JPH08264109A - Particle emitter, and field emission type device, and their manufacture - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To improve electron emission efficiency. CONSTITUTION: The principal part of an electron emission source is constituted by coating a cathode electrode 13 with an insulating layer 15 and a gate electrode 14 in order, and forming a very small hole 20 through the gate electrode 14 and the insulating layer 15. The thickness t1 of the insulating layer 15 is less than 1μm, for example, 0.3μm. The top of the cathode electrode 13 is flat, and the section 13A exposed with the very small hole 20 functions as an electron emission face. When voltage is impressed between both electrodes, an equipotential level surface Em is made in roughly parallel with the electron emission face 13A on this face. Since electrons e shifts in the vertical direction to this equipotential level, a great part of electrons e are emitted through the very small hole 20, and because the electron emission face 13A is flat, the quantity of emitted electrons becomes large.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a particle emission device (for example, an electron emission source suitable for use in a very thin display device), a field emission device (for example, a display device having the electron emission source), and It relates to these manufacturing methods.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as an ultra-thin display device, for example, a field emission display (FED) using a field emission cathode as an electron emission source.
y) is known.

In a known FED, an electron emission source is provided inside the screen, a large number of microchips made of an electron emission material are formed in each pixel area, and a microchip of the corresponding pixel area is formed according to a predetermined electric signal. The fluorescent surface of the screen is caused to emit light by exciting.

In the above-mentioned electron emission source, a plurality of strip-shaped cathode electrode lines and a plurality of strip-shaped gate electrode lines intersecting the cathode electrode lines above the cathode electrode lines are formed. And each intersection region of the cathode electrode line with the gate electrode line is formed as one pixel region.

According to a conventional vertical electron emission source called Spindt type, specifically, as shown in FIGS. 24 and 25, a plurality of strip-shaped cathodes are formed on the surface of a lower substrate 101 made of, for example, a glass material. The electrode line 103 is formed.

An insulating layer 105 is formed on each of the cathode electrode lines 103 except for each connecting portion 103a, and a plurality of gate electrode lines 104 are formed in a strip shape so as to intersect with each cathode electrode line 103. In addition, a matrix structure is formed with each cathode electrode line 103. The thickness t ₃ of the insulating layer is about 1 μm.

Further, the connecting end portion 103a of each cathode electrode line 103 and the connecting end portion 104a of each gate electrode line 104 are connected.
Are connected to the control means 107 and are electrically connected.

Here, in each intersection region 122 of each cathode electrode line 103 with each gate electrode line 104, the insulating layer 105 has a large number of circular holes w ₂ communicating from the cathode electrode line 103 to the gate electrode line 104. A micro hole 120 is formed as a cathode hole, and a micro chip (also called an emitter cone) 106 as a field emission type cathode is provided in each of these holes in a micro size of several μm or less.

Each of these microtips 106 is made of an electron emitting material, for example, molybdenum, is formed in a substantially conical shape, and is arranged on each cathode electrode line 103. The tip of the conical body of each microchip 106 is substantially located at the electron passage gate portion 104b formed in the gate electrode line 104.

As described above, a plurality of microchips 106 are provided in each intersection region 122 of each cathode electrode line 103 and each gate electrode line 104 to form a pixel region, and each pixel region is a pixel. It corresponds to (pixel).

In the electron emission source (field emission type cathode) configured as described above, the control means 107 selects a predetermined cathode electrode line 103 and a gate electrode line 104 and applies a predetermined voltage between them. Thus, when this applied voltage is applied to each microchip 106 in the corresponding pixel region, electrons are emitted from the tip of each microchip 106 by the tunnel effect. Note that this predetermined applied voltage value is such that, when each microchip 106 is made of molybdenum, the electric field strength near the tip of the conical body of each microchip 106 is 10 ⁸ to 10 ¹⁰ V / m. belongs to.

At this time, in the display device (FED) in which the electron emission source is built in, the electrons emitted from each microchip 106 by exciting a predetermined pixel region are controlled by the control means 107 to the cathode electrode line.
The gate electrode line is further accelerated by the voltage applied between 103 and the anode (transparent electrode of the fluorescent panel).
The fluorescent surface is reached through a vacuum formed between 104 and the anode. Visible light is emitted from the fluorescent surface by this electron beam.

Now, the structure of this display device will be described with reference to FIG. 25. For example, R (red), G (green), B
Each blue (blue) primary color phosphor element is an ITO (Indium Tin O
xide: a transparent electrode composed of a mixed oxide of In and Sn)
A light-transmissive fluorescent panel 114 having a color fluorescent surface 123 arranged in a stripe pattern through 100R, 100G, and 100B, and an electrode assembly 115 having a field emission cathode.
The rear panel 101 on which the (electron emission source) is formed is hermetically sealed with a sealing material or the like, and is maintained at a predetermined vacuum degree.

The fluorescent surface panel 114 and the rear panel 101 are
In order to keep the interval constant, the column is sealed via a pillar (so-called pillar, not shown) having a predetermined height.

As a method of performing color display by the FED, a method of associating each cathode of the selected intersection 122 with a phosphor of one color and a method of associating each cathode with a phosphor of a plurality of colors. There is a so-called color selection method. The color selection operation in this case will be described with reference to FIGS. 26 and 27.

In FIG. 26, R, G, and B phosphors corresponding to respective colors are sequentially arranged and formed on a plurality of stripe-shaped transparent electrodes 100 on the inner surface of the fluorescent surface panel 114, and electrodes of respective colors are formed. Are 3R for red, 3G for green, and 3B for blue.
It is derived by being integrated into the terminal of.

[0017] On the opposite back panel 101 is provided in stripes cathode electrode 103 and the gate electrode 104 as described above are orthogonal, 10 ⁸ to the microchip tip
When a voltage is applied between the cathode electrode 103 and the gate electrode 104 so that an electric field of 10 ¹⁰ V / m is applied, the intersection 12 of each electrode 12
Microchip formed on 2 (field emission cathode)
Electrons are emitted from 106.

On the other hand, the transparent electrode 100 (that is, the anode electrode)
A voltage of 100 to 1000 V is applied between the cathode and the cathode electrode 103 to accelerate electrons and cause the phosphor to emit light. In the example of FIG. 26, a voltage is applied only to the red fluorescent substance R to accelerate electrons as shown by an arrow e.

