Electric lamp or space discharge component or device manufacturi – Process – With assembly or disassembly
Reexamination Certificate
2001-09-18
2003-12-02
Bradley, P. Austin (Department: 2879)
Electric lamp or space discharge component or device manufacturi
Process
With assembly or disassembly
C313S422000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06656007
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method of manufacturing a spacer used in an electron beam generating device, an electron beam generating device using the spacer and an image-forming apparatus.
2. Related Background Art
Up to now, there have been known two sorts of electron beam emitting devices, that is, a hot cathode device and a cold cathode device as an electron source in an electron beam emitting device used in an image-forming apparatus. In the cold cathode device of those cathode devices, there have been known, for example, a surface conduction electron-emitting device, an electric field electron-emitting device (hereinafter referred to as “FE type”), a metal/insulating layer/metal electron-emitting device (hereinafter referred to as “MIM type”), and the like.
The above surface conduction electron-emitting devices are exemplified by, for example, M. I. Elinson, Radio: Eng. Electron Phys., 10,1290 (1965), and other examples that will be described later. The surface conduction electron-emitting device is so designed as to utilize a phenomenon where a current is allowed to flow to a thin film of a small-area formed on a substrate in parallel with a film surface, to thereby cause electron emission.
As the surface conduction electron-emitting device, there have been reported, in addition to the above-described surface conduction electron-emitting device using an SnO
2
thin film by Elinson, a surface conduction electron-emitting device using an Au thin film [G. Dittmer: “Thin Solid Films”, 9,317(1972)], a surface conduction electron-emitting device using an In
2
O
3
/SnO
2
thin film [M. Hartwell and C. G. Fonstad: “IEEE Trans. ED Conf.”, 519(1975)], a surface conduction electron-emitting device using a carbon thin film [Hisashi Araki, et al: Vacuum, volume 26, No. 1, 22 (1983)], and the like.
A typical example of the device structure of those surface conduction electron-emitting devices is exemplified by the above-mentioned device by M. Hartwell, et al as shown in FIG.
23
. In this example, reference numeral
3001
denotes a substrate, and
3004
is a plane type electroconductive thin film of an H shape made of metal oxide formed through sputtering. Then, the electroconductive thin film
3004
is subjected to energization processing called “energization forming” which will be described later, to therefore form an electron-emitting portion
3005
. Note that, in the figure, an interval L is set to 0.5 to 1 mm, and a width W is set to 0.1 mm. In this example, for the convenience of the drawing, the electron-emitting portion
3005
is indicated by a rectangular. In the center of the electroconductive thin film
3004
, but this is schematic and does not faithfully represent the position and configuration of the actual electron-emitting portion.
It is general that in the surface conduction electron-emitting device including the above-mentioned device by M. Hartwell, et al, the electroconductive thin film
3004
is subjected to energization processing called “energization forming” to form the electron-emitting portion
3005
. That is, the energization forming is that a constant D.C. voltage or a D.C. voltage that is boosted at a very slow rate such as 1 V/min is applied to the both ends of the electroconductive thin film
3004
to energize the electroconductive thin film
3004
so that the electroconductive thin film
3004
is locally destroyed, deformed or deteriorated, to thereby form the electron-emitting portion
3005
that is in an electrically high-resistant state.
Note that a fissure is formed in a part of the electroconductive thin film
3004
that has been locally destroyed, deformed or deteriorated. Therefore, in the case where an appropriate voltage is applied to the electroconductive thin film
3004
after the energization forming, electron emission is conducted in the vicinity of the fissure.
Also, as the examples of the FE type, there have been known, for example, W. P. Dyke & W. W. Dolan, “Field emission”, Advance in Electron Physics, 8, 89(1956), C. A. Spindt, “Physical properties of thin-film fie-id emission cathodes with molybdenum cones”, J. Appl. Phys., 47,5248 (1976), and the like.
As the typical example of the device structure of the FE type, the above-mentioned device by C. A. Spindt, et al is structured as shown in
FIG. 24
in which reference numeral
3010
denotes a substrate,
3011
denotes an emitter wiring made of an electroconductive material,
3012
denotes an emitter cone,
3013
denotes an insulating layer, and
3014
denotes a gate electrode. In this device, an appropriate voltage is applied between the emitter cone
3012
and the gate electrode
3014
, to thereby conduct the electric field emission from a leading portion of the emitter cone
3012
.
Also, as another device structure of the FE type, there is an example in which an emitter and a gate electrode are disposed on a substrate substantially in parallel with a substrate surface which is not of the above-mentioned laminate structure.
Also, as an example of the MIM type, there have been known, for example, C. A. Mead, “Operation of tunnel-emission Devices, J. Appl, Phys., 32,646 (1961), and the like. A typical example of the MIM type device structure is shown in FIG.
25
. In this example, reference numeral
3020
denotes a substrate,
3021
denotes a lower electrode made of metal,
3022
denotes a thin insulating layer having a thickness of about 100 Å, and
3023
denotes an upper electrode made of metal having a thickness of about 80 to 300 Å. The MIM type device is structured such that an appropriate voltage is applied between the upper electrode
3023
and the lower electrode
3021
to conduct the electron emission from the surface of the upper electrode
3023
.
The above-described cold cathode device does not require a heater because the device can obtain the electron emission at a low temperature as compared with the hot cathode device. Therefore, the cold cathode device is simple in structure as compared with the hot cathode device and being capable of producing a fine device from the cold cathode device. Also, even if a large number of devices are arranged on the substrate with a high density, it is hard to generate a problem such as heat melting of the substrate. Also, in case of the cold cathode device, there is another advantage in that a response is high in speed, which is different from the hot cathode device (in which the response is low in speed because the device is operated by heating of the heater). For that reason, the applied research of the cold cathode device is increasingly conducted.
For example, the surface conduction electron-emitting device is particularly simple in its structure among the cold cathode devices, and it is easy in manufacture, and therefore has an advantage that a large number of devices can be formed over a large area. Under the circumstance, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 64-31332 made by the present applicant, a method in which a large number of devices are arranged on a substrate and driven is researched.
Also, as the application of the surface conduction electron-emitting device, there have been researched, for example, an image-forming apparatus such as an image display apparatus or an image recording apparatus, a charge beam source and the like. In particular, as the application to the image display apparatus, as disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2-257551 by the present applicant, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 4-28137 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,066,883, there has been researched an image display apparatus using the combination of the surface conduction electron-emitting device with a phosphor that emits a light due to the irradiation of an electron beam.
In the image display apparatus using the combination of the surface conduction electron-emitting device with the phosphor; it is expected to have a characteristic superior to the conventional image display apparatus of other types. For example
Fushimi Masahiro
Shimizu Yasushi
Shioya Yasushi
Bradley P. Austin
Hammond Briggitte
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