JP2005174864A - Electron emitter, electron emitting device, display device, and method of manufacturing electron emitter - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an electron emitter that suppresses a leak current and reduce the load of a driver, an electron emitting device, a display device, and the method of manufacturing the electron emitter. <P>SOLUTION: The electron emitter 18 of SED is constructed by forming a pair of element electrodes 31 and 32 on a rear plate 10 with a space formed therebetween, forming a guide film 33 straddling the pair of electrodes, forming conductive film 34 by supplying an organic metal solution into the aperture 33a of the guide film 33, and forming an electron emitting part 36 in the electric conductive film 34 by giving a potential difference between the element electrodes 31 and 32. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an electron-emitting device that emits electrons by applying a potential difference between a pair of electrodes, an electron-emitting device in which a plurality of electron-emitting devices are arranged on a substrate, and electrons emitted from the electron-emitting device are fluorescent. The present invention relates to a display device that displays an image by colliding with a body, and a method for manufacturing the electron-emitting device.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as an electron-emitting device, for example, a surface conduction electron-emitting device that uses a phenomenon in which electrons are emitted by flowing a current through a conductive thin film formed on an insulating substrate is known.

  In this type of electron-emitting device, for example, a pair of electrode patterns opposed to each other with a certain gap are formed on an insulating substrate, and a conductive thin film is formed so as to connect the pair of electrode patterns with a gap. It is formed by causing a crack in the conductive thin film at approximately the middle position of the gap by providing a potential difference between the pair of electrode patterns (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

  When the electron-emitting device is operated, a potential difference is applied between the pair of electrode patterns, whereby electrons are emitted from a crack formed in the conductive thin film, that is, an electron-emitting portion.

  A plurality of such electron-emitting devices are formed side by side on a substrate and further combined with a phosphor screen to constitute a display device.

  During the operation of the display device, a drive signal based on image data is given from the outside, and a potential difference is selectively given to the electrode pairs of the plurality of electron-emitting devices to emit electrons. Then, each pixel of the phosphor screen provided in one-to-one correspondence with each electron-emitting device is selectively excited and emitted to display an image.

  However, the above-described conventional electron-emitting device sometimes causes uncut portions at both ends of the crack (that is, the electron-emitting portion) when conducting energization forming that causes a crack in the conductive thin film. As described above, when a crack is left at the end of the crack, this portion becomes a path of a leakage current that does not contribute to the emission current. There was a problem to increase.

For example, when a metal solution for forming a conductive thin film is formed on a substrate by an inkjet method, the metal solution sprayed onto the substrate spreads on the substrate and the film thickness at the end of the metal solution is compared with other portions. Become thin. When the film thickness is reduced, it becomes difficult for current to flow through the thinned portion, and Joule heat is reduced, resulting in uncut portions.
JP-A-9-237571 (paragraph [0085], FIG. 1)

  An object of the present invention is to provide an electron-emitting device, an electron-emitting device, a display device, and a method for manufacturing the electron-emitting device that can suppress a leakage current and reduce a burden on a driver.

  In order to achieve the above object, an electron-emitting device according to the present invention includes a pair of electrodes provided on a substrate so as to be spaced apart from each other, a conductive film connecting the pair of electrodes, and a uniform film thickness of the conductive film. Therefore, there is provided a defining means for defining the peripheral portion of the conductive film, and an electron emission portion formed by causing a crack in the conductive film by applying a potential difference to the pair of electrodes.

  The electron-emitting device of the present invention is configured by arranging a plurality of the electron-emitting devices on the substrate, and selectively applies a potential difference to a pair of electrodes of each electron-emitting device according to a signal given from the outside. Thus, electrons are selectively emitted from the plurality of electron-emitting devices.

  The display device of the present invention includes the above-described electron emission device and an image display unit that displays an image by collision of electrons selectively emitted from a plurality of electron emission elements of the electron emission device.