As described above, the colors R, G, and
Color display can be performed by selecting B in time series. NTS of one point cathode, gate and anode (fluorescent stripe) on each cathode electrode row
FIG. 27 shows a timing chart of color selection in the C method.

When each cathode electrode 103 is line-sequentially driven at a cycle of 1H, H / 3 signals of + HV are supplied to each of the color phosphors R, G, and B in the cycle H, while
The gate signal and the cathode signal are given as + αV as the gate signal and −αV to −βV as the cathode signal in synchronization with each other in the H / 3 cycle, and the gate-cathode voltage V _PP = + 2
Electrons are emitted at αV. Thus, the R, G, and B phosphors selected for each H / 3 can be caused to emit light to perform color selection, and thus full color display can be performed.

However, as a result of the present inventor's examination of the electron emission source, it was found that there are various drawbacks as described below.

First, as shown in FIG. 28, the cathode electrode 10
When the voltage is applied between the gate electrode 104 and the cathode electrode 103, the microchip 106 arranged in the micropores 120 above 3 is formed in a substantially conical shape over the thickness of the insulating layer 105. The potential surface E _C is formed in the micropore 120 along the conical surface of the microchip 106.

This electron emission source utilizes a phenomenon in which electrons are emitted into a vacuum through a potential barrier on the surface of a substance at an electric field intensity of the order of 10 ⁶ V / cm. The distance between the tip of the microchip 106 and the gate 104 is d ₂ , the radius of curvature of the tip of the microchip is r, and the gate 104-cathode
When the applied voltage across 103 is V _g and the electric field strength at the tip of the microchip is F ₂ , F ₂ can be obtained by the following approximate expression. F ₂ = 2V _g / {r · ln (2d / r)} where d ₂ = 0.5 μm, r = 0.1 μm, V _g = 100 V
Then, F ₂ = 8.7 × 10 ⁶ V / cm, and field emission occurs.

However, since the electrons e emitted from the microchip 106 travel perpendicularly to the equipotential surface E _C , the holes e
The path of the electron e emitted from 120 largely fluctuates, and the deflection angle θ becomes ± 30 degrees. As a result, on the fluorescent surface, the electron beam e is a predetermined fluorescent body (for example, a red fluorescent body).
To reach an undesired fluorescent body (for example, an adjacent green fluorescent body), and mislanding is likely to occur.
In this case, light emission of a desired color cannot be obtained, the performance of the display is impaired, and there is a problem in the definition thereof.

Moreover, in the above electron emission source,
The amount of electrons emitted from each microchip 106 (ie,
The amount of current) varies and tends to be inhomogeneous. Therefore, in such a display device, the bright spots generated on the screen become inhomogeneous, which is very annoying.

In the electron emission source described above, since the microchip has a conical shape and emits electrons from the apex thereof, it is easily sputtered by a few ions in a vacuum during use, and has an electron emission capability. It can change, or even destroy.

Further, the above-mentioned electron emission source will be described later with reference to FIG.
From the manufacturing process described with reference to FIG. 32, there are the following problems.

To form a conical microchip,
Since the deposition is performed from the vertical direction, the shape of the microchip may vary, and the shape may change from a correct conical shape to a considerably deformed shape.

In the electron emission source described above, the microchip 106 and the gate electrode line 104 are connected by the metal particles or the like, the cathode electrode line 103 and the gate electrode line 104 are short-circuited, and the microchip 106 is destroyed. It turned out that there are cases where In addition, the ions existing in the high vacuum region 130 between the gate electrode line 104 and the fluorescent surface 114 may sputter the microchip 106 and shorten the life of the display.

Further, it takes a long time to form a microchip having a height of about 1 μm by vapor deposition, and there is a large waste of material due to lift-off described later.

If the display becomes large-sized, the vapor deposition apparatus becomes large-sized, and if it is attempted to avoid the large-sized display, the vapor deposition will take an extremely long time.

Next, the manufacturing process of the above electron emission source will be described with reference to FIG.
29 to FIG. 30. First, as shown in FIG. 29, a conductor film 103 having a thickness of about 2000 Å is formed by using niobium or the like as a material on a lower substrate 101 made of glass or the like, and thereafter, by photolithography and reactive ion etching, The conductor film is patterned into a line shape to form the cathode electrode 103.

Insulating layer 105 (eg, silicon dioxide)
Is deposited on the conductor film by sputtering or chemical vapor deposition, and a gate electrode material (for example,
Niobium) is formed, and then this conductor film is formed on the cathode electrode line by photolithography and reactive ion etching.
The gate electrode line 104 is processed so as to intersect with 103. Then, as shown in FIG. 30, the gate electrode line 10
The circular fine holes 120 penetrating the insulating layer 105 and the insulating layer 105 are formed by photolithography and reactive ion etching.

After that, as shown in FIG. 31, a peeling layer 124 (for example, aluminum) is formed by vacuum vapor deposition from an oblique direction with respect to the main surface portion of the electron emission source.

Then, as shown in FIG. 32, molybdenum is deposited in a conical shape on the cathode electrode 103 in the micropore 120 by a vapor deposition method to form a microchip 106. At this time, molybdenum 106 is deposited on the peeling layer 124, and with the progress of this deposition, the upper part of the hole 120 is gradually closed by the deposited molybdenum, and at the same time, the microchip 106 is deposited in a conical shape. The height of the microchip 106 is 1 μm
However, it takes a long time for this formation.

Then, the peeling layer 124 is melted to peel off the molybdenum 106 on the peeling layer 124 and remove (lift off) to form a structure as shown in FIG. This lift-off molybdenum is larger than microchips, which is wasted. Therefore, the utilization rate of molybdenum (microchip material) is only a few percent, and sometimes even less than 1%.

In the method shown in FIG. 32, it is inevitable that the shape of the microchip will vary. For example, Figure 33
As shown in (a), the microchip 106 is inclined,
As shown in FIG. 3B, the groove 106a is formed on the peripheral surface of the microchip.
May occur, a plurality of vertices 106b may be formed as shown in FIG. 7C, or folds 106c may be formed on the peripheral surface as shown in a plan view of FIG. This will deteriorate the electron emission characteristics.

Further, as shown in FIG. 34, the metal piece 125 or the like generated at the time of the above-mentioned lift-off or the like is attached between the microchip 106 and the gate electrode line 104 to short-circuit them. Therefore, when a voltage is applied between the cathode 103 and the gate 104 during operation and the voltage is increased, the temperature of the microchip 106 becomes extremely high and finally reaches an unbearable temperature.

