Analysis of transient electron energy in a micro dielectric barrier discharge for a high performance plasma display panel

Abstract

We present here analysis of electron energy of a micro dielectric barrier discharge (micro-DBD) for alternating-current plasma display panel (ac-PDP) with Ne/Xe gas mixture by using the optical emission spectroscopy (OES). The OES method is quite useful to evaluate a variety of electron energy in a high pressure DBD ignited in a PDP small cell. Experiment shows that the ratio of Ne emission intensity (INe) relative to Xe emission intensity (IXe) drastically decreases with time. This temporal profile is well consistent with dynamic behavior of electron temperature in a micro-DBD, calculated in one-dimensional fluid model. INe/IXe also decreases with an increase in Xe gas pressure and a decrease in applied voltage especially in the initial stage of discharge, and these reflect the basic features of electron temperature in a micro-DBD. The influences of plasma parameters such as electron temperature on luminous efficacy are also theoretically analyzed using one-dimensional fluid model. The low electron temperature, which is attained at high Xe gas pressure, realizes the efficient Xe excitation for vacuum ultraviolet radiation. The high Xe-pressure condition also induces the rapid growth of discharge and consequent high plasma density, resulting in high electron heating efficiency.