JPH0346941B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (a) Technical Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a surface discharge type gas discharge panel, and particularly to a panel structure with improved luminance.

(b) Technical background One type of AC-driven gas discharge panel is a panel called a surface discharge type. In this type of gas discharge panel, both an X electrode and a Y electrode are disposed on only one of a pair of substrates located opposite to each other with a gas-filled space in between. Its unique feature is that it generates horizontal discharge along both directions. According to such a configuration, the requirement for the gap accuracy between the pair of substrates is significantly relaxed, and an ultraviolet-excited phosphor is added to the inner surface of the cover substrate, allowing for conversion of display colors and multicolor display. It has the advantage of being easy to perform. For this reason, it has recently attracted particular attention, and research is underway to increase its brightness for practical use in display panels.

(c) Prior art and problems Figures 1 and 2 are a plan view showing an example of the electrode arrangement of a conventional surface discharge type gas discharge panel disclosed in JP-A No. 57-74940, and the - line in the plan view. FIG. In these figures, 1 is a lower glass substrate that functions as an electrode support substrate, 2 is a lower layer of X electrodes arranged in a plurality of horizontal directions, 3 is a dielectric layer made of low melting point glass, etc., and 4 is the X electrode and the lower layer. A plurality of Y electrodes are arranged in the vertical direction so as to be orthogonal to each other. The intersection portions of the X electrode 2 and the Y electrode 4 are each formed into a circular shape that expands in the electrode width direction, as shown by reference numerals 2a and 4a, and constitute a gas discharge portion. Note that the circular enlarged portion 2a of the X electrode is set to be large enough to completely surround the circular enlarged portion 4a of the Y electrode. Further, 5 is an insulating layer that insulates the Y electrode from the gas-filled space 6, and is made of a laminate of a dielectric material such as low melting point glass and magnesium oxide. Reference numeral 7 denotes an upper glass substrate for a cover, which is disposed opposite to the lower electrode support substrate structure and constitutes the gas-filled space 6.

In such a panel configuration, when a voltage is applied to the selected X electrode and Y electrode such that their combined voltage exceeds the discharge starting potential, an electric field is generated between the edges of the circular enlarged portions 2a and 4a of the crossed electrodes. As a result, a discharge occurs at the electrode intersection. This discharge between the X and Y electrodes occurs in such a way that each electrode surface alternately serves as a cathode, producing a cathode glow. Depending on the formed characteristic structure, a nearly circular sharp with a uniform size becomes a discharge spot in both cases when the lower layer X electrode side acts as a cathode and discharges, and when the upper layer Y electrode side acts as a cathode and discharges. . Therefore, the distance between adjacent discharge points can be narrowed and the resolution can be improved (for details, see the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 74940/1983). However, in this electrode structure, although the area around the electrode edge where current concentration occurs emits light with relatively high brightness, the center of the upper layer Y electrode 4 becomes a dark area because no electric field is generated, and visually the center It exhibits a dark discharge point morphology. Therefore, the luminance of the discharge portion is low and the display is difficult to see when used as a display panel.

(d) Purpose of the Invention In view of the above-mentioned circumstances, the present invention aims to improve the display quality of a surface discharge type gas discharge panel in which a pair of electrodes are disposed above and below to face each other with an insulating film in between. More specifically, the aim is to improve the electrode structure and achieve bright luminescence.

(e) Structure of the Invention Briefly stated, in the surface discharge type gas discharge panel of the present invention, the enlarged part of the upper layer electrode has a smaller area than the circular enlarged part of the lower electrode, and the enlarged part of the upper layer electrode is formed into a ring shape, with the center hole diameter being the diameter of the outer diameter. The electrode is formed at a ratio of 0.5 to 0.75, and an electric field is generated at the inner periphery of the hole to cause a discharge. The feature is that dark areas do not appear in the spots.

(f) Embodiment of the Invention Hereinafter, an embodiment of the invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

3 and 4 are a plan view showing the electrode arrangement of a panel based on such an actual travel example, and a sectional view thereof taken along the line -'. This panel has almost the same structure as in FIGS. 1 and 2 above, except for the shape of the Y electrode on the upper layer, so in FIGS. The detailed explanation will be omitted.

That is, in the upper layer Y electrode 8, as shown in both figures, the center of the circular enlarged portion 8a is perforated.

When the enlarged portion 8a of the upper layer electrode is formed into a ring shape in this manner, discharge can be generated at the outer circumference of the enlarged portion and the inner circumference of the hole simultaneously. That is, when a voltage exceeding the ignition voltage is applied between the upper layer electrode and the lower layer electrode, the electric field generated between the electrodes is
Concentrates on the outer edge and inner edge of a,
In other words, since electric lines of force are generated in this portion, electric discharge occurs simultaneously in the inner and outer peripheral portions of this ring-shaped enlarged portion. These discharges spread outward and inward from each edge of the electrode's enlarged part due to the action of wall charges accumulated on the surface of the dielectric layer on the upper electrode, resulting in a nearly flat area with no dark area at the center. This results in a circular discharge light emission pattern.

