JPH1031452A - Picture forming device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To eliminate lighting of a non-selective element with a simple circuit by outputting a specific scanning voltage to a scanning wiring and outputting an illuminance signal having a specific voltage to a data wiring. SOLUTION: A surface conduction discharge element is formed of element electrode 3, 4 and a super-fine particle film 2 provided on a substrate 1, and the element electrodes 3 and 4 are constituted in an asymmetrical shape. Also, a phosphor 6 and a metal back 5 are provided on an inner surface of a glass plate 7 being a face plate. A high voltage power source is applied to this metal back 5, the phosphor 6 generates visible light having a luminance being sufficient for a display element when an electron beam is discharged and a discharge current Ie is made to flow. And the driving circuit outputs V2 as non-scanning voltage and V1 (≠V2) as scanning voltage to a scanning wiring, and outputs luminance signal of voltage V3 (V1<=V3<=V2 or V2<=V3<=V1) to a data wiring.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an image forming apparatus for forming an image by irradiating electrons, and more particularly to an image forming apparatus for performing fluorescent display by irradiating electrons and an image forming apparatus for drawing an electron beam on a semiconductor or the like. .

[0002]

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

[0003] As an example of the FE type, for example, W.M. P.
Dyke & W. W. Dolan, "Field emi
session ", Advance in Electro
nPhysics, 8, 89 (1956) or C.I. A. Spindt, "Physical pr
operations of thin-filmfield
de emission cathodes with
molybdenium cones ", J. App.
l. Phys. , 47, 5248 (1976).

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

[0005] As a surface conduction type emission element, for example, M.I. I. Elinson, RadioEng. E
electron Phys. , 10, 1290, (19
56) and other examples described later.

[0006] The surface conduction electron-emitting device utilizes a phenomenon in which an electron is emitted when a current flows in a small-area thin film formed on a substrate in parallel with the film surface. As this surface conduction type emission element, Sn described by Elinson et al.
In addition to those using an O ₂ thin film, those using an Au thin film [G. Dittmer: "Thin Solid Fi
lms ", 9,317 (1972)] and In ₂ O ₃ /
By a SnO ₂ thin film [M. Hartwell an
d C.I. G. FIG. Fonstad: "IEEE Tran
s. ED Conf. , 519 (1975)] and those using a carbon thin film [Hisashi Araki et al .: Vacuum, Vol. 26,
No. 1, 22 (1983)].

[0007] As a typical example of the element structure of these surface conduction electron-emitting devices, FIG. Hartwel
1 shows a plan view of an element according to the present invention. In FIG.
Reference numeral 01 denotes a substrate, and reference numeral 3004 denotes a conductive thin film made of a metal oxide formed by sputtering. The conductive thin film 3004 is formed in an H-shaped planar shape as shown. An electron emission portion 3005 is formed by performing an energization process called energization forming described later on the conductive thin film 3004. The interval L in the figure is 0.5 to 1 (mm), w is
It is set at 0.1 (mm). For convenience of illustration, the electron-emitting portion 3005 is shown in a rectangular shape at the center of the conductive thin film 3004, but this is a schematic one, and the position and shape of the actual electron-emitting portion are faithfully represented. Not necessarily.

M. In the above-described surface conduction electron-emitting device including the device by Hartwell et al., The electron-emitting portion 3005 is formed by subjecting the conductive thin film 3004 to an energization process called energization forming before electron emission.
It was common to form That is, the energization forming means energizing by applying a constant DC voltage to both ends of the conductive thin film 3004, or a DC voltage which is boosted at a very slow rate of, for example, about 1 V / min.
The electron emitting portion 30 in a state where the conductive thin film 3004 is locally destroyed, deformed or deteriorated, and is in an electrically high resistance state.
05 is formed. Note that a part of the conductive thin film 3004 that has been locally broken, deformed, or altered includes
Cracks occur. When an appropriate voltage is applied to the conductive thin film 3004 after the energization forming, electron emission is performed in the vicinity of the crack.

The above surface conduction electron-emitting device has an advantage that a large number of devices can be formed over a large area because the structure is simple and the production is easy. Therefore, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 64-31332 by the present applicant, a method for arranging and driving a large number of elements has been studied.

As for applications of the surface conduction electron-emitting device, for example, image forming devices such as image display devices and image recording devices, and charged beam sources have been studied.

Particularly, as an application to an image display device, for example, as disclosed in US Pat. No. 5,066,883 and Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (Kokai) No. 2-257551 by the present applicant, a surface conduction electron-emitting device is disclosed. An image display device using a combination of a phosphor and a phosphor that emits light by irradiation with an electron beam has been studied. An image display device using a combination of a surface conduction electron-emitting device and a phosphor is expected to have better characteristics than other conventional image display devices. For example, compared to liquid crystal display devices that have become popular in recent years,
It does not require a backlight because it is a self-luminous type,
It can be said that a wide viewing angle is excellent.

[0012]

DISCLOSURE OF THE INVENTION The present inventors have made various materials, including those described in the above-mentioned conventional description.
A surface conduction electron-emitting device having a manufacturing method and a structure has been tried. Furthermore, research has been conducted on a multi-electron beam source in which a number of surface conduction electron-emitting devices are arranged, and on an image display device using the multi-electron beam source.

The inventors have tried a multi-electron beam source by the electric wiring method shown in FIG. 24, for example. That is, it is a multi-electron beam source in which a large number of surface conduction emission devices are two-dimensionally arranged and these devices are wired in a matrix as shown in the figure.

In the figure, 4001 schematically shows a surface conduction electron-emitting device, 4002 a row-direction wiring serving as a scanning wiring, and 4003 a column-direction wiring serving as a data wiring. Although the row direction wiring 4002 and the column direction wiring 4003 actually have a finite electric resistance, they are shown as wiring resistances 4004 and 4005 in the figure.
The above-described wiring method is called simple matrix wiring.

Although a 6 × 6 matrix is shown for convenience of illustration, the size of the Matrex is not limited to this. For example, in the case of a multi-electron beam source for an image display device, a desired image is obtained. Elements that are sufficient for displaying are arranged and wired.

In the multi-electron beam source in which the surface conduction electron-emitting devices are wired in a simple matrix, an appropriate electric signal is applied to the row wiring 4002 and the column wiring 4003 in order to output a desired electron beam. For example,
In order to drive any one of the surface conduction electron-emitting devices in the matrix, the selection voltage Vs is applied to the row direction wiring 4002 of the selected row, and at the same time, the row direction wiring 40 of the non-selected row is applied.
02 is applied with a non-selection voltage Vns. In synchronization with this, a drive voltage Ve for outputting an electron beam is applied to the column wiring 4003. According to this method, the wiring resistance 40
Neglecting the voltage drops caused by Ve-Vs 04 and 4005, a voltage of Ve−Vs is applied to the surface conduction type emission element of the selected row, and Ve−Vs is applied to the surface conduction type emission element of the non-selected row.
A voltage of -Vns is applied. If Ve, Vs, and Vns are set to voltages of appropriate magnitudes, an electron beam of a desired intensity should be output only from the surface conduction electron-emitting device of the selected row, and a different drive voltage is applied to each of the column wirings. If Ve is applied, each of the elements in the selected row should output a different intensity electron beam. Further, since the response speed of the surface conduction electron-emitting device is high, if the length of time for applying the driving voltage Ve is changed, the length of time for outputting the electron beam should be changed. Therefore, a multi-electron beam source in which surface conduction electron-emitting devices are wired in a simple matrix has various applications. For example, if an electric signal corresponding to image information is appropriately applied, it is suitable as an electron source for an image surface device. Can be used.