As a result, as shown in FIG. 35, the microchip 106 itself and the gate 104 and the cathode 103 in the region around the microchip 106 having a radius of several tens of μm are also fused as shown by the arrow 126, causing destruction. . This would result in a significant area of inactivity and a reduction in the effective area.

In vapor deposition, a vapor deposition material is deposited on a material to be vapor-deposited (workpiece) from a vapor deposition source (vapor deposition target) having a small area. The distance from the work must be increased, and the vapor deposition apparatus becomes larger. This will be described with reference to FIG.

The vapor deposition target 13 is applied to the workpieces 131 (surface area S ₁ ) and 132 (surface area S ₂ ) which are similar and have different surface areas.
Considering the case of performing vapor deposition from 0, the vapor deposition target 130
When performing vapor deposition within an angle range from ± α ₁ to ± α ₁ , the distances L ₁ and L ₂ of the workpieces 131 and 132 from the vapor deposition target 130 are
It has the following relationship with the work surface areas S ₁ and S ₂ . S ₁ : S ₂ = L ₁ : L ₂ L ₂ = (S ₂ / S ₁ ) × L _{1, that} is, the distance between the vapor deposition target and the work changes in proportion to the work surface area, and the size of the display is large. It can be understood that the size of the vapor deposition apparatus will be increased if it is attempted.

In order to increase the size of the work and avoid the enlargement of the vapor deposition apparatus, as shown in FIG.
Narrow the vapor deposition angle α ₂ using 3 and 133 to work 132
It is conceivable to perform vapor deposition while moving the. However,
This method does not require an increase in the size of the apparatus, but it takes a long time to carry out vapor deposition on a predetermined area. That is, the length of the vapor deposition area is r ₁ , and the length of the work 132 is r _2.
Then, in comparison with the case where the entire surface of the work is vapor-deposited simultaneously, r
_It takes ₂ / r ₁ time. Moreover, if the vapor deposition angle is set to the same α ₂ in the X and Y directions, the work must be moved in the two directions of X and Y, and vapor deposition will take more and more time.

The electron emission source is not limited to the one described above,
38 (a) to 38 (g).

First, the silicon substrate 140 is thermally oxidized to form a silicon oxide film 144A on its surface (FIG. 38 (a)), and then the silicon oxide film is patterned to form a mask 144B (FIG. 38 (b)). ). Next, the silicon substrate 140 is etched to form a mask.
The silicon under 144B is made substantially circular (FIG. 38 (c)), and then a silicon oxide film 141 is formed on the silicon surface by thermal oxidation (FIG. 38 (d)). Next, an insulating layer 142 and a gate metal film (metal which will become a gate later) 143A are sequentially deposited on the silicon oxide film 141 (FIG. 38 (e)), and then the silicon oxide film 141 is removed by etching with hydrofluoric acid. , The mask 144B and the insulating layer portion and the gate metal film portion deposited on the mask 144B are lifted off,
The microchip 140a is formed ((f) in the same figure). Finally, the gate metal film is patterned to form a gate 143B (FIG. 38 (g)).

In this method, the shape and dimensions of the microchip are apt to vary, and in addition, it takes time to manufacture.

39 (a) to 39 (f) show another method for manufacturing an electron emission source.

First, a tantalum layer 151 is formed on an insulating substrate 150.
And a SiO ₂ mask 156 is formed thereon (see FIG.
39 (a)), and then the tantalum layer 151 is etched so that the tantalum portion under the mask 156 is formed into a substantially conical shape (FIG. 9 (b)). Next, the tantalum layer 151 is anodized to form a Ta ₂ O ₃ film 153 on the tantalum layer 151 (see FIG. 39).
(C)) Next, an SiO ₂ insulating layer 154 and a chromium film (which will later become a gate) 155A are sequentially deposited on the Ta ₂ O ₃ film 153 (FIG. 3D). Next, the exposed portion of the Ta ₂ O ₃ film 153 is removed by etching to form the microchip 151a, and the mask 156 and the SiO ₂ layer portion and the chromium film portion thereon are lifted off (FIG. 39 (e)). Finally, the chrome film 155A is patterned to form a gate 155B (FIG. 39 (f)).

This electron emission source also has the same drawbacks as the electron emission source of FIG.

In addition to the above, there are various electron emission sources shown in FIGS. 40 (a) to 40 (e), which form a microchip by anisotropic etching of silicon. In the figure,
E is a microchip (emitter cone), G is a gate,
A indicates an anode (the same applies to FIG. 41 described later). These types of electron emission sources also have the same drawbacks as the electron emission sources of FIGS. 38 and 39 described above.

The electron emission source described above is of the Spindt type, but there is another plane type electron emission source other than this. 41 (a) to 41 (f) are schematic perspective views showing a main part of a flat type electron emission source.

This type of electron emission source can be manufactured by a process of only planar fine processing and is easy to manufacture, but has the following drawbacks because of its planar structure.

It is difficult to increase the density of the cathode and the emitter, and it is not suitable for increasing the density of pixels. Uniform processing in a large area is difficult. Compared to the Spindt type, the way the electric field is applied is more complicated, and the symmetry of electron emission is broken. It is difficult to apply high electric field strength to the emitter section.

[0053]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The object of the present invention is to solve the above-mentioned drawbacks of the prior art, improve the emission capability of electrons and the like, and improve the directionality thereof, and enable low voltage driving to emit electrons. The present invention provides a particle emission device, a field emission device and a manufacturing method thereof, which are capable of homogenizing the amount of current flowing through the device, have high reliability and long life, and are sufficiently compatible with ultra-thin display devices. To provide.

[0054]

According to the present invention, a first electrode (for example, a cathode electrode 13 described later) and a second electrode (for example, a gate electrode 14 described later) have insulating layers (for example, SiO 2 described later). Micro holes (for example, a cathode hole 20 described later) that are provided so as to face each other with _two layers 15) penetrating each of the second electrode and the insulating layer are formed, and the first electrode and the first electrode By applying a voltage between the second electrode and the second electrode, predetermined particles (especially electrons) are emitted from the particle emission surface (especially electron emission surface) of the first electrode through the micropores. In a particle emission device (for example, a field emission cathode), the insulating layer has a thickness of 1 μm.
And the particle emission surface is substantially flat.

