JPH10170896A - Image display device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an image display device that can accurately grasp the resistance value of a discharge electrode and damages neither a partition wall nor the discharge electrode when the resistance value is measured. SOLUTION: This devices has a plasma cell formed by arranging a dielectric thin plate on a 1st substrate having nearly parallel discharge electrodes 9A and 9K formed on one main surface with a prescribed gap and sealing the periphery with a seal part, and on the dielectric thin plate, a 2nd substrate having electrodes on its opposite surface almost at right angles to the discharge electrodes 9A and 9K is superposed with an electroptic material layer in between. In this case, an electrode for resistance measurement is formed outside an effective screen area surrounded with the said seal part in parallel to the discharge electrodes 9A and 9K.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image display device (so-called plasma address display device) for displaying an image by driving an electro-optical material layer using plasma.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art For example, as a method for increasing the resolution and contrast of a liquid crystal display, a method of providing an active element such as a transistor for each display pixel and driving the same, that is, a so-called active matrix address method is known. is there.

However, in this case, since it is necessary to provide a large number of semiconductor elements such as thin film transistors,
In particular, when the area of the display is increased, there is a concern about the yield problem, and there is a problem that the cost is inevitably increased.

Therefore, as a means for solving this problem,
A method has been proposed in which discharge plasma is used as an active element instead of a semiconductor element such as a MOS transistor or a thin film transistor.

[0005] An image display device (hereinafter, referred to as a plasma address display device) that drives a liquid crystal using the discharge plasma includes a liquid crystal layer that is an electro-optic material layer and a plasma cell that discharges the plasma. , Adjacent to each other via a dielectric thin plate made of glass or the like.

In the above-mentioned plasma addressed display device, the plasma cell is divided into a line-shaped plasma chamber by a partition, and the plasma chamber in which the plasma discharge is performed is sequentially switched and scanned, and the transparent electrode facing the liquid crystal layer is interposed. By applying a signal voltage in synchronization with this, the liquid crystal layer is driven and an image is displayed.

[0007]

In the above-mentioned plasma addressed display device, since the discharge state has a great effect on the image quality, the resistance value of the discharge electrode is an important parameter for quality control of the display panel. Becomes

Therefore, in manufacturing a display panel, it is necessary to measure the resistance value of the discharge electrode and to grasp the measured value.

However, if the measurement is to be performed within the effective screen, there is a possibility that the partition (rib) for partitioning the plasma cell may be damaged, or the discharge electrode itself may be damaged, and the reliability may be impaired. .

Accordingly, the present invention has been proposed to solve such inconvenience, and it is possible to accurately grasp the resistance value of the discharge electrode, and to damage the partition wall and the discharge electrode when measuring the resistance value. It is an object of the present invention to provide an image display device that does not perform any operation.

[0011]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the present invention is directed to a first substrate having a plurality of discharge electrodes substantially parallel to each other formed on one principal surface thereof, with a predetermined gap provided on a first substrate. A second substrate in which a thin dielectric plate is disposed, and a periphery thereof is sealed with a seal portion to form a plasma cell, and an electrode substantially orthogonal to the discharge electrode is formed on an opposite surface of the thin dielectric plate. Are overlapped via an electro-optic material layer, wherein an electrode for resistance measurement is formed in parallel with the discharge electrode outside an effective screen area surrounded by the seal portion. Things.

If the resistance measuring electrode is formed outside the plasma cell separately from the actually operating discharge electrode, the resistance value of the discharge electrode can be grasped by measuring the resistance value. Also,
At this time, for example, there is no need to press a measurement terminal or the like of a measuring device against an electrode in the effective screen, so that there is no danger of damaging the partition walls and discharge electrodes that partition the plasma cell.

It is preferable that the resistance measuring electrode can measure the resistance values of a large number of lines with as small an area as possible from the viewpoint of the utilization efficiency of the substrate. Therefore, it is preferable that a plurality of resistance measurement electrodes are arranged and terminal electrodes are connected to both ends of each resistance measurement electrode.