At this time, at least three types of voltage signals are conventionally used for driving. For example, the electron emission threshold (Vth) of the surface conduction electron-emitting device is 8 (V).
In this case, the modulation signal is 14 (V) when on, 7 (V) when off, the scanning signal is 0 (V) for the scanning row, 7 (V) for the non-scanning row, and so on. , Are used.

However, driving using three types of voltages requires three types of voltage sources and level shift circuits, and thus has a problem that the driving circuit becomes complicated.

In the non-selection element portion, it is necessary that the potential is lower than the potential applied in the column direction and higher than the potential on the selected row wiring side. This is because the driving condition is that the voltage value is lower than the Vth value of the element. For this reason, there is a problem that the manufacturing cost of the entire system also increases.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to solve the above-mentioned problems and to provide an image forming apparatus in which a non-selected element does not light up with a simple circuit.

[0021]

Means for Solving the Problems In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present inventors have made intensive efforts and, as a result, have obtained the following invention. That is, a first image forming apparatus according to the present invention includes a multi-electron beam source in which a plurality of surface conduction electron-emitting devices are wired in a matrix by a plurality of data wirings and a plurality of scanning wirings;
In the image forming apparatus having a driving circuit for driving the multi-electron beam source, the surface conduction electron-emitting device includes a first electrode and a second electrode having different shapes from each other, and the first electrode and the second electrode. An electron emission portion between the electrodes, wherein the first electrode is connected to the scanning wiring, the second electrode is connected to the data wiring, and the driving circuit applies a non-scanning voltage to the scanning wiring. And V2 as the scanning voltage.
1 (≠ V2), and a voltage V3 (V
(1 ≦ V3 ≦ V2 or V2 ≦ V3 ≦ V1). At this time, one of the first electrodes may be configured to block emitted electrons from the electron emitting portion, and the second electrode may be configured to allow the emitted electrons to pass.
When the drive circuit performs a pulse width modulation drive for outputting a luminance signal to the data wiring with a pulse width, it is said that V3 = V1. Further, the driving circuit may be configured such that V1 ≦ V3 ≦ V2 or V2 ≦ V3 ≦ V1
It is also possible to output a luminance signal at a pulse height of the voltage V3 satisfying the following condition. Further, on top of the multi-electron beam source,
It is desirable to have a fluorescent plate that emits light when excited by electron irradiation. Further, it is desirable that V ₁ be 14 (V) and V ₂ be 0 (V), or V ₁ be 0 (V) and V ₂ be 14 (V).

[0022]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS In order to solve the above-mentioned problems,
In the present invention, in the surface conduction electron-emitting devices arranged in a matrix, the device electrodes corresponding to the row direction wiring side and the device electrodes corresponding to the column direction wiring side are asymmetrically configured, so that the voltage is applied to the device electrodes. It is an object of the present invention to reduce the types of voltages and to simplify a driving circuit and a system thereof. The operation of the element configuration used to achieve the object of the present invention will be specifically described with reference to FIG.
FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing the element structure of a basic electron source according to the present invention.
And the like, and are provided facing each other at a distance of 2 μm. Reference numeral 2 denotes an ultrafine particle film made of an electron emission material such as Pd, and has a gap such as a crack as an electron emission portion in a part of the film.

The surface conduction electron-emitting device of the present invention is formed by the device electrodes 3 and 4 and the ultrafine particle film 2 provided on the substrate 1, and the structure of the device electrode is asymmetric. Specifically, the device electrode 4 corresponding to the row direction wiring side
Is different from the device electrode 3 corresponding to the column-direction wiring side in the electrode width and the upper surface height. The width of the device electrode 3 is w1 = 10 μm, and the upper surface height is t1 = 1000.
Angstrom and width of the device electrode 4: W2 = 100 μ
m, upper surface height: t2 = 1 μm.

Further, reference numeral 7 denotes a glass plate as a face plate, on which a phosphor 6 and a metal back 5 are provided. For example, an HV (high-voltage power supply) of about 10 KV is applied to the metal back 5, and the phosphor 6 emits an electron beam of about 1 μA and emits an emission current Ie. It is possible to obtain visible light. 10 is + V across both ends of the device electrodes 3 and 4.
This is a switch for applying f, and S ₁ and S ₂ operate in conjunction. Normal switch is in normal state (NOR)
In, and the device electrodes 3 by _{S 1} + Vf is applied, S
_2, 0 V (GND) is applied to the element electrode 4.
In the switch ON state (ON), _{S 1} and _{S 2} are interlocked operation on one side, _{S 1} is _{S 2} at 0V state, + Vf leads.

Therefore, in the NOR state, the device electrodes 3, 4
Flows in the direction of the solid arrow shown by + If, and when the switch is in the ON state, the element current -If of the arrow shown by the broken line flows. Ammeter 8
Indicates the direction in which the element current flows.
Is for monitoring the value of the emission current Ie due to the flow of the element current If.

Further, the direction of the electron beam emitted from the crack differs depending on the direction in which the device current flows. Element current + If
In the case of (1), the electrons shown by the solid line are emitted from the fine particle film, reach the metal back portion of the facing face plate and excite the phosphor, whereas at the element current -If, the electrons shown by the broken line Since it becomes a locus and is attracted to the side wall of the element electrode 4, it is difficult for electrons to reach the metal back 5.

FIG. 2 shows the above device characteristics. In FIG. 2, the horizontal axis is Vf and the vertical axis is the emission current Ie. In the characteristics of the surface conduction electron-emitting device according to the present invention, it is remarkable that the characteristics of Ie greatly differ depending on how a voltage applied to the device electrode is applied. That is, when Vf is applied to the device electrode 4, most of the electron beam emitted from the ultrafine particle film 3 is attracted to the device electrode 4.
Actually, it is necessary to apply -16 V or more as the emission current Ie. On the other hand, when Vf was applied to the device electrode 3, the emission current Ie flowing was about 10V.

In the surface conduction electron-emitting device used in the present invention, even if an amplitude voltage of, for example, 14 V is applied in the opposite direction to Vf (in this case, the device electrode 4), no electron beam is emitted. It has been confirmed that there is no emission that adversely affects the pixels.

The present invention can be applied to a vertical type surface conduction electron-emitting device as shown in the sectional view of FIG. Details of the vertical surface conduction electron-emitting device will be described later. The present invention can be applied to an image forming apparatus for drawing an electron beam on a semiconductor, in addition to the image forming apparatus for fluorescent display as described above.