  In addition, according to the method for manufacturing an electron-emitting device of the present invention, the step of forming a pair of electrodes spaced apart from each other on the substrate, and the insulating film having a hole for regulating the spread of the peripheral portion of the conductive film that connects the pair of electrodes On the substrate so as to straddle the pair of electrodes, forming a conductive film connecting the pair of electrodes by supplying a conductive film material to the holes of the insulating film, and the pair of pairs Forming an electron emission portion by applying a potential difference to the electrodes to cause cracks in the conductive film.

  Furthermore, according to the method for manufacturing an electron-emitting device of the present invention, a bottomed hole having a shape that regulates the spread of the peripheral portion of the insulating film and having a uniform depth to make the thickness of the insulating film uniform is formed on the substrate. A step of forming a pair of electrodes on the substrate so as to be partially spaced apart from each other in the hole, and a conductive film material in the hole so as to connect the pair of electrodes. To form the conductive film, and to provide a potential difference between the pair of electrodes to cause cracks in the conductive film to form an electron emission portion.

  According to the above invention, the peripheral portion of the conductive film connecting the pair of electrodes is defined, and the conductive film having an arbitrary shape and a uniform film thickness is formed.

  Since the electron-emitting device, the electron-emitting device, the display device, and the method for manufacturing the electron-emitting device according to the present invention have the above-described configuration and operation, the film thickness may be reduced at the periphery of the conductive film. Thus, the film thickness can be made uniform, the occurrence of uncut portions at the end of the electron emission portion can be prevented, the leakage current can be suppressed, and the burden on the driver can be reduced.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is an external perspective view of a surface conduction electron-emitting display device (hereinafter referred to as SED) as a display device including an electron-emitting device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  The SED has a rear plate 10 and a face plate 12 each made of rectangular quartz glass. These plates 10 and 12 are opposed to each other with an interval of about 1.5 to 3.0 mm. The rear plate 10 and the face plate 12 are joined to each other at peripheral edges via a rectangular frame-shaped side wall 14 made of glass, thereby forming a flat rectangular vacuum envelope 15.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, a phosphor screen 16 is formed on the inner surface of the face plate 12. The phosphor screen 16 is configured by arranging a plurality of phosphor layers 16a of red, blue and green, and a black colored layer 16b located between the phosphor layers. These phosphor layers 16a are formed in stripes or dots. A metal back 17 made of aluminum or the like is formed on the phosphor screen 16. Further, a transparent conductive film or a color filter film made of, for example, ITO may be provided between the face plate 12 and the phosphor screen 16. Thus, the structure in which a plurality of layers are stacked on the face plate 12 functions as the image display unit of the present invention.

  On the inner surface of the rear plate 10 (substrate), a number of electron-emitting devices 18 that emit an electron beam for exciting and emitting the phosphor layer 16a are provided. These electron-emitting devices 18 are provided in a one-to-one correspondence for each pixel, that is, for each phosphor layer 16a, and are arranged in a plurality of columns and a plurality of rows. Details of each electron-emitting device 18 will be described later.

  As shown in FIG. 4, on the rear plate 10, a large number of wirings for connecting a large number of electron-emitting devices 18 are provided in a matrix. Thus, the structure in which a large number of electron-emitting devices 18 are wired in a matrix and arranged on the rear plate 10 functions as the electron-emitting device of the present invention. Various arrangements of the electron-emitting devices 18 can be adopted. Here, an example will be described with reference to FIG.

  The electron emission device is configured by arranging a large number of electron emission elements 18 on the inner surface of the rear plate 10. That is, n electron emitting elements 18 are formed in the X direction (up and down direction) and m in the Y direction (left and right direction).

  One electrode of each electron-emitting device 18 is connected by a common wiring between the electron-emitting devices 18 in the same row. This is called Y wiring. There are m Y wirings from Y1 to Ym. The other electrode of each electron-emitting device 18 is connected by a common wiring between the electron-emitting devices 18 in the same column. This is called X wiring. There are n X wirings from X1 to Xn.

The X wiring and the Y wiring are made of the same material as that of a pair of electrode films described later of each electron-emitting device 18, and are formed by the same film formation and patterning method. Further, there are intersections between all the X wirings and the Y wirings, but all the intersections are electrically insulated by an insulating film (not shown). Examples of the insulating film include SiO ₂ formed by using a vacuum deposition method, a printing <BR> method, a sputtering method, or the like.