However, in this case, since the pitch at which the terminal electrodes are formed is smaller than that of a normal discharge electrode, there is a possibility that a short circuit (short) with the adjacent pattern occurs at the connection between the terminal electrode and the resistance measuring electrode. .

Therefore, the connection positions with the terminal electrodes are aligned on one end side of the resistance measuring electrode, and the terminal electrodes are connected with the terminal electrode on the other end side (particularly, the side on which the printed terminal electrode rides on the resistance measuring electrode during electrode printing). Are alternately different.

As a result, an inadvertent short circuit is prevented, and the resistance value is accurately measured.

[0017]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, specific embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 shows a plasma addressed display device of this embodiment.
And as shown in FIG. 2, it has a so-called flat panel structure in which an electro-optical display cell 1, a plasma cell 2, and a dielectric sheet 3 interposed therebetween are laminated.

The dielectric sheet 3 is made of thin glass or the like and functions as a capacitor by itself. Therefore, in order to sufficiently secure the electrical coupling between the electro-optical display cell 1 and the plasma cell 2 and to suppress the two-dimensional spread of electric charges, it is preferable that the dielectric sheet 3 is as thin as possible. Specifically, for example, a thin glass plate having a thickness of about 50 μm is used.

The electro-optical display cell 1 is formed by bonding a glass substrate (upper substrate) 4 on the dielectric sheet 3 with a predetermined gap maintained by a spacer 6.

The gap between the dielectric sheet 3 and the upper substrate 4 is filled with a liquid crystal material as an electro-optical material, and a liquid crystal layer 7 is formed. In addition, as the electro-optic material, a material other than the liquid crystal can be used.

Here, the size of the gap between the upper substrate 4 and the dielectric sheet 3 is, for example, 4 to 10 μm, and is kept substantially uniform over the entire display surface.

On the surface of the upper substrate 4 facing the dielectric sheet 3, a plurality of data electrodes 5 made of a transparent conductive material and extending in the row direction, for example, are arranged in parallel in the column direction while maintaining a predetermined interval. Are arranged.

On the other hand, the plasma cell 2 is composed of the dielectric sheet 3 and a glass substrate (lower substrate) 8 disposed below the dielectric sheet 3.

On a surface of the lower substrate 8 facing the dielectric sheet 3, a plurality of anode electrodes 9A and cathode electrodes 9K extending in a direction orthogonal to the data electrodes 5, that is, in a column direction.
Are alternately arranged in parallel while maintaining a predetermined interval, and constitute a discharge electrode group.

The center of the upper surface of each of the anode electrode 9A and the cathode electrode 9K is extended along the electrodes.
A partition 10 having a predetermined width is formed. And each partition 1
The top of 0 is in contact with the lower surface of the dielectric sheet 3, and the gap between the lower substrate 8 and the dielectric sheet 3 is kept substantially constant.

Further, the dielectric sheet 3 has a frit seal 11 using a low melting point glass or the like at the outer peripheral edge.
Accordingly, the plasma cell 2 is hermetically bonded to the lower substrate 8, and the plasma cell 2 is configured as a closed space.
An ionizable gas such as helium, neon, argon, or a mixture thereof is sealed in the closed space.

In the above-described plasma addressed display device, a plurality of discharge channels (spaces) 12 separated by each partition 10 are formed in parallel in the row direction in the gap between the lower substrate 8 and the dielectric sheet 3. This discharge channel 12 is orthogonal to the data electrode 5.

Therefore, each data electrode 5 is a unit for driving a column, and each discharge channel 12 is a unit for driving a row. As shown in FIG.

When a driving voltage is applied between the anode electrode 9A and the cathode electrode 9K corresponding to a predetermined discharge channel 12 in the plasma address display device having the above configuration, the gas sealed in the discharge channel 12 is discharged. When ionized, plasma discharge occurs and is maintained at the anode potential.