[0030]

【Example】

(Embodiment 1) Next, Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described in detail. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating a system of an image display according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Reference numeral 21 denotes a display panel for displaying an image, in which a plurality of M × N surface conduction electron-emitting devices of the present invention are arranged in a simple matrix. Hereinafter, the display panel is referred to as 21 display panel. The panel 21 is used for image display. For example, the panel 21 can be used for displaying a normal TV image, a computer terminal, a monitor, and the like. In this embodiment, an image is displayed from the NTSC signal, and the number of lines in the matrix wiring may correspond to the number of ordinary TV images. If high definition display is to be performed, the number of lines in the matrix is increased. This is possible. A decoding circuit 11 for decoding a composite image signal derived from an NTSC signal is provided on the column direction wiring side.

The decoding circuit 11 performs A / D conversion of a gradation signal of an input image, and inputs the result to the serial / parallel conversion circuit 13 as DATA having a digitally weighted value. Also, it outputs a timing signal TSYNC for driving the column direction and row direction wirings. TSYN
C includes a horizontal synchronization (HSYNC) corresponding to the column direction and a vertical synchronization (VSYNC) corresponding to the row direction, and these are output by the timing control circuit 12 with respective control signals. In the case of a color image signal, the image signal is separated into three colors of RGB in a decoding circuit, and is digitized as described above. In the present embodiment, a simplified block diagram is shown for easy understanding of the system configuration. Reference numeral 17 denotes a scanning signal side driver for driving the row direction wiring side of the panel. In the present embodiment, the display direction is line-sequential. The vertical signal VSYNC is input to the scanning signal side driver 17 by the timing control circuit 12, and a control signal for sequentially selecting the row wiring on the scanning side is input to the scanning signal switching circuit 18. The scanning-side signal switching circuit 18 sequentially operates the internal switches according to the control signal, whereby the row wiring side is time-divisionally driven. The image data input to the serial / parallel conversion circuit 13 as a digital signal receives the TSP signal from the timing circuit 12 and converts the data into parallel data. Then, the converted data is temporarily stored in the line memory 14. This accumulation timing is also performed by the TMRY signal from the timing control circuit 17.

The image signal actually applied to the panel is output by the phase modulation circuit 15 as PWM (pulse width modulation signal). The data output from the line memory 14 are weighted as modulated signal data, respectively, and a modulation circuit for converting the data as a pulse width modulation is provided. This modulation circuit is output, for example, by converting A / D data corresponding to each video signal into a temporal component, and is provided with transistors (or FETs) G1 to GN provided on the column direction wiring side of the panel. Given as a signal. Therefore, a voltage that becomes + Vf during the ON time of the transistor is applied to the column direction wiring of the panel, and the value of the ON time corresponds to the modulation signal that is the actual luminance signal. In the present invention, these timings to the modulation circuit are also output from the timing control circuit 12 as TMOD signals.

In the panel made of the surface conduction electron-emitting device of the present invention, an anode voltage HV, which is a light emitting means, is provided to actually display an electron beam generated by a signal applied to the device on a pixel. Have been. By this means,
Light emission is enabled by irradiating an electron beam corresponding to a video signal on a metal back on a phosphor provided on the upper surface of the panel 21.

Next, a timing chart for explaining a display device driving method provided by the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. Schematic view of the device of the panel 1 of FIG. 4, M × N are depicted, the row wiring side from S ₁ to S _M, is set to the column wiring side from M ₁ to M _N. When the driving method of this embodiment is performed, first, the row-direction wiring side scans each row-direction wiring during a period for scanning one screen because the method of driving sequentially is employed as described above. Time is defined by the number of wirings in the row direction. In that case, the one-line scanning time to be applied to the scanning wiring as a t _1. t ₁ is N
When driving at a scanning time of 16 msec according to the TSC method, if the number of wirings in the row direction is, for example, 240, 16 ms
ec / 240 lines = 66 μsec. This scanning signal is output in synchronization with the above-mentioned scanning signal driver VSYNC.

On the other hand, in the column direction side, a pulse width modulated signal in accordance with the image signal from the column wirings M ₁ to M _N is applied. As the modulation signal, a signal for displaying a predetermined line during 66 μSEC for accessing each selected line in synchronization with the scanning signal is output through the phase modulation signal circuit 15. The timing applied to each of the above wirings is shown in FIG.
Shown in In Figure 5, a diagram showing the modulation signal corresponding to S _M from the scan line side S ₁ by focusing on line from M ₁ of M _N.

The modulated signal is at the time of the synchronized S ₁ to the scanning signal when the D _1, S ₂ and outputs an image signal as that D _2. The waveform of the applied voltage is a rectangular wave signal of a voltage of + Vf, and a voltage of + Vf is applied during non-scanning and a voltage of 0V is applied during scanning. Therefore, a modulation signal D ₁ is applied to a selected arbitrary pixel in the row direction line of S ₁ , for example, and a voltage of + Vf is applied between the elements at that time. Flows through the device current If.

Next, a modulation signal of D ₂ is applied to S ₂ .
When a modulation signal having a short pulse width such as D ₂ or D ₃ is applied, 0 V is applied to the selected element during the periods of M _t1 and M _t2 , Emission current I
f will not occur.

[0038] However, the row wiring scanning lines other than S ₂ is not a non-selected state, this non-selection device, the voltage becomes + Vf in the row direction is selected because it is constantly applied A voltage opposite to that of the element is applied, and an element current −If flows. Normally, when a reverse current flows through such an unselected element, the reverse current-
The electrons generated by If accelerate the electrons by the high voltage applied to the opposite side and cause the phosphor on the opposite side plate to emit light, which causes a malfunction such as turning on even when not selected.

A feature of the present invention is that electrons generated by a reverse current flowing at the time of non-selection as described above are
By asymmetrically configuring the element structure, the accelerated electrons are absorbed or collided with the side wall of the element electrode, thereby suppressing the accelerated electrons to the opposing plate and preventing the phosphor from being lit. In this embodiment, the voltage of + Vf is set to about 1
It is obtained from FIG. 2 that the current Ie for electrons emitted from the selected element is sufficient when the voltage is set to 4 V.

As described above, according to the first embodiment of the present invention, when the structure of the surface conduction element is asymmetric, the elements arranged in a matrix are driven to display an image, and when the image is displayed, the reverse direction generated when the element is not selected. Since the emitted electrons can be suppressed even with respect to the device current −If, the display is performed only by using two voltage values of + Vf and 0 V in the row direction and the column direction in the drive voltage applied to the device. It can be carried out.

(Structure and Manufacturing Method of Display Panel) Next, the structure and manufacturing method of the display panel of the image display device to which the present invention is applied will be described with reference to specific examples. FIG. 11 is a perspective view of the display panel used in the example, in which a part of the panel is cut away to show the internal structure. In the figure,
Reference numeral 1005 denotes a rear plate, 1006 denotes a side wall, 1007 denotes a face plate, and 1005 to 1007 form an airtight container for maintaining the inside of the display panel at a vacuum. When assembling an airtight container, it is necessary to seal the joints of each member to maintain sufficient strength and airtightness.For example, apply frit glass to the joints, and in air or nitrogen atmosphere, 400-5
Sealing was achieved by baking at 00 degrees for 10 minutes or more. A method of evacuating the inside of the airtight container to a vacuum will be described later.