  For example, a signal voltage (scanning signal) for selecting a row of the electron-emitting devices 18 arranged in the Y direction is applied to the Y wiring, and a current of the electron-emitting devices 18 arranged in the X direction is modulated to the X wiring. A signal voltage (modulation signal) for this purpose is applied. Accordingly, the drive voltage applied to each electron-emitting device 18 is supplied as a differential voltage between the scanning signal and the modulation signal applied to each electron-emitting device 18.

  For example, paying attention to a specific electron-emitting device 18, when a negative threshold voltage Vf [V] is applied to the Y wiring and 0 [V] is applied to the X wiring, the threshold voltage is between the device electrodes. The voltage Vf is applied.

  Therefore, for example, a negative threshold voltage Vf [V] is applied to the wiring Y1 (a scanning signal is input), and 0 [V] is applied to the wiring X1, and any voltage (modulation) of 0 [V] or more is applied to X2 to Xn. By applying a signal), no device current is emitted from the electron-emitting devices 18 connected to the wiring Y1 and the wiring X1, and any device current is emitted from the other electron-emitting devices 18.

  Thus, in the electron emission device having the above-described configuration, it is possible to selectively drive specific electron emission elements 18 independently using a simple matrix wiring.

  Moreover, the side wall 14 which joins the peripheral parts of the face plate 12 and the rear plate 10 which were comprised as mentioned above is the peripheral part of the rear plate 10 with sealing materials 20, such as low melting glass and a low melting metal, for example. The face plate 12 and the rear plate 10 are joined to each other by being sealed to the peripheral edge of the face plate 12.

  Further, the SED includes a spacer assembly 22 disposed between the rear plate 10 and the face plate 12. The spacer assembly 22 includes a plate-like grid 24 and a plurality of columnar spacers 30 that are integrally provided on both sides of the grid.

  More specifically, the grid 24 has a first surface 24 a that faces the inner surface of the face plate 12 and a second surface 24 b that faces the inner surface of the rear plate 10, and is arranged in parallel to these plates 10 and 12. . A large number of beam passage holes 26 and a plurality of spacer openings 28 are formed in the grid 24 by etching or the like. The beam passage holes 26 are arranged facing the electron-emitting devices 18 respectively, and the spacer openings 28 are located between the beam passage holes and arranged at a predetermined pitch.

The grid 24 is formed with a thickness of 0.1 to 0.25 [mm] by, for example, an iron-nickel metal plate, and an oxide film made of an element constituting the metal plate, for example, An oxide film made of Fe ₃ O ₄ and NiFe ₃ O ₄ is formed. Further, the beam passage hole 26 is formed in a rectangular shape of 0.15 to 0.25 [mm] × 0.20 to 0.40 [mm], and the spacer opening 28 has a diameter of about 0.1 to 0.3 mm. It is formed in a substantially circular shape of 2 [mm].

  On the first surface 24 a of the grid 24, a first spacer 30 a is integrally provided so as to overlap each spacer opening 28, and the extended ends thereof are the metal back 17 and the black colored layer 16 b of the phosphor screen 16. Via the inner surface of the face plate 12. On the second surface 24 b of the grid 24, a second spacer 30 b is integrally provided so as to overlap each spacer opening 28, and its extending end is in contact with the inner surface of the rear plate 10. The spacer openings 28 and the first and second spacers 30a and 30b are aligned with each other, and the first and second spacers 30a and 30b are integrally connected to each other through the spacer openings 28. Yes.

  Each of the first and second spacers 30a and 30b is formed in a tapered shape in which the diameter gradually decreases from the grid 24 side toward the extending end thereof, that is, in more detail, in a substantially truncated cone shape.

  For example, each first spacer 30a has an end diameter on the grid 24 side of about 400 [μm], an extended end side diameter of about 280 [μm], and a height of about 0.3-0. The aspect ratio (height / diameter of the grid side end) is 0.75 to 1.25.

  Each of the second spacers 30b has a diameter of the end on the grid 24 side of about 400 [μm], a diameter of the extended end side of about 150 [μm], and a height of about 1 to 1.2 [mm]. The aspect ratio is 2.5-3.