In the present invention, the thickness of the insulating layer is 0.5 μm.
The following is desirable.

In the present invention, the thickness of the insulating layer is
It is preferably 0.1 μm or more. If this is less than 0.1 μm, leakage tends to occur between the first and second electrodes, making it difficult to apply a sufficient voltage.

In the present invention, the surface of the first electrode may be the particle emission surface.

Further, in the present invention, a thin film (for example, a thin film 16 described later) whose particle emission surface covers the first electrode and is made of a particle emission substance having a work function smaller than that of the constituent material of the first electrode. It can be configured to be a surface.

In the above, the thin film may be provided only under the micropores.

Alternatively, the thin film may be provided over at least substantially the entire area where the first electrode and the second electrode overlap each other.

According to the present invention, in the particle emitting device having the above-mentioned first electrode, second electrode, a plurality of micropores and an insulating layer, a region between the plurality of micropores in the insulating layer is removed. The present invention also provides a particle emitting device having the above structure in at least a part thereof.

In the above, the insulating layer may be substantially entirely removed in the region where the first electrode and the second electrode overlap each other.

Further, in the above, the second electrode provided with the micropores may be configured to have a honeycomb shape or a lattice shape.

Further, in the above, it is desirable that the gap between the first electrode and the second electrode is less than 1 μm.

Further, in the above, it is more desirable that the gap between the first electrode and the second electrode is 0.5 μm or less.

Further, in the above, it is desirable that the gap between the first electrode and the second electrode is 0.1 μm or more for the same reason as described above.

The present invention also provides a particle emitting device having the above-mentioned particle emitting surface or thin film and having at least a part of the insulating layer removed.

The present invention also provides a field emission device including the particle emission device described above.

The field emission device according to the present invention comprises a first panel consisting of a cathode electrode line, a gate electrode line, an insulating layer between these electrode lines, and micropores for particle emission, a plurality of light-emitting bodies and these. A field emission light-emitting device can be formed by a second panel including electrodes to which light-emitters are attached.

In the above, a field emission type display device in which the light emitting body is a fluorescent body can be constructed.

The present invention comprises a step of forming a first electrode on a substrate, a step of forming an insulating layer on the first electrode,
Manufacture of the particle emission device or field emission device described above, which comprises a step of forming a second electrode on the insulating layer, and a step of forming micropores penetrating the second electrode and the insulating layer, respectively. It also provides a method.

The present invention further comprises the steps of forming a first electrode on the substrate, forming an insulating layer on the first electrode, and forming a second electrode on the insulating layer. A step of forming a plurality of fine holes penetrating the second electrode and the insulating layer, and a step of removing at least a part of the insulating layer in a region between the plurality of fine holes of the insulating layer. The present invention also provides a method for manufacturing a particle emission device or a field emission device, which has the above-mentioned insulating layer from which at least a part is removed.

In the above method, the insulating layer portion can be removed by overetching through the fine holes of the second electrode.

[0074]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below.

FIGS. 1 to 7 show a first embodiment in which the present invention is applied to an electron emission source (an electrode structure including a field emission type cathode) and an extremely thin display device (FED).

The display device according to this embodiment is shown in FIG.
1, the combination of the electron emission source shown in FIG. 1 (the electrode structure 25 including the field emission type cathode) and the fluorescent surface panel 3 serving as an anode facing the electron emission source through the vacuum portion. The display operation is performed as described above.

In the electron emission source 25, as shown in FIG. 3 which is a perspective view similar to FIG. 1 and FIG. 23 showing a longitudinal section of a main portion thereof, a strip-shaped strip is formed on the surface of the lower substrate 11 made of, for example, a glass material. A plurality of cathode electrode lines 13 are formed.

An insulating layer is formed on these cathode electrode lines 13.
15 and a plurality of strip-shaped gate electrode lines 14 intersecting each cathode electrode line 13 in a region 22 are formed, and these gate electrode lines together with each cathode electrode line 13 form a matrix structure.

Furthermore, the connection end (not shown) of each cathode electrode line 13 and the connection end (not shown) of each gate electrode line 14 are connected to the control means (similar to 107 in FIG. 17), It is electrically conducting.

Here, the gate electrode line 14 is formed on the insulating layer 15.
A large number of circular micro holes 20 having a hole diameter w ₁ reaching from the cathode electrode line 13 to the cathode electrode line 13 are formed as cathode holes.

The cathode electrode 13 is made of high melting point molybdenum or tungsten. The gate electrode 14 can be formed of chromium, tantalum, molybdenum, tungsten, _WSix , aluminum or the like, and its thickness is 0.1 to 0.5 μm. The insulating layer 15 is formed by vacuum deposition of SiO ₂ , Si ₃ N _4, etc.,
It is formed by sputtering, CVD or the like so that the thickness t ₁ is less than ₁ μm (preferably 0.1 to 0.5 μm, 0.3 μm in this example). The micropore 20 has a diameter w ₁ of 0.1 μm
.About.several .mu.m and pitch p of several .mu.m to tens of .mu.m, the gate electrodes 14 are arranged so as to have a lattice shape or a honeycomb shape.

The substrate 2 on the side of the fluorescent surface panel 3 is provided so as to face the main surface portion of the electron emission source through the vacuum portion on the lower surface portion which is one main surface. A fluorescent surface is coated on the lower surface of the upper substrate, and strip-shaped fluorescent surfaces R, G, B parallel to the respective gate electrode lines 14 are formed on the transparent electrodes 1R, 1G, 1B, respectively. There is.

In the electron emission source, a predetermined cathode electrode line 13 and a gate electrode line 14 are selected by the control means, and a predetermined voltage is applied between them, so that each microscopic area in the corresponding pixel region is selected. When a predetermined electric field is applied to the cathode electrode 13 in the hole 20, electrons are emitted from the cathode electrode 13 in each micro hole 20 by the tunnel effect.

At this time, in the display device in which the electron emission source is built in, the electrons emitted from the cathode electrode 13 in each micro hole 20 by exciting a predetermined pixel region are controlled by the control means to the cathode electrode line 13 And a vacuum portion 30 formed between the gate electrode line 14 and the fluorescent panel 3 by being further accelerated by a voltage applied between the transparent electrode 1R, 1G or 1B of the fluorescent panel 3 which is an anode. To reach the fluorescent surface. Visible light is emitted from the fluorescent surface R, G or B by this electron beam.