The rear plate 1005 has a substrate 1001
The cold cathode device 1002 is fixed on the substrate.
Are formed N × M. (N and M are positive integers of 2 or more and are appropriately set according to the target number of display pixels. For example, in a display device for displaying high-definition television, N = 3000, M It is desirable to set a number equal to or greater than 1000. In this embodiment,
N = 3072, M = 1024). The N × M cold cathode elements are arranged in a simple matrix by M row-directional wirings 1003 and N column-directional wirings 1004.
The portion constituted by 1001 to 1004 is called a multi-electron beam source. The manufacturing method and structure of the multi-electron beam source will be described later in detail.

In the present embodiment, the substrate 1001 of the multi-electron beam source is fixed to the rear plate 1005 of the airtight container.
If 1 has sufficient strength, the substrate 100 of the multi-electron beam source is used as a rear plate of the hermetic container.
1 itself may be used.

On the lower surface of the face plate 1007, a fluorescent film 1008 is formed. Since the present embodiment is a color display device, a CR film
Phosphors of three primary colors of red, green, and blue used in the field of T are separately applied. The phosphor of each color is, for example, as shown in FIG.
(A), a black conductor 1010 is provided between stripes of the phosphor, which are separately applied in stripes. The purpose of providing the black conductor 1010 is to prevent the display color from shifting even if the electron beam irradiation position is slightly shifted, and to prevent the reflection of external light to prevent the display contrast from lowering. And preventing charge-up of the fluorescent film by the electron beam. Although graphite is used as a main component for the black conductor 1010, any other material may be used as long as it is suitable for the above purpose.

The method of applying the phosphors of the three primary colors is not limited to the stripe arrangement shown in FIG. 12A, but may be, for example, a delta arrangement as shown in FIG. Other arrangements may be used. Note that when a monochrome display panel is manufactured, a single-color phosphor material may be used for the phosphor film 1008, and a black conductive material is not necessarily used.

A metal back 1009 known in the field of CRTs is provided on the surface of the fluorescent film 1008 on the rear plate side.
Is provided. The purpose of providing the metal back 1009 is
A part of the light emitted from the fluorescent film 1008 is specularly reflected to improve the light utilization rate, or the fluorescent film 1008
8 to protect it, to act as an electrode for applying an electron beam acceleration voltage, and to act as a conductive path for excited electrons of the fluorescent film 1008. The metal back 1009 was formed by forming a fluorescent film 1008 on the face plate substrate 1007, smoothing the surface of the fluorescent film, and vacuum-depositing A1 thereon.
Note that when a fluorescent material for low voltage is used for the fluorescent film 1008, the metal back 1009 is not used.

Although not used in the present embodiment, for the purpose of applying an acceleration voltage and improving the conductivity of the fluorescent film, a gap between the face plate substrate 1007 and the fluorescent film 1008 is formed.
For example, a transparent electrode made of ITO may be provided.

D _{X1 to} D _xm, D _{y1 to} D _yn and Hv are electric connection terminals having an airtight structure provided for electrically connecting the display panel to an electric circuit (not shown). D _{x1 to} D _xm are the row wirings 10 of the multi-electron beam source.
03, D _{y1 to} D _yn are the column direction wirings 1004 of the multi-electron beam source, and Hv is the metal back 1 of the face plate.
009 electrically.

In order to evacuate the inside of the hermetic container, after assembling the hermetic container, an exhaust pipe (not shown) and a vacuum pump are connected, and the inside of the hermetic container is raised to the power of 10 −7 (T
evacuation to a degree of vacuum of about (or). Thereafter, the exhaust pipe is sealed, but a getter film (not shown) is formed at a predetermined position in the airtight container immediately before or after the sealing in order to maintain the degree of vacuum in the airtight container. The getter film is, for example, a film formed by heating and depositing a getter material containing Ba as a main component by a heater or high-frequency heating,
Due to the adsorbing action of the getter film, the inside of the airtight container is 1 × 10 -5 or 1 × 10 -7 (Torr).
Is maintained at a vacuum degree.

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

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

However, in a situation where a display device having a large display screen and an inexpensive display device is required, among these cold cathode devices, a surface conduction type emission device is particularly preferable. That is, in the FE type, since the relative position and shape of the emitter cone and the gate electrode greatly affect the electron emission characteristics, extremely high-precision manufacturing technology is required, but this achieves a large area and a reduction in manufacturing cost. Is a disadvantageous factor. Further, in the MIM type, it is necessary to make the thicknesses of the insulating layer and the upper electrode thinner and uniform, which is also a disadvantageous factor in achieving a large area and a reduction in manufacturing cost. That point,
Since the surface conduction electron-emitting device is relatively simple to manufacture,
It is easy to increase the area and reduce the manufacturing cost. In addition, the inventors have found that among the surface conduction electron-emitting devices, those in which the electron-emitting portion or its peripheral portion is formed of a fine particle film have particularly excellent electron-emitting characteristics and can be easily manufactured. Therefore, it can be said that it is most suitable for use in a multi-electron beam source of a high-luminance, large-screen image display device. Therefore, in the display panel of the above embodiment, a surface conduction electron-emitting device having the electron-emitting portion or its peripheral portion formed of a fine particle film was used. Therefore, the basic configuration, manufacturing method and characteristics of a suitable surface conduction electron-emitting device will be described first, and then the structure of a multi-electron beam source in which many devices are arranged in a simple matrix will be described.

(Suitable Device Configuration and Manufacturing Method of Surface Conduction Emission Device) There are two types of surface conduction type emission devices in which the electron emission portion or its peripheral portion is formed of a fine particle film, a flat type and a vertical type. Can be

(Flat-Type Surface-Conduction-Type Emission Device) First, the structure and manufacturing method of a flat-type surface-conduction-type emission device will be described.

FIG. 13 is a plan view (a) and a sectional view (b) for explaining the structure of a planar surface conduction electron-emitting device. In the figure, 1101 is a substrate, 1102 and 1
103, a device electrode; 1104, a conductive thin film; 1105, an electron-emitting portion formed by an energization forming process;
Reference numeral 13 denotes a thin film formed by the activation process.

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

The device electrodes 1102 and 1103 provided on the substrate 1101 so as to be parallel to the substrate surface are formed of a conductive material. For example, N
i, Cr, Au, Mo, W, Pt, Ti, Cu, Pd,
A material such as Ag or the like, an alloy of these metals, a metal oxide such as In ₂ O ₃ —SnO ₂ , or a semiconductor such as polysilicon may be appropriately selected and used. . An electrode can be easily formed by using a combination of a film forming technique such as vacuum deposition and a patterning technique such as photolithography and etching. However, the electrode can be formed by other methods (for example, printing technique). I can't wait.

The shapes of the device electrodes 1102 and 1103 are appropriately designed according to the application purpose of the electron-emitting device.
Generally, the electrode spacing L is usually designed by selecting an appropriate value from the range of several hundreds of angstroms to several hundreds of micrometers. It is in the range of ten micrometers. Further, regarding the thickness d of the device electrode,
1102 Usually, an appropriate numerical value is selected from the range of several hundred angstroms to several micrometers, and 1103 is 11
It is formed with a thickness several times to about ten times as large as that of the second.