When a data voltage is applied to the data electrode 5 in this state, the data voltage is applied to the liquid crystal layer 7 corresponding to the plurality of pixels 13 arranged in the column direction corresponding to the discharge channel 12 where the plasma discharge has occurred. Written.

When the plasma discharge ends, the discharge channel 12 becomes a floating potential, and the data voltage written in the liquid crystal layer 7 corresponding to each pixel 13 is held until the next writing period (for example, after one field or one frame). Is done. In this case, the discharge channel 12 functions as a sampling switch, and the liquid crystal layer 7 of each pixel 13 functions as a sampling capacitor.

The liquid crystal operates by the data voltage written in the liquid crystal layer 7, and display is performed in pixel units. Therefore, the discharge channel 12 for generating the plasma discharge
Are sequentially scanned, and a data voltage is applied to each data electrode 5 in synchronization with the scanning, whereby the liquid crystal layer 7 is driven in the same manner as in the active matrix addressing method, and a two-dimensional image can be displayed.

The above is the basic configuration of the plasma addressed display device. In this plasma addressed display device, as described above, the periphery is sealed with the frit seal 11 as shown in FIG. A plasma cell is formed by laminating the dielectric sheet (thin glass) 3, and a region surrounded by the frit seal 11 is an effective screen region.

In addition, the discharge electrodes (anode electrodes 9A,
In order to connect the cathode electrode 9K) to an external drive circuit,
The terminal electrode 15 is formed as an external lead electrode,
One end is connected to a discharge electrode (anode electrode 9A, cathode electrode 9K), and the other end is a frit seal 1
1 and drawn out of the plasma cell 2.

The terminal electrode 15 is made of a frit seal 11
It is formed by applying and baking a paste of gold (Au) or silver (Ag) in consideration of the adhesiveness to the like. In addition, as a paste used at this time, a gold paste which does not cause migration is preferable.

On the other hand, the discharge electrodes (anode electrode 9A or cathode electrode 9K) are formed in stripes by applying a conductive paste such as Ni or Al and baking it.

In the plasma addressed display device, it is necessary to measure the resistance values of the anode electrode 9A and the cathode electrode 9K in advance for quality control.

Therefore, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5, the resistance measuring electrodes 16 similar to the anode electrode 9A and the cathode electrode 9K are connected to the electrodes 9A and 9K outside the effective screen area surrounded by the frit seal 11. And are formed in parallel.

The resistance measuring electrode 16 is formed in the same process as the anode electrode 9A and the cathode electrode 9K, and has substantially the same length as the electrodes 9A and 9K.

Therefore, by measuring the resistance values of the resistance measuring electrodes 16, the resistance values of the anode electrode 9A and the cathode electrode 9K can be grasped.

When measuring the resistance value, the anode electrode 9A, the cathode electrode 9K, the partition 10
There is no need to directly press the terminals of the measuring device against the like, and these will not be damaged.

When the resistance measurement electrodes 16 are provided, it is preferable to arrange a large number of resistance measurement electrodes 16 in as small an area as possible and measure the resistance value.

From such a viewpoint, it is preferable that a plurality of the resistance measuring electrodes 16 are arranged at the same pitch as the discharge electrodes (the anode electrode 9A and the cathode electrode 9K), for example. Were formed.

However, in the resistance measuring electrode 16, since the paste between the terminal electrode and the resistance measuring electrode 16 easily spreads during printing, there is a possibility that a correct resistance value cannot be measured due to a short circuit in this portion. . For example, unlike the discharge electrodes, the resistance measurement electrodes 16 need to form terminal electrodes for measurement on both sides of each electrode 16. For this reason, the formation pitch P ₁ of the terminal electrodes 15 in the discharge electrode group.
Respect, the formation pitch P ₂ of the terminal electrode in the resistance measurement electrodes 16, P _1/2, and the its distance very narrow.
Therefore, the short circuit becomes a problem.

