Plasma addressed display

Abstract

To optimize a discharge current flowing in each of discharge channels for performing linear sequential scan of a display cell, a panel 0 has a laminated structure in which a display cell having signal electrodes D arranged in columns and a plasma cell having discharge channels (K,A) arranged in rows are laminated to each other. Pixels 1 are defined in a matrix at positions where the signal electrodes D cross the discharge channels (K,A). A vertical drive circuit 2 repeatedly performs field scans in each of which pixels 1 are selected in a row-sequential manner by sequentially applying drive pulses each to the signal channels (K,A) for generating plasma discharges. A horizontal drive circuit 3 applies image signals each to the signal electrodes D, to write the image signals in the selected pixels 1. The vertical drive circuit 2 includes a detecting resistance 14 for detecting a discharge state of each discharge channel (K,A) for each field scan. The vertical drive circuit 2 also includes a control means having a comparator 17, a memory 19, a flip-flop 13 and the like for controlling, on the basis of a detected result obtained in the previous field scan, a width of each of the drive pulses Q1 to Qn to be applied in the next field scan for each discharge channel.

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.