Here, as shown in FIG. 2, the cathode electrode
For the upper surface 13A of the exposed portion in the micropores 20 on 13 is flat, equipotential surfaces E _m when a voltage is applied between the gate electrode 14 cathode electrode 13 is substantially flat along the upper surface 13A It will be formed in the fine holes 20.

Therefore, the electrons e emitted from the upper surface (electron emission surface) 13A travel perpendicularly to the equipotential surface E _m ,
The electron e emitted from the minute hole 20 does not fluctuate its course, reaches a predetermined fluorescent body (for example, a red fluorescent body R) through the vacuum portion (high vacuum region) 30, and does not cause mislanding. . As a result, the desired color of light emission is always obtained, the performance of the display is improved, and high definition can be achieved. Further, the electrons e are not on the top of the microchip, but on the upper surface of the portion of the cathode electrode 13 that faces the micropore 20.
Since it is emitted from 13A, the amount of emitted electrons increases,
The light is emitted with high efficiency. Moreover, the ions do not concentrate at one point such as the top of the microchip,
Sputtering due to ions existing in the high vacuum region is also drastically reduced,
The durability of the device is improved.

Further, a portion for emitting electrons is a cathode electrode.
Since the upper surface 13A of the portion facing the minute hole 20 of 13 is provided, the upper surface 13A and the gate electrode 14 are sufficiently separated from each other, and a metal piece does not adhere between them to cause a short circuit.
Moreover, as is clear from the manufacturing method described later,
There is no need for lift-off because it can be formed on 11
The problem of metal pieces that occurs during lift-off is also eliminated. As a result, the electrodes are not blown when the applied voltage is increased, and reliable operation can be performed.

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of an essential part of an FED assembled by an electron emission source and a fluorescent panel. The electron emission source 25 and the fluorescent surface panel 3 are opposed to each other via a large number of pillars (columnar spacers) 4, and the peripheral edge portion is sealed by a frit seal 7. And the electron emission source 25
The space (30 in FIG. 1) between the fluorescent surface panel 3 and the fluorescent surface panel 3 is exhausted from the exhaust pipe 8 to a vacuum degree of 10 ⁻⁶ to 10 ⁻⁹ Torr (10 ⁻⁴ to 10 ⁻⁷ Pa). The cathode electrode line 13 and the gate electrode 14 are respectively FPCs (flexible printed circuits).
It is electrically led to the outside by 5 and 6.

The pixel pitch is 0.4 mm, the cathode electrode,
When the width of each gate electrode is 0.2 mm (that is, the area of the intersection (22 in Fig. 3) of both electrodes is 0.2 mm x 0.2 mm), the electrons emitted from the intersection act as a focusing electrode. If they are attracted to the surface of the fluorescent body without relying on, the course of the electron movement spreads over an angular range of about ± 30 degrees. In order that the emitted electrons reach the phosphor pixels arranged at a pitch of 0.4 mm and do not reach the phosphors of the adjacent pixels (that is, do not cause crosstalk), the gap is 0.3 It must be less than mm. Therefore, it is necessary to form and arrange pillars with a height of 0.3 mm or less at locations where there are no fluorescent bodies.

Next, a procedure for manufacturing the electron emission source according to this example will be described.

First, as shown in FIG. 5, a laminated body in which a cathode electrode 13, an insulating layer 15, and a gate electrode 14 are sequentially deposited on a glass substrate 11 is manufactured. At this time, both electrodes are patterned into electrode lines. The insulating layer 15 is provided only at the intersection of both electrodes. Next, a resist mask 19 for forming fine holes is formed on the gate electrode 14.

Next, as shown in FIG. 6, a resist mask is formed by anisotropic etching such as reactive ion etching.
The portion of the gate electrode 14 where there is no 19 and the insulating layer 15
The portions of are removed by etching to form the micropores 20.

Next, the resist mask 19 is removed to obtain the electron emission source 25 shown in FIG. This method does not require a step of forming a microchip having a height of about 1 μm or a step of lift-off, is easy to manufacture, and does not cause significant waste of material.

In the conventional electron emission source, it was necessary to overetch the micropores of the insulating layer to make them larger than the micropores of the gate electrode for later microchip deposition. In the electron emission source based on this, as shown in FIG. 7A, etching may be performed vertically to the same diameter, or as shown by a virtual line, the insulating layer portion may be etched with an inclination. Further, as shown in FIG. 7B, overetching may be performed.

FIG. 8 shows the second embodiment of the present invention, which is shown in FIG.
It is a sectional view similar to FIG.

In this example, a thin film 16 made of an electron emitting substance having a work function smaller than that of the constituent material of the cathode electrode is provided on the cathode electrode 13 at least over substantially the entire electrode intersection portion 22. Then, the upper surface 16A of the portion of the thin film 16 which faces the minute hole 20 serves as an electron emission surface, and the electron emission source 35 is configured.

By making the work function of the electron emitting material forming the thin film 16 smaller than that of the constituent material of the cathode electrode 13, the voltage applied between the cathode electrode and the gate electrode for emitting electrons is reduced (for example, It can be reduced to several tens of V), and a required emission amount can be stably obtained by driving at a low voltage.

Further, the electron-emitting portion is the above-mentioned thin film, and the thin film is provided at least over substantially the entire region where the cathode electrode and the gate electrode overlap each other.
This thin film is not formed by vapor deposition after the formation of the micro holes 120 as described above, but is formed in advance and then the insulating layer is formed.
It is possible to go through a simple process such as forming a gate electrode and a micro hole. The thin film 16 is shown in phantom in FIGS.

It is preferable that the thin film made of the above-mentioned particle-releasing substance is provided in a thickness not more than half the thickness of the insulating layer.
For example, if the insulating layer has a thickness close to 1 μm, the thin film is 50
It has a thickness of 00Å or less. The thickness of this thin film is preferably set so that the action and effect of this example described above can be effectively exhibited, and can be controlled by the amount of vapor deposition during film formation. In this example, the thickness of the thin film 16 is 2000 Å for the thickness t ₁ 0.3 μm of the insulating layer.