To solve this problem, as shown in FIG. 6, the ends of the resistance measuring electrodes 16 are aligned at one end and are different at the multiple ends, and the terminal electrode 17 is superposed thereon. What is necessary is just to form. In this example, the ends of the resistance measuring electrodes 16 are aligned at the left end in the figure, and the lengths are alternately different at the right end.

The resistance measuring electrode 16 and the terminal electrode 17
Is formed by screen-printing a conductive paste. At this time, the bleeding of the paste becomes remarkable in a portion which runs over the step, which causes a short circuit. Therefore,
It is better to shift the end of the resistance measuring electrode 16.
On the other hand, on the opposite side (the portion printed so as to descend from the step), the bonding failure occurs unless the ends of the resistance measuring electrodes 16 are aligned.

Therefore, when the terminal electrodes 17 are formed by screen printing after the resistance measuring electrodes 16 in the positional relationship as shown in FIG. 6, the skiing is performed from right to left (in the direction of arrow A in the figure). Jing should be done.

Conversely, the resistance measuring electrode 16 is printed first,
Thereafter, when the terminal electrode 17 is formed by screen printing, squeezing may be performed from left to right (the direction of arrow B in the figure).

As a result, the terminal electrode 17 and the resistance measuring electrode 16
Are shifted in the adjacent pattern, and even if bleeding occurs, there is no short circuit.

Further, in the portion printed so as to descend from the step, the connection portion between the terminal electrode 17 and the resistance measuring electrode 16 is aligned, and no joint failure occurs.

The specific embodiments to which the present invention is applied have been described above. However, it is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to this example, and various modifications can be made.

[0053]

As is apparent from the above description, in the image display device of the present invention, the resistance value of the discharge electrode can be accurately grasped, and the partition wall and the discharge electrode are damaged when the resistance value is measured. I will not do it.

In particular, if the connection position with the terminal electrode is made uniform at one end of the resistance measuring electrode and the connection position with the terminal electrode is made alternately different at the other end, careless short-circuiting or poor connection may occur. Can be suppressed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view showing a configuration example of a plasma addressed display device with a part cut away.

FIG. 2 is a schematic sectional view illustrating a configuration example of a plasma addressed display device.

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing an arrangement of data electrodes, discharge electrodes, and discharge channels.

FIG. 4 is a schematic plan view schematically showing a planar arrangement of discharge electrodes.

FIG. 5 is a plan view schematically showing an example of an arrangement of electrodes for resistance measurement.

FIG. 6 is a schematic plan view showing an example of connection of a terminal electrode to an electrode for resistance measurement.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 electro-optical display cell, 2 plasma cell, 3 dielectric sheet, 4 upper substrate, 5 data electrodes, 7 liquid crystal layer, 8
Lower electrode, 9A anode electrode, 9K cathode electrode,
10 partition, 11 frit seal, 16 electrode for resistance measurement, 17 terminal electrode

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A dielectric thin plate is disposed with a predetermined gap on a first substrate having a plurality of discharge electrodes substantially parallel to each other formed on one main surface, and the periphery thereof is sealed by a seal portion. In the image display device, wherein a plasma cell is formed, and a second substrate on which an electrode substantially orthogonal to the discharge electrode is formed on the opposite surface of the dielectric thin plate via an electro-optic material layer, An image display device, wherein an electrode for resistance measurement is formed outside the effective screen area surrounded by the seal portion in parallel with the discharge electrode. 2. The image display device according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of said resistance measuring electrodes are arranged, and terminal electrodes are connected to both ends of each of said resistance measuring electrodes. 3. The terminal according to claim 2, wherein the connection position with the terminal electrode is substantially aligned at one end of the resistance measuring electrode, and the connection position with the terminal electrode is alternately different at the other end. Image display device.