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

The particle size of the fine particles used in the fine particle film is in the range of several Å to several thousand Å, but is preferably in the range of 10 Å to 200 Å. Further, the thickness of the fine particle film is appropriately set in consideration of various conditions described below. That is, the device electrode 11
02, or 1103, conditions necessary for satisfactorily performing energization forming described later, conditions necessary for setting the electric resistance of the fine particle film itself to an appropriate value described later. , And so on. In particular,
The setting is made in the range of several Angstroms to several thousand Angstroms, and a preferable value is between 10 Angstroms and 500 Angstroms.

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

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

The conductive thin film 1104 and the device electrode 11
Since it is desirable that the wires 02 and 1103 be electrically connected well, they have a structure in which a part of each overlaps with the other. In the example of FIG.
Although the substrate, the device electrode, and the conductive thin film are stacked in this order from the bottom, in some cases, the substrate, the conductive thin film, and the device electrode may be stacked in this order from the bottom.

The electron-emitting portion 1105 is a crack-like portion formed in a part of the conductive thin film 1104, and has an electrically higher resistance than the surrounding conductive thin film. The crack is formed by performing a later-described energization forming process on the conductive thin film 1104. Fine particles having a particle diameter of several Angstroms to several hundred Angstroms may be arranged in the crack. Since it is difficult to accurately and accurately show the actual position and shape of the electron-emitting portion, it is schematically shown in FIG.

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

The thin film 1113 is made of any one of single crystal graphite, polycrystalline graphite, and amorphous carbon, or a mixture thereof, and has a thickness of 500 (angstrom) or less, but 300 (angstrom) or less. Is more preferred.

Since it is difficult to precisely show the actual position and shape of the thin film 1113, it is schematically shown in FIG. Also, in the plan view (a), the thin film 11
13 shows a device in which a part of the device 13 is removed.

While the basic structure of the preferred device has been described above, the following device was used in the examples.

That is, blue glass was used for the substrate 1101, and Ni thin films were used for the device electrodes 1102 and 1103. The thickness d of the device electrode was 1000 (angstrom), and the electrode interval L was 2 (micrometer).

Pd or P as the main material of the fine particle film
Using dO, the thickness of the fine particle film was about 100 (angstrom), and the width W was 100 (micrometer).

Next, a description will be given of a method of manufacturing a suitable planar surface conduction electron-emitting device.

FIGS. 14A to 14D are cross-sectional views for explaining the manufacturing process of the surface conduction electron-emitting device. The notation of each member is the same as that in FIG.

1) As shown in FIG.
The device electrodes 1102 and 1103 are formed on the substrate 1. Before forming, the substrate 1101 is cleaned, pure water,
After sufficient cleaning using an organic solvent, first, a material for the device electrode is deposited by a thickness corresponding to 1102.
(A vacuum deposition technique such as a vapor deposition method or a sputtering method may be used, for example.) Next, an insulating layer is deposited on electrodes other than the element electrode 1103. As a deposition method, for example, a sputtering method or the like is used. Then, in order to remove the insulating layer over the element electrode 1103, patterning is performed using a photolithography etching technique to expose the element electrode 1103.

Thereafter, the material of the device electrode is deposited again by using the same method as described above. The device electrode to be deposited for the second time is deposited on the device electrode 1103 and at a location covered with the insulating layer, so that the device electrode 1103 becomes the device electrode 11.
02, an asymmetric electrode configuration having a different film thickness can be produced. The film thickness deposited for the second time is the device electrode 1
The thickness is controlled to be several times to ten times the thickness of the film 102. After the device electrodes 1102 and 1103 can be deposited to a desired film thickness, the insulating layer previously deposited is removed by etching to leave only the device electrodes on the surface. Thereafter, the electrode material is patterned by a photolithography etching technique, and the asymmetric device electrode (1102,
1103) is formed.

2) Next, a conductive thin film 1104 is formed as shown in FIG.

In the formation, first, an organic metal solution is applied to the substrate (a), dried, heated and baked to form a fine particle film, and then patterned into a predetermined shape by photolithography and etching. I do. Here, the organometallic solution is a solution of an organometallic compound whose main element is a material of fine particles used for the conductive thin film. (Specifically, in this example, Pd was used as a main element.
In the embodiment, the dipping method is used as a coating method, but other methods such as a spinner method and a spray method may be used.

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

3) Next, as shown in FIG. 9C, a forming power supply 1110 supplies the device electrodes 1102 and 1102 with each other.
3, an appropriate voltage is applied, and an energization forming process is performed to form the electron-emitting portion 1105.

The energization forming treatment is to energize the conductive thin film 1104 made of a fine particle film, and to appropriately break, deform, or alter a part of the conductive thin film 1104 to change into a structure suitable for emitting electrons. This is the process that causes A portion of the conductive thin film made of a fine particle film whose structure suitable for emitting electrons has been changed (that is, the electron emitting portion 110
In 5), an appropriate crack is formed in the thin film.
Note that the electrical resistance measured between the device electrodes 1102 and 1103 is significantly increased after the formation of the electron emission portions 1105 as compared to before the formation.

FIG. 15 shows an example of an appropriate voltage waveform applied from the forming power supply 1110 in order to explain the energization method in more detail. When forming a conductive thin film made of a fine particle film, a pulsed voltage is preferable. In the case of this embodiment, a triangular wave pulse having a pulse width T1 is continuously generated at a pulse interval T2 as shown in FIG. Was applied. At that time, the peak value Vpf of the triangular wave pulse was sequentially increased. Also, monitor pulses Pm for monitoring the state of formation of the electron-emitting portion 1105 are inserted at appropriate intervals between the triangular-wave pulses, and the current flowing at that time is measured by the ammeter 1.
It was measured at 111.

In the embodiment, for example, in a vacuum atmosphere of about 10 to the fifth power (torr), for example, the pulse width T1 is 1 (millisecond) and the pulse interval T2 is 1
0 (milliseconds), and the peak value Vpf is set to 0.
The pressure was increased by 1 (V). Then, the monitor pulse Pm was inserted at a rate of one every time five triangular waves were applied. The monitor pulse voltage Vpm was set to 0.1 (V) so as not to adversely affect the forming process. Then, when the electric resistance between the device electrodes 1102 and 1103 becomes 1 × 10 6 (ohm), that is, the current measured by the ammeter 1111 at the time of application of the monitor pulse is 1 × 10 −7 (A). At the stage where the following conditions were reached, the energization related to the forming process was terminated.

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

4) Next, as shown in FIG.
The device electrodes 1102 and 1103 are supplied from the activation power source 1112.
During this time, an appropriate voltage is applied to perform the activation process to improve the electron emission characteristics.

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

Specifically, 10 minus the fourth power to 1
By periodically applying a voltage pulse in a vacuum atmosphere within the range of 0 to the fifth power (torr), carbon or a carbon compound originating from an organic compound existing in the vacuum atmosphere is deposited. The deposit 1113 is one of single-crystal graphite, polycrystalline graphite, and amorphous carbon, or a mixture thereof, and has a film thickness of 500
(Angstrom) or less, more preferably 300 (angstrom) or less.