The work function of the above-mentioned particle emitting substance is preferably smaller than the work function of the constituent material of the cathode electrode, particularly preferably 3.0 eV or less, and 2.0 e
V or less is even better. This is because the applied voltage between both electrodes (cathode electrode and gate electrode) is lowered, and the required current amount can be obtained even at several tens of V, and the device can be sufficiently operated for a display, for example. In addition, as a constituent material of the cathode electrode, niobium (work function 4.02 to 4.87 eV), molybdenum (work function 4.53 to 4.95 eV), chromium (work function
4.5 eV) and the like.

As such a particle emission material, diamond (particularly amorphous diamond: work function 1.0e
V or less) is preferable. When the thin film is an amorphous diamond thin film, the amount of current required for a display can be obtained with an electric field strength of 5 × 10 ⁷ V / m or less, so that further low voltage driving is possible.

Further, since such an amorphous diamond thin film is an electrical resistor, it is possible to homogenize the amount of current emitted from the thin film in each micropore. Since the amorphous diamond thin film is chemically inert and is difficult to be sputtered by ions, stable emission can be maintained for a long time.

As the particle-releasing substances that can be used other than diamond, LaB ₆ (work function 2.66 to 2.76 eV), B
aO (work function 1.6-2.7 eV), SrO (work function 1.
25 to 1.6 eV), Y ₂ O ₃ (work function 2.0 eV), Ca
O (work function 1.6 to 1.86 eV), BaS (work function 2.05
eV), TiN (work function 2.92 eV), ZrN (work function 2.92 eV) and the like.

Such a particle emitting substance is molybdenum (work function) which is a constituent material of the microchip 106 described above.
It is characteristic that the work function is considerably smaller than that of 4.6 eV). This work function is preferably 3.0 eV or less, but this can be determined by the correlation with the applied voltage between both electrodes. If the work function is small, the applied voltage can be lowered (for example, If the work function is 2.0 eV or less, the applied voltage can be 100 V or less), or if the work function is large, the applied voltage can be increased.

In this case, the cathode electrode line 13 is covered with the micro cold cathode of the cold cathode thin film 16 and the circular micro hole 20 penetrating the gate electrode line 14 and the insulating layer 15 is formed. In the case of amorphous diamond, since the cold cathode itself is a resistor, the amount of current emitted from the thin film 16 in each micropore 20 is homogenized. As a result,
The bright spots generated on the screen of the display device are uniform, and the appearance is very good.

Further, since the amorphous diamond thin film is chemically inert and is difficult to be sputtered by the ions generated in the vacuum portion 30, stable emission can be maintained for a long time. Regarding such sputtering, since the thin film 16 itself is thin and exists on the bottom surface of the micropore 20, the thin film 16 has a structure that is difficult to be sputtered.

Others are the same as those in the first embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 8 showing the third embodiment.

In this example, a thin film of amorphous diamond, for example, is provided only in the region of the cathode electrode 13 facing the micropores 20.
An electron emission source 45 is formed by forming 36 by vacuum vapor deposition and using the upper surface 36A as an electron emission surface. The thin film 36 is provided after forming the micropores 20. In this example, an aluminum film 37 (shown in phantom lines) is formed on the gate electrode 14, and a thin film material deposition layer 38 (shown in phantom lines) deposited on the aluminum film 37 during thin film deposition is used as an aluminum film. The film 37 is removed and lifted off.

In this example, in addition to the effect of the second embodiment that low voltage driving is possible, even if a part of the deposition layer 38 enters the fine holes 20 at the time of lift-off described above. , It's not conductive so it won't hinder anything. Others are the same as those in the second embodiment.

FIG. 10 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 9 showing the fourth embodiment.

In this example, instead of the thin film 36 of FIG. 9, a truncated cone 46 of amorphous diamond, which is lower than the height of the insulating layer 15, is formed, and its upper surface 46A serves as an electron emitting surface, and an electron emitting source 55. Are configured. In FIG. 10, the phantom line 47 indicates an aluminum film for lift-off, and the phantom line indicates
Reference numeral 48 is a layer of deposits deposited on the aluminum film 47.

In this example, it is not necessary to control the height of the truncated cone-shaped body 46 of amorphous diamond with high precision, and the manufacture is easy. Others are the same as those in the third embodiment.

FIG. 11 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 1 showing a fifth embodiment, and FIG. 13 is a perspective view similar to FIG.

In this example, the insulating layer 15 of the electrode crossing portion 22 of the electron emission source 65 is entirely removed except for the peripheral portion of the crossing portion, and the insulating layer portion in the region surrounded by this peripheral portion is removed. An electron emission source 65 is configured. The thickness of the remaining insulating layer (that is, the gap between the cathode electrode 13 and the gate electrode 14) t ₂
May be about 1 .mu.m, but it is preferable that it is small, and in this example, it is set to 0.3 .mu.m as in the above-mentioned embodiments.

FIG. 12 is an enlarged sectional view similar to FIG. 2 showing the state of electron emission.

In this example, the equipotential surface E _m formed on the cathode electrode 13 is parallel to the cathode electrode surface in the central portion of the region below the minute holes 20 of the cathode electrode 13, and the peripheral portion thereof is the same. And, it is formed so as to rise in a region below the gate electrode 14 adjacent thereto. For this reason, the emitted electrons e move in a direction orthogonal to the equipotential surface E _m , so that the rising portion of the equipotential surface acts like a lens and the lower portion of the gate electrode 14 near the minute holes 20. The electrons emitted from the cathode electrode portion of the above also move to the fluorescent surface panel through the minute holes 20.

Therefore, the electron emitting surface 13B for emitting effective electrons toward the fluorescent surface panel reaches a part of the portion under the gate electrode, and the electron emitting surface in the first embodiment is the same. It becomes wider than 13A (see FIG. 2), and the amount of effective emitted electrons increases.

In FIG. 12, assuming that the shortest distance between the gate electrode and the cathode electrode is d and the applied voltage between both electrodes is V _g , the electric field strength F ₁ is approximately _calculated by F ₁ = V _g / d ₁ . To be Where d ₁ (that is, t ₂ ) = 0.3 μm, V
_{When g} = 100 V, F ₁ = 3.4 × 10 ⁻⁶ V / cm, and field emission occurs. This electric field strength F
₁ is less than half of the electric field strength F ₂ in the conventional microchip described above with reference to FIG. 26 (that is, the electric field strength required for field emission is less than half).

