Triode Field Emission Cold Cathode Devices with Random Distribution and Method

• US 20050104506A1
• Filed: 11/18/2003
• Published: 05/19/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 11/18/2003
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Chun-Lung Tseng, Meng-Jey Youh, Michelle Lin, Yao-Hsien Joseph Huang
• Original Assignee: Chun-Lung Tseng, Meng-Jey Youh, Michelle Lin, Yao-Hsien Joseph Huang
• Inventors: TSENG, Chun-Lung, HUANG, Yao-Hsien Joseph, YOUH, Meng-Jey, LIN, Michelle
• Application Number:
  US10/707,058
• Publication Number:
  US 20050104506A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 313/496
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 1/3048 Distributed particle emitters
• CPC Class Codes: H01J 9/025 of field emission cathodes

Abstract

A method of manufacturing a triode field emission cold cathode device having randomly distributed field emission emitters comprising the steps of providing a substrate (10), depositing a first conductive layer (11) on the substrate, spraying the preceding layer with a random pattern of masking material (20), depositing an insulating layer (13) on the masked preceding layer, depositing a second conductive layer (14) on the insulting layer, and removing the masking material. A triode field emission cold cathode device having randomly distributed field emission emitters is also provided.

Claims

1. A method of manufacturing a triode field emission cold cathode device having randomly distributed field emission emitters comprising the steps of:

providing a substrate (10);

depositing a first conductive layer (11) on the substrate;

spraying the preceding layer with a random pattern of masking material (20);

depositing an insulating layer (13) on the masked preceding layer;

depositing a second conductive layer (14) on the insulting layer; and

removing the masking material.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of depositing an emitter material (16) after the removing step.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the depositing step comprises printing, spin coating, or direct growth.

4. The method of claim 2, where the emitter material comprises diamond, carbon nanotubes, LaB6, Si, or Mo.

5. The method of claim 1, where the masking material can be dissolved in water or solvents.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the masking material is either a form of solid particles, liquid droplets, or a combination of solid particles and liquid droplets.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the masking material is photosensitive material, plastic, glass, metal or ceramic particles.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the spraying step comprises dusting, sprinkling, or smoking.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising the step of depositing a catalyst layer (12) on the first conductive layer (11), prior to the spraying step, for growing an emitter material (16).

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the catalyst layer is Ni, Cu, Ag, Co, Fe, or diamond-seeded film.

11. The method of claim 1, where the first conductive layer comprises a hardening material and further comprising the step of hardening the first conductive layer.

12. The method of claim 11, where the hardening material is a metal-containing compound.

13. The method of claim 11, where the hardening material is prepared by a sol-gel method.

14. The method of claim 11, where the hardening material is a mixture of conductive powders and polymers.

15. The method of claim 11, where the hardening step comprises either radiation curing or sol-gel processing.

16. The method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of depositing a photosensitive layer, exposing the photosensitive layer, and developing the photosensitive layer.

17. A method of manufacturing a triode field emission cold cathode device having randomly distributed field emission emitters comprising steps for:

randomly masking conductive material; and

removing the masking material.

18. A method of manufacturing a triode field emission cold cathode device having randomly distributed field emission emitters comprising the steps of:

spraying a conductive layer with a random pattern of masking material; and

removing the masking material.

19. An addressable field emission array, wherein each addressable pixel comprises randomly distributed field emission emitters.

20. The addressable field emission array of claim 19, wherein the randomly distributed field emission emitters are manufactured using a random pattern of masking material.

21. A field emission array having pixels with randomly distributed field emission emitters, comprising:

a substrate (10);

a first conductive layer (11) in contact with the substrate;

emitter material in contact with the preceding layer;

an insulating layer (13) in contact with the preceding layer having openings randomly disposed through the insulating layer and in registration with the emitter material; and

a second conductive layer (14) in contact with the insulating layer and having openings disposed through the second conductive layer in registration with the openings in the insulating layer;

wherein the emitter material is exposed through the openings in the insulating layer and the openings in the second conductive layer.

22. The field emission array of claim 21, further comprising a catalyst layer in contact with the first conductive layer.

23. The field emission array of claim 21, where the emitter material is sintered into the preceding layer.