  As described above, the diameter of each spacer opening 28 formed in the grid 24 is about 0.1 to 0.2 [mm], the diameter of the grid side end of the first spacer 30a, and the diameter of the second spacer 30b. It is set to be sufficiently smaller than the diameter of the grid side end. Then, by providing the first spacer 30a and the second spacer 30b integrally in alignment with the spacer opening 28, the first and second spacers are integrally connected to each other through the spacer opening 28. 24 is formed integrally.

  The grid 24 of the spacer assembly 22 configured as described above is applied with a predetermined voltage from a power source (not shown) to prevent crosstalk and is emitted from the corresponding electron-emitting device 18 through each beam passage hole 26. The electron beam is focused on the desired phosphor layer. The first and second spacers 30a and 30b support the atmospheric pressure load acting on the plates 10 and 12 from the outside of the vacuum envelope 15 by contacting the inner surfaces of the face plate 12 and the rear plate 10, respectively. The interval between the plates is maintained at a predetermined value.

  Further, the SED is manufactured by incorporating the spacer assembly 22 manufactured as described above. In this case, the rear plate 10 on which the electron-emitting devices 18 are provided and the side walls 14 are joined, and the face plate 12 on which the phosphor screen 16 and the metal back 17 are provided are prepared in advance. Then, with the spacer assembly 22 manufactured as described above positioned on the rear plate 10, the rear plate 10 and the face plate 12 are placed in a vacuum chamber (not shown). Then, the face plate 12 is joined to the rear plate 10 through the side wall 14 while the inside of the vacuum chamber is evacuated. Thereby, SED provided with the spacer assembly 22 is manufactured.

  Next, the electron-emitting device 18 according to the first exemplary embodiment of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 shows a plan view of one electron-emitting device 18 as seen from the inner surface side of the rear plate 10.

  The electron-emitting device 18 is formed with two device electrodes 31 and 32 (a pair of electrodes) spaced apart from each other on the inner surface of the rear plate 10 and a guide film (defining means) across the gap between the device electrodes 31 and 32. , Insulating film) 33, and then a conductive film material is supplied into the hole 33a of the guide film 33 to form a conductive film 34 that connects the gaps between the device electrodes 31 and 32. Finally, the conductive film 34 Is formed by forming a line-shaped electron emission portion 36 that is divided into two.

As the material of the rear plate 10, in addition to the quartz glass employed in the present embodiment, glass with reduced impurity content such as Na, blue plate glass, a laminate in which SiO ₂ is laminated on the blue plate glass by sputtering or the like, Ceramics such as alumina and a Si substrate can be used.

  Moreover, as a material of the element electrodes 31 and 32, a general conductor material can be used, for example, a metal such as Ni, Cr, Au, Mo, W, Pt, Ti, Al, Cu, and Pd, or It is appropriately selected from alloy printed conductors, semiconductor materials and the like. In the present embodiment, the device electrodes 31 and 32 are formed of Pt.

In addition, as the material of the guide film 33, for example, an insulating material such as silicon oxide (SiO ₂ ) can be used. The thickness of the guide film 33 is set to a sufficient thickness so that at least the conductive film 34 does not protrude from the hole 33a.

Examples of the conductive film material for forming the conductive film 34 include metals such as Pd, Pt, Ru, Ag, Au, Ti, In, Cu, Cr, Fe, Zn, Sn, Ta, W, and Pb. Odide conductors such as PdO, SnO ₂ , In ₂ O ₃ , PbO, Sb ₂ O ₃ , borides such as HfB ₂ , ZrB ₂ , LaB ₆ , CeB ₆ , YB ₄ , GdB ₄ , TiC, ZrC, HfC , Carbides such as TaC, SiC, and WC, nitrides such as TiN, ZrN, and HfN, semiconductors such as Si and Ge, and organic metal solutions containing carbon.