As described above, since the insulating layer 15 exists only at the peripheral portion of the intersecting portion, the gate electrode 14 having a large number of minute holes 20 is easily twisted due to stress during manufacture or use. , The gap t ₂ is likely to change. Therefore, the gate electrode 14 is
Although it may have a lattice shape as shown in FIGS. 15 (a) and 15 (b), it is preferably a honeycomb shape as shown in FIGS. 14 (a) and 14 (b). Further, by forming the honeycomb shape, the density of the micropores 20 is increased and the amount of emitted electrons is increased, which is convenient.

In the above example, the gap t ₂ between the gate electrode and the cathode electrode is 0.3 μm, but this gap is 1.0 μm.
It is also possible to make it about μm. The electron emission source 66 of FIG.
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view similar to the electron emission source 65 showing an example in which the gap (designated by t ₃ ) is 1.0 μm.

The electron emission source shown in FIGS. 11 and 16 is manufactured by the procedure shown in FIGS.

First, as shown in FIG. 17, a laminated body in which a cathode electrode 13, an insulating layer 15, and a gate electrode 14 are sequentially deposited on a glass substrate 11 is manufactured. At this time, both electrodes are patterned into electrode lines. The insulating layer 15 is provided only at the intersection of both electrodes. Next, a resist mask 99 for forming fine holes is formed on the gate electrode 14.

Next, as shown in FIG. 18, a resist mask is formed by anisotropic etching such as reactive ion etching.
Part of the gate electrode 14 and insulating layer 15 where 99 does not exist
The portions of are removed by etching to form the micropores 20.

Next, as shown in FIG. 19, the insulating layer in the region other than the peripheral portion of the intersection is completely removed by isotropic etching from the micropores 20 using hydrofluoric acid, for example.

Next, the resist mask 99 is removed, and FIG.
The electron emission sources 65 and 66 shown in FIG. 16 are used.

Others are the same as those in the first embodiment.

FIG. 20 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 11 showing the sixth embodiment.

This example is an example in which the structure in which a thin film made of a material having a work function smaller than that of the constituent material is provided on the cathode electrode in the second embodiment is added to the fifth embodiment.

That is, a thin film 16 of amorphous diamond or the like is deposited on the cathode electrode 13 made of niobium, molybdenum, chromium or the like at least over the entire electrode intersection.
Remove all insulating layers in the area other than the periphery of the electrode intersection,
The electron emission source is 75. Others are the same as those in the second embodiment and the fifth embodiment.

By configuring the electron emission source 75 as described above, the effect of the second embodiment that low voltage driving is possible and the electron emission surface 16B being widened and the amount of electron emission being increased. Both effects of the fifth embodiment can be obtained together.

FIG. 21 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 11 showing the seventh embodiment.

In this example, a structure in which a thin film made of a material having a work function smaller than that of the cathode electrode constituent material is provided in a portion under the minute hole of the cathode electrode in the third embodiment is the same as the fifth embodiment. It is an example added to.

That is, a thin film 36 of amorphous diamond or the like is deposited on the portion of the cathode electrode 13 made of niobium, molybdenum, chromium or the like below the micropores 20, and an insulating layer is formed in the region other than the peripheral portion of the electrode intersection. All are removed and used as the electron emission source 85. Others are the same as those in the third embodiment and the fifth embodiment.

By constructing the electron emission source 85 as described above, the effect of the third embodiment that low voltage driving becomes possible, and the upper surface 36A of the thin film 36 and the cathode electrode upper surface 13C around the thin film 36 are obtained. The electron emission surface is formed by
Both the effect of increasing the electron emission surface and increasing the amount of electron emission can be obtained.

FIG. 22 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 11 showing the eighth embodiment.

This example is an example in which the structure in which the truncated cone 46 of amorphous diamond is provided on the portion of the cathode electrode 13 under the micropores 20 in the fourth embodiment is added to the fifth embodiment. Is.

That is, a circular truncated cone 46 such as amorphous diamond is provided in the portion below the micropores 20 on the cathode electrode 13 made of niobium, molybdenum, chromium or the like, and an insulating layer is formed in a region other than the peripheral portion of the electrode intersection. All removed, electron emission source
It is 95. Others are the same as those in the fourth and fifth embodiments.

By constructing the electron emission source 95 as described above, it is possible to drive at a low voltage and it is not necessary to control the height of the truncated cone body 46 with high precision. , The upper surface 46A of the truncated cone 46 and the cathode electrode upper surface 13C around the truncated cone 46 form an electron emission surface, and the electron emission surface is widened to increase the electron emission amount. It is played together.

FIG. 23 is a sectional view similar to FIG. 11 showing the ninth embodiment.

In this example, the diagram in the fifth embodiment is used.
The isotropic etching shown in FIG. 19 is stopped halfway, and a large number of insulating layers 15 are left under the cathode electrode 13 to serve as an electron emission source 96.

By configuring the electron emission source 96 as described above, since the cathode electrode 13 is supported by the insulating layer 15 at a large number of places, distortion is likely to occur, and even if the cathode electrode is formed in a lattice shape, it can sufficiently withstand stress. Like Others are the same as those in the fifth embodiment. In this example, as in the sixth, seventh, and eighth embodiments, a thin film 13 such as amorphous diamond is formed on the entire surface of the intersection of the cathode electrodes, a thin film 36 is formed under the micropores 20, and a truncated cone. Form 46
It goes without saying that (both are shown by virtual lines) may be provided.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the above embodiments can be further modified based on the technical idea of the present invention.

For example, the formation region of the above-mentioned thin film 16 may be only the intersection region of the cathode electrode line and the gate electrode line, or may be provided in substantially the same pattern as the cathode electrode line. The thin film 16 may be present in a region other than this, and may be on the entire surface of the substrate 11 in some cases.

Materials and thicknesses of the thin film 16, the cathode electrode 13, etc.,
The film forming method and the like may be variously changed. The film formation method includes
In addition to the above-mentioned CVD, etc., laser ablation method (deposition method utilizing etching phenomenon by laser light irradiation: graphite can be used as target in case of diamond thin film), sputtering method (eg sputtering using Ar gas: diamond thin film) In this case, the target can be graphite).

The electron emission source described above is suitable for the FED, but the structure of the facing fluorescent panel, the pattern and material of each part, etc. are not limited to those described above, and various manufacturing methods are adopted. it can.