FIG. 16A shows an example of an appropriate voltage waveform applied from the activation power supply 1112 in order to explain the energization method in more detail. In the present embodiment, the energization activation process is performed by periodically applying a rectangular wave of a constant voltage. Specifically, the voltage Vac of the rectangular wave is 14 (V), and the pulse width T3 is 1 (millisecond). ), And the pulse interval T4 was 10 (milliseconds). The above-mentioned energization conditions are preferable conditions for the surface conduction electron-emitting device of this embodiment, and when the design of the surface conduction electron-emitting device is changed, it is desirable to appropriately change the conditions accordingly.

An anode electrode 1114 shown in FIG. 14 (d) for capturing the emission current Ie emitted from the surface conduction electron-emitting device is connected to a DC high voltage power supply 1115 and an ammeter 1116. (Note that the substrate 1101
When the activation process is performed after the display panel is incorporated into the display panel, the phosphor screen of the display panel is connected to the anode electrode 1114.
Used as).

While the voltage is applied from the activation power supply 1112, the emission current Ie is measured by the ammeter 1116 to monitor the progress of the energization activation process.
Control the operation of. One example of the emission current Ie measured by the ammeter 1116 is shown in FIG.
When the application of the pulse voltage starts from 12, the emission current Ie increases with the passage of time, but eventually saturates and hardly increases. As described above, when the emission current Ie is substantially saturated, the application of the voltage from the activation power supply 1112 is stopped, and the energization activation process ends.

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

A planar type surface conduction electron-emitting device shown in FIG. 14E was manufactured as follows.

(Vertical Type Surface Conduction Emission Element) Next, another typical structure of a surface conduction type emission element in which the electron emission portion or its periphery is formed of a fine particle film, that is, a vertical surface conduction type emission device. The configuration of the element will be described.

FIG. 17 is a schematic cross-sectional view for explaining the basic structure of a vertical type.
202 and 1203 are device electrodes, 1206 is a step forming member, 1204 is a conductive thin film using a fine particle film, 1205
Are electron-emitting portions formed by an energization forming process;
213 is a thin film formed by the activation process.

The difference between the vertical type and the flat type described above is that one of the element electrodes (1202) is provided on the step forming member 1206, and the conductive thin film 1204 is provided on the side surface of the step forming member 1206. This is the point of coating. Therefore, the element electrode interval L in the planar type shown in FIG. 102 is set as the step height Ls of the step forming member 1206 in the vertical type. Note that for the substrate 1201, the element electrodes 1202 and 1203, and the conductive thin film 1204 using a fine particle film, the materials listed in the description of the planar type can be used in the same manner. For the step forming member 1206, an electrically insulating material such as SiO ₂ is used.

Next, a method of manufacturing a vertical surface conduction electron-emitting device will be described. FIGS. 18A to 18E are cross-sectional views for explaining a manufacturing process.
Is the same as

1) First, as shown in FIG. 18A, an element electrode 1203 is formed on a substrate 1201.

2) Next, as shown in FIG. 9B, an insulating layer for forming a step forming member is laminated. The insulating layer may be formed by stacking, for example, SiO ₂ by a sputtering method, but another film forming method such as a vacuum evaporation method or a printing method may be used.

3) Next, as shown in FIG. 9C, an element electrode 1202 is formed on the insulating layer.

4) Next, as shown in FIG. 4D, a part of the insulating layer is removed by using, for example, an etching method to expose the element electrode 1203.

5) Next, as shown in FIG. 9E, a conductive thin film 1204 using a fine particle film is formed. For the formation, as in the case of the flat type, a film forming technique such as a coating method may be used.

6) Next, as in the case of the flat type, the energization forming process is performed to form an electron emitting portion.
(A process similar to the planar energization forming process described with reference to FIG. 14C may be performed).

7) Next, as in the case of the flat type, a current activation process is performed to deposit carbon or a carbon compound near the electron emitting portion. (The same process as the planar energization activation process described with reference to FIG. 14D may be performed.)

As described above, the vertical surface conduction electron-emitting device shown in FIG.

(Characteristics of Surface Conduction Emission Element Used in Display Device) The element configuration and manufacturing method of the planar and vertical surface conduction electron-emitting devices have been described above. Next, the characteristics of the element used in the display device will be described. Is described.

FIG. 19 shows typical examples of (emission current Ie) versus (element applied voltage Vf) characteristics and (element current If) versus (element applied voltage Vf) characteristics of the elements used in the display device. . Note that the emission current Ie is significantly smaller than the element current If, and it is difficult to show the same current on the same scale.
Since these characteristics are changed by changing design parameters such as the size and shape of the element, the two graphs are shown in arbitrary units.

The element used in the display device has the following three characteristics regarding the emission current Ie.

First, a certain voltage (this is referred to as a threshold voltage Vth
When a voltage of the above magnitude is applied to the element, the emission current Ie sharply increases. On the other hand, at a voltage lower than the threshold voltage Vth, the emission current Ie is hardly detected.

That is, it is a non-linear element having a clear threshold voltage Vth with respect to the emission current Ie.

Secondly, since the emission current Ie changes depending on the voltage Vf applied to the element, the emission current Ie depends on the voltage Vf.
The magnitude of e can be controlled.

Third, since the response speed of the current Ie emitted from the element is faster with respect to the voltage Vf applied to the element, the amount of charge of the electrons emitted from the element depends on the length of time during which the voltage Vf is applied. Can control.

Because of the above characteristics, the surface conduction electron-emitting device could be suitably used for a display device. For example, in a display device in which a large number of elements are provided corresponding to the pixels of the display screen, if the first characteristic is used, the display screen can be sequentially scanned and displayed. That is, the threshold voltage Vth is applied to the element being driven in accordance with the desired light emission luminance.
The above voltage is appropriately applied, and a voltage lower than the threshold voltage Vth is applied to the non-selected elements. By sequentially switching the elements to be driven, the display screen can be sequentially scanned and displayed.

Further, since the emission luminance can be controlled by using the second characteristic or the third characteristic, it is possible to perform gradation display.

(Structure of a multi-electron beam source in which a large number of elements are arranged in a simple matrix) Next, a structure of a multi-electron beam source in which the above-mentioned surface conduction electron-emitting elements are arranged on a substrate and arranged in a simple matrix will be described.

FIG. 20 is a plan view of the multi-electron beam source used for the display panel of FIG. On the substrate, surface conduction type emission devices similar to those shown in FIG. 13 are arranged.
And the column-directional wiring electrodes 1004 are arranged in a simple matrix. An insulating layer (not shown) is formed between the row-directional wiring electrodes 1003 and the column-directional wiring electrodes 1004 where they intersect, so that electrical insulation is maintained.

FIG. 21 is a sectional view taken along the line AA ′ of FIG.
Shown in

The multi-electron source having such a structure is as follows.
After previously forming a row direction wiring electrode 1003, a column direction wiring electrode 1004, an interelectrode insulating layer (not shown), and a device electrode and a conductive thin film of a surface conduction electron-emitting device on a substrate,
Row direction wiring electrode 1003 and column direction wiring electrode 1004
The device was manufactured by supplying power to each element through the device and performing an energization forming process and an energization activation process.

(Embodiment 2) Embodiment 2 is shown in FIG. The second embodiment is a modification of the display circuit configuration shown in the first embodiment with respect to the scanning side portion.
1, the timing control circuit 12 and the circuit system provided on the column direction side are all the same, and therefore the description of the second embodiment will be omitted. In the first embodiment, the sequential scanning is realized by sequentially switching the internal switches provided in the scanning signal switching circuit 18 by the control signal from the scanning driver 17.