  The electron emission portion 36 is configured by a high-resistance crack formed in a part of the conductive film 34 and depends on the film thickness, film quality, material, and a method such as energization forming described later. In the present embodiment, since the conductive film 34 whose peripheral edge is defined by the hole 33a of the guide film 33 is formed, the peripheral edge of the conductive film 34 does not spread over the rear plate 10 and is substantially the same as the rear plate 10. It is in a state of standing vertically. For this reason, the film thickness of the conductive film 34 can be formed uniformly including the peripheral portion, and it is possible to prevent uncut portions from occurring at the end portions of the electron emission portions 36.

  In some cases, conductive fine particles having a diameter in the range of several to several tens of nanometers may exist inside the electron emission portion 36 formed in this way. The conductive fine particles contain a part or all of the elements of the material constituting the conductive film 34. Carbon and a carbon compound are deposited at least on the electron emission portion 36 and the conductive film 34 in the vicinity thereof.

Next, a method for manufacturing the electron-emitting device 18 having the above structure will be described with reference to FIGS. 7 to 10 together with the flowchart shown in FIG.
First, after the rear plate 10 is sufficiently washed with an organic solvent, Pt as a material of the device electrodes 31 and 32 is formed to a thickness of 20 to 50 nm by using a vacuum deposition method or a sputtering method. Thereafter, a plurality of sets of element electrodes 31 and 32 having the above-described shape are formed on the rear plate 10 by photolithography (FIG. 6; step 1). At this time, a gap G as shown in FIG. 7 is formed between the pair of element electrodes 31 and 32.

Thereafter, an insulating film such as SiO ₂ is formed to a thickness of about 20 nm on the rear plate 10 by using a vacuum deposition method, a printing method, a sputtering method, etc., over the plurality of sets of element electrodes 31 and 32. Then, this insulating film is patterned into, for example, the shape shown in FIG. 8 by lift-off, etching, laser processing, etc., and a plurality of guide films 33 having a shape straddling the gap G between the pair of element electrodes 31 and 32 are formed (step) 2). Here, the guide film 33 having the circular hole 33a in the rectangular insulating film is illustrated, but the outer shape of the guide film 33 and the shape of the hole 33a can be arbitrarily set.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 9, the organometallic solution L is supplied into the holes 33a of the guide films 33 formed as described above. The organometallic solution L is supplied into the holes 33a using a bubble jet method, an ink jet method, a piezo jet method, a dipping method, a spinner method, or the like. At this time, the inner wall that stands vertically in the hole 33a of the guide film 33 functions to regulate the wetting and spreading of the organometallic solution L. As the organic metal solution L, a solution of an organic compound whose main element is the material of the conductive film 34 (Pd in this embodiment) can be used. Then, this organometallic solution is heated and fired to form a plurality of substantially cylindrical conductive films 34 as shown in FIG. 10 (step 3). The peripheral edge of the conductive film 34 is defined by the hole 33a of the guide film 33, and has a shape that stands up in the film thickness direction, that is, a substantially cylindrical shape, as shown in FIG.

  Further, after that, a forming process for forming the electron emission portion 36 in each conductive film 34 is performed (step 4). The forming process is usually performed by applying a potential difference to the pair of element electrodes 31 and 32 and energizing each conductive film 34. That is, when a voltage is applied between the device electrodes 31 and 32, Joule heat is generated in the conductive film 34, the conductive film 34 is cracked, and the electron emission portion 36 is formed. The voltage during the forming process is preferably a pulse waveform. The end of the forming process can be determined, for example, by measuring a current flowing by applying a voltage of about 0.1 [V], obtaining a resistance value, and indicating a resistance of 1 [MΩ] or more.

In the present embodiment, the rear plate 10 in a state where the device electrodes 31 and 32 and the conductive film 34 are formed is placed in a vacuum device (not shown), and between the device electrodes 31 and 32 in a vacuum of 10 ⁻⁴ [Pa]. A voltage was applied to The voltage waveform was a rectangular wave pulse, the pulse width was 0.1 [msec], the pulse interval was 16 [msec], the peak value was 10 [V], and the voltage was applied for 60 seconds. As a result, an electron emission portion 36 was formed at a substantially intermediate position of each conductive film 34 in substantially parallel to the end sides where the device electrodes 31 and 32 face each other. Further, at this time, the end of the electron emission portion 36 was not cut off.