What is important here is that the size of this perforation 8b (hole diameter da) greatly affects the luminous efficiency and brightness of the discharge part, and when the outer diameter of the Y electrode enlarged part 8a is db, 0.5db≦da≦ A range of 0.75db is optimal. That is, the diameter da of the perforation 8b is the ratio of the outer diameter of the circular ampullae.
If it is less than 0.5, only a small discharge spot will be generated between the perforated part and the lower layer X electrode 2, so a dark area will remain between the discharge light generated around the outer circumference of the circular ampullae, and if it is more than 0.75, the above-mentioned electrode Due to the discharge phenomenon in which discharge occurs only at the edges, the center of the perforation does not emit light and becomes a dark area, in short, as described above.
Outside the range of 0.5 db≦da≦0.75 db, dark portions occur in the light emission form, and it is still not possible to obtain high brightness. In other words, if the perforation diameter is selected within this range, it is possible to generate a sharp discharge spot with no dark areas.

FIGS. 5 and 6 are diagrams showing the experimental results of the luminous efficiency and luminance of such a light emitting form, and in both figures, the horizontal axis represents the diameter of the large circular electrode portion. Note that in this experiment, the outer diameter of the circular ampullae of the lower X electrode 2 was
210 μm, the outer diameter of the circular ampullae of the upper layer Y electrode 8 is
150μm, the arrangement pitch of both electrodes is 0.45mm, and
The experiment was carried out using a panel filled with a mixed gas of neon (Ne) and xenon (Xe) at a pressure of 500 Torr. As is clear from these figures, the upper layer Y electrode 8
A hole 8b with a diameter of 90 μm was formed in the circular enlarged part 8a, that is, the ratio of the hole diameter to the outer diameter of the circular enlarged part.
According to the panel with the upper layer electrode structure set to 0.6,
Luminous efficiency compared to conventional panels without perforations,
Both brightness has improved by about 2 times. Furthermore, it has been confirmed that a pore diameter in the range of 77 to 110 μm is useful because it maximizes the luminous efficiency and exhibits the optimum values of 1.2 m/w or more and luminance of 400 cd/m ² or more.

The diameter of the hole in the circular ampullae of this Y electrode is 77 to 110 μm.
The size is 0.51 to 0.73 with respect to the outer diameter of 150 μm of the circular enlarged portion, and the ratio approximately corresponds to the above-mentioned 0.5 to 0.75. The magnitude is between 0.5 and 0.75.

In the above embodiment, the shape of the perforation 8b is a perfect circle, but it may be rectangular, or circular with a jagged inner edge, etc., as long as the perforation is essentially in the vicinity of the center of the electrode's circular expansion.

(g) Effects of the Invention As is clear from the above description, according to the present invention, resolution and luminance can be improved in a surface discharge type gas discharge panel structure in which a pair of electrodes are arranged facing each other on the same substrate, vertically intersecting each other. can be significantly improved,
Display quality can be significantly improved.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

1 and 2 are a plan view showing an example of the electrode arrangement of a conventional surface discharge type gas discharge triple channel, and a cross-sectional view thereof taken along the line -', and FIGS. A plan view showing the electrode arrangement of the panel according to the embodiment, a sectional view thereof taken along the line -', and FIGS. 5 and 6 show the size of the perforation diameter of the upper layer electrode and the light emission for explaining the effects of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the relationship between efficiency and brightness. In the figure, 1 is a lower glass substrate, 2 is a lower electrode, 3 is a dielectric layer, 4 and 8 are upper electrodes, 5 is an insulating layer, 6 is a gas-filled space, 7 is an upper glass substrate for cover, 2a, 4a and 8a is the electrode ampulla;
8b each indicates a perforation.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. Two layers of electrodes 2 arranged on one substrate 1 of a pair of substrates 1 and 7 facing each other with a gas-filled space 6 interposed therebetween in a direction crossing each other with an insulating film 3 interposed therebetween. 8
In a gas discharge panel structure in which the upper electrode 2 is covered with a dielectric layer and a discharge is generated near the intersection of the upper electrode 2 and the lower electrode 8, at the intersection of the lower electrode 2 and the upper electrode 8. The enlarged portions 2 of the lower electrode 2 each form an enlarged portion.
a has a circular shape larger than the enlarged part 8a of the upper electrode 8, and the enlarged part 8a of the upper electrode 8 has a ring shape with a hole in the center, and the diameter of the hole 8b is 0.5 to 0.5 to the outer diameter of the enlarged part. A surface discharge type gas discharge panel characterized in that the electrode is formed at a ratio of 0.75, and discharge is generated between the outer circumference of the upper layer electrode enlarged portion 8a and the inner circumference of the hole, respectively, between the upper layer electrode enlarged portion 2a and the lower layer electrode enlarged portion 2a. .