JPS62103603A - Fiber array plate - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain a fiber array plate which has not dark points and curve and is superior in image transmission characteristic, vacuum air-tightness, and insulating property by using >= two kinds of glass as materials of glass plane plate welded thermally to an optical fiber layer when the fiber array plate is produced by thermal welding and applying a pressure uniformly to the optical fiber layer to relax and reduce the distortion. CONSTITUTION:Glass plane plates 2 having 100X10<-7>/ deg.C thermal expansion coefficient, 620 deg.C softening point, and 4mm thickness and glass plane plates 3 having 105X10<-1>/ deg.C coefficient of thermal expansion, a softening point 65 deg.C higher than that of glass plane plates 2, and 8mm thickness are used to heat and pressure the optical fiber layer (6mm layer thickness), which has 80X10<-7>/ deg.C coefficient of thermal expansion and 600 deg.C softening point, at 555 deg.C and 4kg/cm<2>, and thereafter, they are cut and ground to obtain a fiber array plate having 160mm width, 20mm height, and 7mm thickness. Thus, the distortion generated for thermal welding is relaxed and reduced as much as possible to prevent the occurrence of cracks in the thermal welding process and to reduce ununiform deformation of optical fibers.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a fiber array plate.

[Prior Art] Fiber array plates (hereinafter referred to as FAP) manufactured by heat fusion can be used for various purposes, mainly as face plates for cathode ray tubes that require vacuum tightness, insulation resistance, etc. It is being However, there are some difficulties in the heat fusion process. In other words, an optical fiber consists of a core, cladding, and depending on the application, an absorber and two or three types of glass, and since the various properties required for each glass are different, the coefficient of thermal expansion and transition that govern the thermal fusing process are different. It becomes difficult to optimally select thermal properties such as point and softening point, and distortion occurs in the optical fiber layer during thermal fusion.

Furthermore, when pressurizing to assist in thermal fusion in this step, a pressure gradient tends to occur from the center of the optical fiber layer to the periphery perpendicular to the pressurizing direction, which causes strain to be introduced into the optical fiber layer. Strain caused by these things often causes cracks in the optical fiber layer and destroys the airtightness and insulation properties of the FAP. Conditions such as pressurization are selected, but the management of these conditions and the entire fusion process are complicated. In addition, the pressure gradient that often occurs during pressurization may deform the optical fiber non-uniformly, causing the optical fiber layer to curve, or making the degree of fusion non-uniform, resulting in incomplete vacuum tightness. In addition, excessive deformation of the optical fiber may locally generate dark spots, that is, optical fibers that do not participate in image transmission, or may cause incomplete image transmission due to curvature.

The above problem can be solved by disposing a flat glass plate as a supporting member on the optical fiber layer, as seen mainly in the face plate of a cathode ray tube, and simultaneously fusing the optical fibers together. The problem becomes even more serious when flat plates are fused together.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] The present invention solves the above-described drawbacks due to the heat-sealing process and/or the pressure applied in the process. The purpose of the present invention is to provide a fiber array plate that has excellent vacuum tightness and insulation resistance, and has excellent image transmission characteristics without dark spots or curvature.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing the above-described fiber array plate.

[Means for Solving the Problems] The present invention is characterized in that an optical fiber layer is sandwiched between two or more types of glass flat plates having different thermophysical properties, and the glass flat plate and the optical fiber layer are integrated. The present invention provides a fiber array plate.

The present invention also provides a method for manufacturing the above-mentioned fiber array plate.

The present invention will be explained below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 3 is a sectional view showing an embodiment of the fiber array plate according to the present invention. 1 is an optical fiber, and 2.3 is a flat glass plate. The optical fibers 1 are fused and integrated with each other and the glass flat plates 28 and 3 by heating and pressure, forming a fiber array plate as a whole.

The thermal properties of the glass flat plate 2.3 are preferably similar to those of the optical fiber, but the difference in the thermal properties of the optical fiber is (-10 to +20) x 10-1 in terms of thermal expansion coefficient.
The thickness of the flat glass plate 2.3 may vary depending on its thermophysical properties and the thickness of the optical fiber, but it is usually 1.
It may be 0 mm or less. Further, the glass flat plates 2 and 3 have different thermophysical properties. For example, the glass flat plate 3 may have a softening point higher or lower than that of VA 2, and the glass flat plate does not need to be placed under L of the optical fiber 7/C bar layer, for example, on the lower surface of the optical fiber layer. The object of the present invention can also be achieved by arranging one type of material on the J-plane and two types of materials on the J-plane.

The method for manufacturing a film array plate of the present invention minimizes and reduces the distortion that occurs during heat fusion, and at the same time uniformly presses the optical fiber layer to prevent the occurrence of cracks during the heat fusion process. It also reduces non-uniform deformation of the optical fiber.

FIG. 1 is a sectional view showing an embodiment of the manufacturing method according to the present invention. In FIG. 0, 4 is a frame, l is an optical fiber, 2.3 supports a layer of optical fiber 1, and A flat glass plate is heat-sealed to the fiber layer. Also, 5
is a push plate that presses the optical fiber layer through the flat glass plate, and applies pressure in the direction of the arrow in the figure.Although not shown in the figure, the frame and press plate, the flat glass plate, and the optical fiber layer are A plate-like or powder-like release agent (FA-type agent) is provided between the two. Then, by heating and pressurizing the whole in the air or under vacuum, the optical fiber and the flat glass plate are thermally fused and integrated. can be alleviated and reduced by using The thermophysical properties of the flat glass plate used for this purpose are preferably similar to the optical fiber layer, but with an expansion coefficient of 8 (
-10~+20) x 10-1/''O1 The softening point may be about -50~+80°C, and at the same time, the optical fiber layer is uniformly pressurized by the flat glass plate.
The thickness of the flat glass plate varies depending on its thermophysical properties and the thickness of the optical fiber layer, but it is usually 10 mm or less; on the other hand, if it is too thick, the deformation of the flat glass plate increases and the distortion of the optical fiber layer decreases. However, deformation may increase. For this reason, deformation of the optical fiber layer is prevented by simultaneously using a glass flat plate with a higher softening point than the glass flat plate, and any of these glass flat plates may be placed closer to the optical fiber layer. It is not necessary to arrange them in the same manner above and below the optical fiber layer; for example, one type of fiber layer may be placed on the bottom surface of the fiber layer, and two types of fibers may be placed on the top surface of the fiber layer to achieve the purpose.