  The electron-emitting device 18 that has been subjected to the forming process as described above is subjected to an activation process. The activation process is performed, for example, by applying a pulsed voltage between the device electrodes 31 and 32 in the same manner as the forming process in an atmosphere containing an organic substance gas. By this activation process, a device current If and an emission current Ie described later are remarkably increased.

  The atmosphere containing the organic substance gas can be formed using the organic gas remaining in the atmosphere when the vacuum device is evacuated using an oil diffusion pump, rotary pump, etc. It can also be obtained by introducing an organic gas. Suitable organic substances include aliphatic hydrocarbons, aromatic hydrocarbons, alcohols, aldehydes, ketones, amines, organic acids and the like.

In the present embodiment, methane was introduced on a 10 ⁻³ [Pa] stage into a vacuum apparatus accommodating and arranging the rear plate 10, and the activation process was performed. The voltage applied to the device electrodes 31, 32 was a rectangular pulse of 18 [V], the pulse width was 1 [msec], the pulse interval was 10 [msec], and the voltage was applied for 30 minutes.

  By this activation treatment, carbon or a carbon compound is deposited on the electron-emitting device 18 from an organic substance present in the atmosphere, and at least the electron-emitting portion 36 is carbonized. As a result, the device current If and the emission current Ie change remarkably. The film thickness of the deposit is preferably in the range of 50 [nm] or less, and more preferably in the range of 30 [nm] or less.

The electron-emitting device 18 that has been activated as described above is heat-treated (baked) in a vacuum atmosphere. In other words, the organic gas remaining in the vacuum apparatus is exhausted while heating the rear plate 10 disposed in the vacuum apparatus. As the vacuum exhaust device for exhausting the vacuum device, it is preferable to use a device that does not use oil so that the oil generated from the device does not affect the characteristics of the electron-emitting device 18. The partial pressure of the organic component in the vacuum apparatus is preferably 10 ⁻⁶ [Pa] or less, more preferably 10 ⁻⁸ [Pa] or less, in terms of partial pressure at which the carbon or carbon compound is not newly deposited. Furthermore, when the inside of the vacuum device is evacuated, the whole vacuum device is heated so that the organic substance molecules adsorbed on the inner wall of the vacuum device and the electron-emitting device 18 can be easily evacuated.

  As described above, according to the electron-emitting device 18 of the first embodiment described above, the conductive film 34 having a uniform film thickness depending on the shape of the hole 33a of the guide film 33 can be formed. For this reason, compared with the case where the guide film 33 is not provided as in the prior art, the film thickness of the peripheral portion of the conductive film 34 can be made uniform, and the end portion of the electron emission portion 36 can be prevented from being cut off during energization forming. . Therefore, according to the present invention, an undesired leakage current that does not contribute to emission can be suppressed, the power consumption of the SED can be reduced, and the burden on the driver can be reduced.

  In addition, according to the present embodiment, by arbitrarily setting the shape of the hole 33a of the guide film 33, the shape of the conductive film 34 can be arbitrarily set, the degree of design freedom can be increased, and the electron emission portion The length of 36 can be designed freely.

Next, a method for manufacturing an electron-emitting device according to the second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 12 to 15 together with the flowchart shown in FIG.
First, many bottomed holes 41 as shown in FIG. 12 are formed on the upper surface of the rear plate 10 (FIG. 11; step 1). The position of the hole 41 is determined according to the position of the electron emission portion 36. The shape of the hole 41 can be arbitrarily set, but in the present embodiment, it is circular. It is important that the depth of the hole 41 is at least deeper than the thickness of the conductive film 34 and is formed uniformly.

  Thereafter, the rear plate 10 is sufficiently washed with an organic solvent to form device electrodes 31 and 32 as shown in FIG. 13 (step 2). At this time, part of the device electrodes 31 and 32 are interposed in the hole 41, and a predetermined gap G is formed between them. Since the film formation method of the device electrodes 31 and 32 is the same as that of the first embodiment described above, the description thereof is omitted here.

