Vacuum ultra-violet emission of plasma discharges with high Xe partial pressure using a cathode protective layer with high secondary electron emission

Abstract

In this work, the mechanism of the vacuum ultra-violet (VUV) emission of plasma discharges, with high Xe partial pressure and high ion-induced secondary electrons emission protective layer, is studied by measuring the VUV light emission directly and comparing it with two-dimensional simulations. From the panel measurement, we find that the high intensity of excimer VUV mainly contributes to the high luminous efficacy of SrCaO-plasma display panels (PDP) at a low sustain voltage. The unchanged Xe excitation efficiency indicates that the electron temperature is not decreased by the high secondary electrons emission protective layer, even though the sustain voltage is much lower. From the two-dimensional simulations, we can find that the ratio of excimer VUV to resonant VUV, which is determined by the collision rate in the discharge, is only significantly affected by the Xe partial pressure, while it is independent of the sustain voltage and the secondary-electrons-emission capability of protective layer. The unchanged average electron energy at the moment when the electric field becomes maximum confirms that the improvement of the VUV production efficiency mainly is attributed to the increase in electron heating efficiency of a PDP with high ion-induced secondary electrons emission protective layer. Combining the experimental and the simulation results, we conclude about the mechanism by which the VUV production is improved for the plasma display panel with a high Xe partial pressure and a cold cathode with high ion-induced secondary electrons emission.