In the second embodiment, the scan signal side shift register 19 is used to
In response to the SYNC signal, the transistors 20Tr1 to Trn for sequentially driving the row wiring are driven. The output of the scan-side shift register 19 is input to the base side of the transistor 20 (the gate in the case of an FET), and the collector output of the transistor 20 is connected to the wiring in the row direction by using + Vf as a power source, and is connected via a resistor. ing. Therefore, + Vf is normally applied at the time of non-selection, and the scanning side shift register 1 is sequentially scanned.
When the selection is made by 9, a voltage value of 0 V is applied to the row direction wiring side by turning on the transistor. The actual driving of the panel may be performed at the same driving timing as in the first embodiment.

Actually, since the transistor is driven in the saturation region, there is a slight Vce (voltage between the collector and the emitter). However, in this embodiment, there was almost no problem. As described above, in the second embodiment as well, the panel can be displayed by using only the two voltage values in driving the panel.

Embodiment 3 Embodiment 3 is an example in which an image forming apparatus is driven by pulse height modulation. FIG. 7 is a block diagram of the image forming apparatus according to the third embodiment. Reference numeral 25 denotes a pulse height modulation circuit, which is based on the signals (I ₁ ′, I ₂ ′, I ₃ ′,..., I _N ′) output from the line memory 14,
A pulse height signal having a magnitude of f / 2 to Vf is output. Other configurations are the same as in the first embodiment. FIG. 8 shows a circuit inside the pulse height modulation circuit 25. A pulse height signal (M ₁ , M ₂ , M ₃ ,..., M _N ) having a magnitude of Vf / 2 to Vf is output to the display panel 21 by an adder and a bipolar transistor in the drawing. At this time, only two types of voltage sources, GND and Vf, are used. Here, the Adder need not be separately provided.

FIG. 9 shows a time chart of the display panel 21 and the scanning signals (S ₁ , S ₂ ,..., S _M ) and the modulation signals (M ₁ , M ₂ ,..., M _N ) of each column. FIG. 10 is a time chart of the scanning signals (S ₁ , S ₂ ,..., S _M ) and a time chart of a certain column direction wiring focused on. It can be seen that the modulation signal changes depending on the row to be scanned.

(Embodiment 4) FIG. 22 shows a display panel using the above-described surface conduction electron-emitting device as an electron beam source, for example, image information provided from various image information sources such as television broadcasting. FIG. 1 is a diagram for showing an example of a multi-function display device configured to be able to display.

In the figure, reference numeral 2100 denotes a display panel;
01 is a display panel driving circuit, 2102 is a display controller, 2103 is a multiplexer, 2
104 is a decoder, 2105 is an input / output interface circuit, 2106 is a CPU, 2107 is an image generation circuit,
108, 2109 and 2110 are image memory interface circuits, 2111 is an image input interface circuit, 2112 and 2113 are TV signal receiving circuits, and 2114 is an input unit.

(Note that when the present display device receives a signal containing both video information and audio information, such as a television signal, it naturally reproduces audio simultaneously with video display. Circuits and speakers related to reception, separation, reproduction, processing, storage, and the like of audio information that are not directly related to the features of the present invention will not be described.

Hereinafter, the function of each section will be described along the flow of the image signal.

First, the TV signal receiving circuit 2113 is a circuit for receiving a TV image signal transmitted using a wireless transmission system such as radio waves or spatial optical communication. The system of the TV signal to be received is not particularly limited, and may be, for example, various systems such as the NTSC system, the PAL system, and the SECAM system. A TV signal (for example, a so-called high-definition TV such as the MUSE system) composed of a larger number of scanning lines is suitable for taking advantage of the display panel suitable for a large area and a large number of pixels. Signal source. The TV signal received by the TV signal receiving circuit 2113 is output to the decoder 2104.

The TV signal receiving circuit 2112 is a circuit for receiving a TV image signal transmitted using a wired transmission system such as a coaxial cable or an optical fiber. As with the TV signal receiving circuit 2113, the type of the TV signal to be received is not particularly limited, and the TV signal received by this circuit is also output to the decoder 2104.

Further, the image input interface circuit 21
Reference numeral 11 denotes a circuit for taking in an image signal supplied from an image input device such as a TV camera or an image reading scanner.
4 is output.

An image memory interface circuit 2110 is a circuit for taking in an image signal stored in a video tape recorder (hereinafter abbreviated as VTR). The taken image signal is output to a decoder 2104.

An image memory interface circuit 2109 is a circuit for taking in an image signal stored in a video disk. The taken image signal is output to a decoder 2104.

An image memory interface circuit 2108 is a circuit for taking in an image signal from a device that stores still image data, such as a so-called still image disk.
Output to 104.

The input / output interface circuit 210
Reference numeral 5 denotes a circuit for connecting the display device to an external computer, a computer network, or an output device such as a printer. Image data and text
It is possible not only to input and output graphic information, but also to input and output control signals and numerical data between the CPU 2106 included in the display device and the outside in some cases.

The image generation circuit 2107 is provided with image data, character / graphic information input from the outside via the input / output interface circuit 2105, or a CPU.
This is a circuit for generating display image data based on the image data and character / graphic information output from 2106. Within this circuit, for example, a rewritable memory for storing image data and character / graphic information, a read-only memory for storing image patterns corresponding to character codes, and a processor for image processing And other circuits necessary for generating an image.

The display image data generated by the present circuit is output to the decoder 2104, but may be output to an external computer network or printer via the input / output interface circuit 2105 in some cases.

The CPU 2106 mainly controls the operation of the display device and performs operations related to generation, selection, and editing of a display image.

For example, a control signal is output to the multiplexer 2103, and image signals to be displayed on the display panel are appropriately selected or combined. In this case, a control signal is generated for the display panel controller 2102 in accordance with the image signal to be displayed, and the display frequency, the scanning method (for example, interlaced or non-interlaced), the number of scanning lines on one screen, and the like are displayed. The operation of the device is appropriately controlled.

Further, image data and character / graphic information are directly output to the image generation circuit 2107, or an external computer or memory is accessed via the input / output interface circuit 2105 to access the image data or character / graphic information. Enter graphic information.

The CPU 2106 may, of course, be involved in work for other purposes. For example,
A function of generating and processing information, such as a personal computer or a word processor, may be directly involved.

Alternatively, the computer may be connected to an external computer network via the input / output interface circuit 2105 as described above, and work such as numerical calculation may be performed in cooperation with an external device.

The input unit 2114 is connected to the CPU 21.
06 is for the user to input commands, programs, data, and the like. For example, in addition to a keyboard and a mouse, a joystick, a barcode reader,
Various input devices such as a voice recognition device can be used.

Also, the decoder 2104 has the
And 2113 are circuits for inversely converting various image signals inputted from 2113 into three primary color signals or luminance signals and I and Q signals. It is to be noted that the decoder 2104 desirably includes an image memory therein, as indicated by a dotted line in FIG. This includes, for example, the MUSE method,
This is for handling a television signal that requires an image memory when performing the inverse conversion. Further, the provision of the image memory facilitates the display of a still image. Alternatively, there is an advantage that the image generation circuit 2107 and the CPU 2106 cooperate to easily perform image processing and editing including image thinning, interpolation, enlargement, reduction, and composition.