  Next, an organic metal solution L is supplied as shown in FIG. 14 into the hole 41 in which the device electrodes 31 and 32 are partially interposed, thereby forming a conductive film 34 as shown in FIG. 15 (step 3). The material and forming method of the conductive film 34 are the same as those in the first embodiment described above. Also in this embodiment, since the inner wall vertically cut off of the hole 41 functions to regulate the wetting and spreading of the organometallic solution L, the peripheral edge of the conductive film 34 has a shape that is cut in the film thickness direction, and the film thickness is uniform. become.

  Further, after that, through a forming process (step 4) for forming the electron emission portion 36 in each conductive film 34, an activation process and a baking process are performed, and a large number of electron-emitting devices 18 are formed on the rear plate 10. It is formed. Since the forming process, the activation process, and the baking process are the same as those in the first embodiment described above, detailed description thereof is omitted here.

  As described above, also in this embodiment, the same effect as that of the first embodiment described above can be obtained. Further, when the hole 41 is formed in the rear plate 10 as in the present embodiment, the guide film 33 of the first embodiment can be omitted, the number of parts can be reduced, and the manufacturing cost can be reduced.

  Note that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment as it is, and can be embodied by modifying the constituent elements without departing from the scope of the invention in the implementation stage. Various inventions can be formed by appropriately combining a plurality of constituent elements disclosed in the above-described embodiments. For example, you may delete some components from all the components shown by embodiment mentioned above. Furthermore, you may combine the component covering different embodiment suitably.

  For example, in the above-described embodiment, the case where a circular insulating film is formed as the conductive film 34 that connects the pair of element electrodes 31 and 32 has been described. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the shape of the conductive film 34 can be arbitrarily set. .

  For example, as shown in FIG. 16, by forming the conductive film 34 in a diamond shape and forming the electron emission portion 36 along the diagonal line, the length of the electron emission portion 36 can be made relatively long. As a result, the problem of emission fluctuation, which is a drawback of the field emission electron source, can be solved. That is, by elongating the electron emitting portion 36 and increasing the element voltage, undesired vibrations of emission can be suppressed and fluctuations can be eliminated.

  In addition, by adopting the shape shown in FIG. 16, when an electron emission portion having the same length as the electron emission portion 36 formed in the circular conductive film 34 is to be formed, an insulating material for forming the conductive film 34 is used. Supply amount can be reduced, and the cost can be reduced accordingly.

  In the first embodiment described above, the device film 31 and 32 are formed on the rear plate 10 and then the guide film 33 is formed. However, when the rear plate 10 is manufactured, the shape corresponding to the guide film 33 is formed. It may be processed. Further, all the guide films 33 may be connected, an insulating layer may be provided over the entire surface of the rear plate 10, and a hole 33a may be formed at a position where the electron emission portion 36 is formed.

1 is an external perspective view showing a display device according to an embodiment of the present invention. Sectional drawing for demonstrating the internal structure of the display apparatus of FIG. Sectional drawing which expands and shows FIG. 2 partially. The conceptual diagram which shows the electron emission apparatus integrated in the display apparatus of FIG. 1 is a plan view schematically showing an electron-emitting device according to a first embodiment of the present invention. 6 is a flowchart for explaining a method of manufacturing the electron-emitting device of FIG. The top view (a) and sectional drawing (b) for demonstrating the manufacturing method of an electron emission element with the flowchart of FIG. The top view (a) and sectional drawing (b) for demonstrating the manufacturing method of an electron emission element with the flowchart of FIG. The top view (a) and sectional drawing (b) for demonstrating the manufacturing method of an electron emission element with the flowchart of FIG. The top view (a) and sectional drawing (b) for demonstrating the manufacturing method of an electron emission element with the flowchart of FIG. The flowchart for demonstrating the method to manufacture the electron emission element which concerns on 2nd Embodiment of this invention. The top view for demonstrating the manufacturing method of an electron emitting element with the flowchart of FIG. 11, and sectional drawing (b). The top view for demonstrating the manufacturing method of an electron emitting element with the flowchart of FIG. 11, and sectional drawing (b). The top view for demonstrating the manufacturing method of an electron emitting element with the flowchart of FIG. 11, and sectional drawing (b). The top view for demonstrating the manufacturing method of an electron emitting element with the flowchart of FIG. 11, and sectional drawing (b). The perspective view which shows the modification of the electrically conductive film of an electron emission element.

