas emitted from the zinc alloy can be reduced. As a result, a long-life glow discharge lamp can be obtained.

[Procedure correction 22]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] Figure 9

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

FIG. 9 is a graph showing the results of measuring the amount of hydrogen released from electrodes electroplated with a zinc alloy having a melting point of 450 ° C. or more at different current densities in the first embodiment of the present invention.

   ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continued front page    (72) Inventor Nobuhiro Tamura             4-3-1, Higashishinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo             Itec Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Noriyuki Hayama             4-3-1, Higashishinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo             Itec Co., Ltd. (72) Inventor Hiroyuki Matsunaga             4-3-1, Higashishinagawa, Shinagawa-ku, Tokyo             Itec Co., Ltd.

Claims (15)

[Claims] 1. A discharge vessel; a pair of electrodes sealed in the discharge vessel; a discharge medium mainly containing a rare gas sealed in the discharge vessel; provided on at least one of the pair of electrodes. And an electron emissive material containing a zinc alloy; 2. The glow discharge lamp according to claim 1, wherein the zinc alloy is a zinc-nickel alloy. 3. A zinc-nickel alloy contains 2-1 nickel.
The glow discharge lamp according to claim 2, wherein the glow discharge lamp contains 5% by mass. 4. The zinc alloy comprises a ternary zinc alloy containing zinc and two metals selected from the group consisting of cobalt, copper, nickel, tin and molybdenum as main components. The glow discharge lamp according to 1. 5. The electron emissive material is composed of a zinc-nickel alloy and a metal having a work function of 4 eV or less and a melting point of 500 ° C. or more. Glow discharge lamp. 6. The glow discharge lamp according to claim 1, wherein the electron emissive material is supported by the electrodes via an underlayer. 7. A zinc alloy has a current density of 1 to 15 A / dm ^2.
The glow discharge lamp according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the glow discharge lamp is formed by electroplating. 8. The zinc alloy is a zinc-nickel alloy which is disposed on an electrode by electroplating and has a hydrogen storage capacity of 0.1 to 50 PPM. The glow discharge lamp according to any one of 1. 9. The glow discharge lamp according to claim 1, further comprising a getter material disposed inside the discharge vessel for adsorbing gas. 10. A zinc alloy thin film body formed inside a discharge vessel.
The glow discharge lamp according to any one of 1. 11. The glow discharge lamp according to claim 1, wherein the discharge medium contains hydrogen in an amount of 0.05 to 10%. 12. The pair of electrodes comprises a movable electrode having at least one bimetal, and the bimetal is displaced by the heat generated by glow discharge so that the pair of electrodes can come into contact with each other; The glow discharge lamp according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the glow discharge lamp is supported by a bimetal of a movable electrode. 13. A pair of electrodes, at least one of which is a movable electrode provided with a bimetal, and the other of which is a fixed electrode, and the bimetal is displaced by heat generated by glow discharge so that the pair of electrodes can contact each other; 12. The glow discharge lamp according to claim 1, wherein the electron emitting substance is directly supported by the fixed electrode. 14. A luminaire, comprising: a luminaire main body; and the glow discharge lamp according to claim 1, which is arranged in the luminaire main body. 15. An electrode for a glow discharge lamp, wherein an electron emissive material containing a zinc alloy is arranged in a portion sealed in a discharge vessel.