The multiplexer 2103 is connected to the C
A display image is appropriately selected based on a control signal input from the PU 2106. That is, the multiplexer 2103 selects a desired image signal from the inversely converted image signals input from the decoder 2104 and outputs the selected image signal to the drive circuit 2101. In that case, by switching and selecting an image signal within one screen display time, it is possible to divide one screen into a plurality of areas and display different images depending on the areas, as in a so-called multi-screen TV. .

The display panel controller 2
Reference numeral 102 denotes a circuit for controlling the operation of the drive circuit 2101 based on a control signal input from the CPU 2106.

First, as a signal related to the basic operation of the display panel, for example, a signal for controlling an operation sequence of a drive power source (not shown) for the display panel is output to the drive circuit 2101.

Further, as a signal related to the display panel driving method, a signal for controlling, for example, a screen display frequency and a scanning method (for example, interlace or non-interlace) is output to the drive circuit 2101.

In some cases, a control signal related to image quality adjustment such as brightness, contrast, color tone, and sharpness of a display image may be output to the drive circuit 2101.

The drive circuit 2101 is a circuit for generating a drive signal to be applied to the display panel 2100. The drive circuit 2101 is a circuit for generating an image signal input from the multiplexer 2103 and the display panel controller 21.
The operation is based on a control signal input from the input terminal 02.

The function of each unit has been described above. With the configuration illustrated in FIG. 22, in this display device, image information input from various image information sources is displayed on the display panel 2.
100 can be displayed.

That is, various image signals including television broadcasts are inversely converted by the decoder 2104, appropriately selected by the multiplexer 2103, and input to the drive circuit 2101. On the other hand, the display controller 2102 generates a control signal for controlling the operation of the drive circuit 2101 according to the image signal to be displayed. The driving circuit 2101 applies a driving circuit to the display panel 2100 based on the image signal and the control signal.

As a result, the display panel 2100
Displays an image. A series of these operations is C
It is totally controlled by the PU 2106.

In the present display device, the image memory incorporated in the decoder 2104, the image generation circuit 21
07 and the CPU 2106 involve not only displaying a selected one of a plurality of pieces of image information, but also enlarging, reducing,
It is also possible to perform image processing such as rotation, movement, edge enhancement, thinning, interpolation, color conversion, image aspect ratio conversion, and image editing such as synthesis, erasure, connection, replacement, and fitting. is there. Although not particularly described in the description of the present embodiment, a dedicated circuit for processing and editing audio information may be provided as in the above-described image processing and image editing.

Therefore, the present display device is a television broadcast display device, a video conference terminal device, an image editing device that handles still and moving images, a computer terminal device, an office terminal device such as a word processor,
It is possible to combine functions such as game machines with one unit,
Extremely wide range of applications for industrial or consumer use.

FIG. 22 shows only an example of the configuration of a display device using a display panel using a surface conduction electron-emitting device as an electron beam source, and it is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to this. No. For example, FIG.
Circuits related to functions that are not necessary for the purpose of use among the 0 constituent elements may be omitted. Conversely, additional components may be added depending on the purpose of use. For example, when the present display device is applied as a video phone, it is preferable to add a television camera, a voice microphone, a lighting device, a transmitting / receiving circuit including a modem, and the like to the components.

In the present display device, in particular, a display panel using a surface conduction electron-emitting device as an electron beam source can be easily thinned, so that the depth of the entire display device can be reduced. In addition, the display panel using the surface conduction electron-emitting device as the electron beam source is easy to enlarge the screen, has high brightness, and has excellent viewing angle characteristics. It is possible to display well.

[0154]

As described above, according to the present invention, if the asymmetric surface-conduction emission devices are arranged in a matrix and an image is displayed, the voltage applied to the selected device and the non-selection device can be increased. A desired image display could be performed by changing only the polarity of. Therefore, by adopting the above method, only two kinds of applied voltages are required, so that the configuration can be simplified also for the circuit system of the display device, and the cost of the entire system can be reduced. Was completed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a sectional view of an electron-emitting device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an electric characteristic diagram of the electron-emitting device of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the image forming apparatus according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a driving timing chart and a display panel according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 5 is a timing chart of driving according to the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a block diagram of an image forming apparatus according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of an image display device according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 8 is a detailed diagram of a pulse height modulation circuit according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a drive timing chart and a display panel according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a timing chart of driving according to the third embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view of a display panel.

FIG. 12 is a phosphor arrangement diagram of a face plate.

FIG. 13 is a plan view of a planar type surface conduction electron-emitting device (a).
And a sectional view (b).

FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating a manufacturing process of a planar surface-conduction emission element.

FIG. 15 is a time chart showing a forming voltage.

FIG. 16 is a time chart of an activation voltage and an emission current.

FIG. 17 is a sectional view of a vertical surface conduction electron-emitting device.

FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating a manufacturing process of a vertical surface conduction electron-emitting device.

FIG. 19 is a graph showing voltage-current characteristics of a surface conduction electron-emitting device.

FIG. 20 is a plan view of a multi-electron beam substrate.

FIG. 21 is a partial cross-sectional view of a multi-electron beam substrate.

FIG. 22 is a block diagram of a multiplex display.

FIG. Hartwell et al. FIG. 1 is a plan view of a conventional surface conduction electron-emitting device disclosed by A.

FIG. 24 is a schematic view of a simple matrix wiring.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1,1101 substrate 2 ultrafine particle film 3,4,1102,1103 device electrode 5 metal back 6 phosphor 7 face plate

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. An image forming apparatus comprising: a multi-electron beam source in which a plurality of surface conduction electron-emitting devices are wired in a matrix with a plurality of data wirings and a plurality of scanning wirings; and a driving circuit for driving the multi-electron beam source. The surface conduction electron-emitting device includes a first electrode and a second electrode having different shapes from each other, and an electron-emitting portion between the first electrode and the second electrode, wherein the first electrode is The second electrode is connected to the data line, the driving circuit is connected to the data line as a non-scan voltage as a non-scan voltage.
Is output as V1 (≠ V2) as a scanning voltage, and a voltage V3 (V1 ≦ V3 ≦ V2 or V2 ≦ V3) is output to the data line.
<V1) An image forming apparatus that outputs a luminance signal. 2. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the first electrode blocks emitted electrons from the electron emitting portion, and the second electrode passes the emitted electrons. 3. The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the driving circuit outputs a luminance signal to the data line with a pulse width of a voltage V3 equal to the non-scanning voltage V2. 4. The driving circuit according to claim 1, wherein the data line is connected to V1.
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a luminance signal is output at a pulse height of a voltage V3 that satisfies ≦ V3 ≦ V2. 5. A driving circuit comprising:
The image forming apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a luminance signal is output at a pulse height of a voltage V3 that satisfies ≦ V3 ≦ V1. 6. A fluorescent plate which is excited and emits light by irradiation of electrons on an upper part of the multi-electron beam source.
6. The image forming apparatus according to claim 5.