Explanation of symbols

10 ... Rear plate,
12 ... Face plate,
15 ... Vacuum envelope,
18 ... an electron-emitting device,
31, 32 ... Element electrodes,
33 ... guide membrane,
33a ... hole,
34 ... conductive film,
36 ... electron emission part,
41 ... hole,
G ... Gap,
L: Organometallic solution.

Claims (14)

A pair of electrodes spaced apart from each other on the substrate;
A conductive film connecting the pair of electrodes;
Defining means for defining the peripheral edge of the conductive film in order to make the film thickness of the conductive film uniform;
An electron emission portion formed by causing a crack in the conductive film by applying a potential difference to the pair of electrodes;
An electron-emitting device comprising:   The electron-emitting device according to claim 1, wherein the defining means is an insulating film having a hole that defines a shape of a peripheral portion of the conductive film.   The electron-emitting device according to claim 2, wherein the insulating film is formed on the substrate using any one of a vacuum deposition method, a printing method, and a sputtering method.   4. The conductive film according to claim 3, wherein the conductive film is formed by supplying an organometallic solution into the hole using a bubble jet method, an inkjet method, a piezo jet method, a dipping method, or a spinner method. Electron-emitting devices.   The defining means is a bottomed hole formed in advance in the substrate by etching, milling, or cutting, the pair of electrodes are partially interposed in the hole, and the hole is a shape of a peripheral portion of the conductive film. The electron-emitting device according to claim 1, wherein the electron-emitting device has a shape defining   6. The conductive film according to claim 5, wherein the conductive film is formed by supplying an organometallic solution into the hole using a bubble jet method, an ink jet method, a piezo jet method, a dipping method, or a spinner method. Electron emission device. 7. An electron emission device in which a plurality of electron emission elements according to claim 1 are arranged on a substrate, and selectively applied to a pair of electrodes of each electron emission element according to a signal given from the outside. An electron-emitting device that selectively emits electrons from the plurality of electron-emitting devices by applying a potential difference. An electron emission device according to claim 7,
An image display unit that displays an image by collision of electrons selectively emitted from a plurality of electron-emitting devices of the electron-emitting device;
A display device comprising: Forming a pair of spaced apart electrodes on the substrate;
Forming an insulating film on the substrate so as to straddle the pair of electrodes, the insulating film having a hole for restricting the spread of the peripheral portion of the conductive film connecting the pair of electrodes;
Supplying a conductive film material to the holes of the insulating film to form a conductive film connecting the pair of electrodes;
Providing a potential difference between the pair of electrodes to cause a crack in the conductive film to form an electron emission portion;
A method for manufacturing an electron-emitting device, comprising:   The method for manufacturing an electron-emitting device according to claim 9, wherein the insulating film is formed on the substrate using any one of a vacuum deposition method, a printing method, and a sputtering method.   The conductive film is formed by supplying an organometallic solution into the hole using a bubble jet method, an ink jet method, a piezo jet method, a dipping method, or a spinner method. Of manufacturing the electron-emitting device. Forming a bottomed hole on the substrate having a shape that regulates the spread of the peripheral edge of the insulating film and having a uniform depth so as to make the film thickness of the insulating film uniform;
Forming a pair of electrodes on the substrate so as to be partially spaced apart from each other in the hole;
Supplying a conductive film material in the hole so as to connect the pair of electrodes to form the conductive film;
Providing a potential difference between the pair of electrodes to cause a crack in the conductive film to form an electron emission portion;
A method for manufacturing an electron-emitting device, comprising:   13. The method of manufacturing an electron-emitting device according to claim 12, wherein the bottomed hole of the substrate is formed by etching, milling, or cutting.   14. The conductive film according to claim 13, wherein the conductive film is formed by supplying an organometallic solution into the hole using a bubble jet method, an ink jet method, a piezo jet method, a dipping method, or a spinner method. A method for manufacturing an electron-emitting device.

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