[Example] Example 1 In the arrangement shown in Fig. 1, the thermal expansion coefficient is 80XIO-
7/'C1 Thermal expansion coefficient is 100XIO-'1 for an optical fiber layer (thickness approximately 8m+s) with a softening point of 600℃
/°C, a glass flat plate 2 with a softening point of 620°C and a thickness of 41°C is used, and a thermal expansion coefficient of to5
555℃, 4kg/c using I11 glass flat plate 3
Heated and pressurized with m2, then cut and polished to a width of 160 mm and a height of 20+++s as shown in Figure 3.
A FAP with a thickness of 7III was produced.

Example 2 Thermal expansion coefficient 100 Xl in the arrangement shown in Fig. 2
0-7/℃ and a softening point of 660℃ for an optical fiber layer (thickness about 15cm), the thermal expansion coefficient is 90X10=/'0.
A glass flat plate 7 with a softening point of 620° C. and a thickness of about 3 μl; a glass flat plate 6 (thickness 5+ am) with a thermal expansion coefficient of 90×10-7/′C and a softening point 40° C. higher than that of the glass flat plate 7; Furthermore, the coefficient of thermal expansion is 105X to -7/°C, and the softening point is 85°C higher than that of the glass flat plate 7.
Heating at 570°0.14kg/cm2 using
Apply pressure, then cut and polish to a width of 200cm and a height of 3mm.
A FAP with a thickness of 0+s+s and a thickness of 8 cm was produced.

Example 3 In the arrangement shown in FIG. 1, the thickness of the optical fiber layer was approximately 4
A FAP of 0.5 m in length was prepared, and after heat fusion, the glass plane plate was cut and removed to form a 30+am x 30 mm piece as shown in Figure 4.
A FAP with a thickness of 8+*m was made.

In all of the above examples, the FAPs produced had fewer defects such as poor fusion, dark spots, and curvature than those produced by conventional methods, and had poor vacuum tightness, insulation resistance, and image quality. It has excellent transmission characteristics. In addition, even if the heating and cooling speed during thermal fusion is doubled compared to conventional methods, or the temperature distribution in the furnace at the fusion temperature is increased to a rather large value of ±5°C, the quality of FAP remains unchanged. Stability, yield, and
Productivity has improved significantly.

[Invention - Second Effect] As described above, when manufacturing FAP by thermal fusion, two or more types of glasses are used in the glass plane plate that is thermally fused to the optical fiber layer.

The fiber array plate of the present invention (F
AP) has poor image transmission characteristics without dark spots or curvature, and has excellent vacuum tightness and insulation resistance. In addition, the manufacturing method of the present invention makes it easier to manage the heat fusion process, which has previously been difficult to manage due to strict and complicated conditions, reducing the manufacturing yield of FAP. Manufacturing can be achieved with high yield.

In addition, due to problems in the heat fusion process, the present invention has been developed based on the results of studies conducted by the inventor of the present invention to solve problems in the heat fusion process. ) The difference in mutual thermal expansion coefficient is within ±l0X10-1/'0, and the difference in softening point is ±4
The selection of glass materials, which was previously limited to temperatures preferably within 0°C, has expanded, and a wide range of F glass materials can now be used.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIGS. 1 and 2 are cross-sectional views showing an embodiment of the fiber array plate manufacturing method of the present invention, and the arrows in the figures indicate the direction of pressure in the heat fusion process. FIGS. 3 and 4 are cross-sectional views showing embodiments of the fiber array plate of the present invention.

Claims (6)

[Claims] (1) A fiber array plate characterized in that an optical fiber layer is sandwiched between two or more types of glass flat plates having different thermophysical properties, and the glass flat plate and the optical fiber layer are integrated. (2) Claims characterized in that at least one of the two or more types of glass flat plates having mutually different thermophysical properties is a glass flat plate having a softening point comparable to or lower than that of the optical fiber layer. The fiber array plate according to item 1. (3) Among two or more types of glass flat plates having mutually different thermophysical properties, one type is a glass flat plate having a softening point comparable to or lower than that of the optical fiber layer, and the other type is a glass flat plate having a softening point higher than the above glass flat plate. The fiber array plate according to claim 1, which is a flat glass plate having a softening point. (4) A method for manufacturing a fiber array plate, which comprises integrating a glass flat plate and an optical fiber layer by sandwiching an optical fiber layer between two or more types of glass flat plates having different thermophysical properties and thermally fusing them. . (5) Claims characterized in that at least one of the two or more types of glass flat plates having mutually different thermophysical properties is a glass flat plate having a softening point comparable to or lower than that of the optical fiber layer. 5. The method for manufacturing a fiber array plate according to item 4. (6) Among two or more types of glass flat plates having mutually different thermophysical properties, one type is a glass flat plate having a softening point comparable to or lower than that of the optical fiber layer, and the other type is a glass flat plate having a softening point higher than the above glass flat plate. 5. The method of manufacturing a fiber array plate according to claim 4, wherein the fiber array plate is a flat glass plate having a softening point.