The use of the above-mentioned electron emission source is FE.
The present invention is not limited to D or other display devices, and is used for a vacuum tube (that is, an electron tube in which an electron flow emitted from the cathode is controlled by a gate electrode (grid) and amplified or rectified), or a cathode. A circuit element for taking out electrons emitted from the device as a signal current (a photoelectric conversion element is attached to the fluorescent surface panel of the FED described above, and the light emission pattern of the fluorescent surface panel is converted into an electric signal by the photoelectric conversion element. It is also applicable to a device for optical communication.

Further, the particles to be emitted are usually electrons as in the above-mentioned embodiments, but the particles are not necessarily limited to electrons, and other elementary particles may be used.

[0149]

According to the present invention, the thickness of the insulating layer located between the first electrode and the second electrode is less than 1 μm, and the particle emission surface formed on the first electrode. By making the substantially flat, the following operational effects are exhibited.

Since the particle emission surface is substantially flat, the particles emitted from the particle emission surface move in the direction perpendicular to the equipotential surface formed substantially parallel to the flat particle emission surface. Therefore, they are not attracted to the second electrode and are emitted through the micropores of the second electrode. Also, since the particles are emitted from the surface rather than from a point, the amount of emitted particles is large, the particle emission is efficient and the reliability is high, and the life of the particle emission surface is extended, and, The device is easy to manufacture.

Since the thickness of the insulating layer is as small as less than 1 μm,
The distance between the first and second electrodes is small and the amount of emitted particles that are not attracted to the second electrode and are emitted through the micropores is large, which increases the effect. Also,
The device can be made thin.

According to the present invention, since the insulating layer has a structure in which at least a part of the region between the plurality of micropores is removed, the following operational effects can be obtained.

In the region where the insulating layer is removed, the equipotential surface is curved below the portion close to the micropores of the second electrode, and the curved equipotential surface acts like a lens to emit particles. You will start to bend the path. Therefore, the particles emitted through the micropores include the particles emitted from the first electrode portion located below the portion close to the micropores of the second electrode. As a result, the amount of emitted particles is higher and the particle emission is more efficient.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an enlarged partial sectional view of an essential part of a display device according to a first embodiment.

FIG. 2 is an enlarged schematic cross-sectional view for explaining the electron emission performance of the electron emission source.

FIG. 3 is a schematic exploded perspective view of a main part of the display device.

FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of the display device.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged partial sectional view showing a first step of manufacturing the electron emission source.

FIG. 6 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view showing a second step of manufacturing the electron emission source.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged partial sectional view of an electron emission source showing a modification of the first embodiment.

FIG. 8 is an enlarged partial sectional view of an essential part of a display device according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 9 is an enlarged partial sectional view of an essential part of a display device according to a third embodiment.

FIG. 10 is an enlarged partial sectional view of an essential part of a display device according to a fourth embodiment.

FIG. 11 is an enlarged partial sectional view of an essential part of a display device according to a fifth embodiment.

FIG. 12 is an enlarged schematic cross-sectional view for explaining the electron emission performance of the electron emission source.

FIG. 13 is a schematic exploded perspective view of a main part of the display device.

FIG. 14 is a partially enlarged plan view of an electron emission source in which the same minute holes are arranged in a honeycomb shape.

FIG. 15 is a partially enlarged plan view of the electron emission source in which the micropores are arranged in a grid pattern.

FIG. 16 is an enlarged partial sectional view of an essential part of a display device according to a modification of the fifth embodiment.

FIG. 17 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view showing a first step of manufacturing an electron emission source according to the fifth embodiment.

FIG. 18 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view showing a second step of manufacturing the electron emission source.

FIG. 19 is an enlarged partial sectional view showing a third step of manufacturing the electron emission source.

FIG. 20 is an enlarged partial sectional view of an essential part of a display device according to a sixth embodiment.

FIG. 21 is an enlarged partial sectional view of an essential part of a display device according to a seventh embodiment.

FIG. 22 is an enlarged partial sectional view of an essential part of a display device according to an eighth embodiment.

FIG. 23 is an enlarged partial sectional view of an essential part of a display device according to a ninth embodiment.

FIG. 24 is an enlarged partial sectional view of a main part of a display device to which a conventional electron emission source is applied.

FIG. 25 is a schematic exploded perspective view of a main part of the display device.

FIG. 26 is a partial schematic cross-sectional view for explaining color selection by switching the R, G, and B three terminals in the display device.

FIG. 27 is a timing chart when the same color is selected.

FIG. 28 is a schematic cross-sectional perspective view for explaining the electron emission performance of the electron emission source.

FIG. 29 is an enlarged partial cross-sectional view showing a first step in manufacturing the electron emission source.

FIG. 30 is an enlarged partial sectional view showing a second step of manufacturing the electron emission source.

FIG. 31 is an enlarged partial sectional view showing a third step of manufacturing the electron emission source.

FIG. 32 is an enlarged partial sectional view showing a fourth step of manufacturing the electron emission source.

FIG. 33 shows the same microchip (emitter cone),
(A), (b) and (c) of the same figure are enlarged front views and (d) of the same figure.
Is an enlarged plan view.

FIG. 34 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing another step in the manufacturing process of the electron emission source.

FIG. 35 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a situation where fusing occurs in the manufacturing process of the electron emission source.

FIG. 36 is an explanatory diagram for explaining the relationship between the size of an object to be evaporated and an evaporation source in the same vacuum evaporation.

FIG. 37 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a relationship between a vapor deposition source and a vapor deposition region when performing vapor deposition while moving the vapor deposition target object.

FIG. 38 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing the manufacturing process of another conventional electron emission source.

FIG. 39 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing still another conventional electron-emitting source manufacturing process.

FIG. 40 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing several examples of still another conventional electron emission source.

FIG. 41 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing several examples of still another conventional electron emission source.

[Explanation of symbols]

1R, 1G, 1B ... Transparent electrodes 2, 11 ... Glass substrate 3 ... Fluorescent panel 13 ... Cathode electrodes 13A, 13B, 13C, 16A, 16B, 36A, 46A ... Electron emission Surface 14 ... Gate electrode 15 ... Insulating layer 16, 36 ... Thin film 19, 99 ... Resist mask 20 ... Micropore 22 ... Electrode intersection 25, 35, 45, 55, 65 the thickness e ... emitted electrons E _m ... equipotential surface of 66,75,85,95,96 ... electron emission source 46 ... frustoconical body t _1, t ₂ ... insulating layer R, G, B ... Fluorescent body

Claims (20)

[Claims] 1. A first electrode and a second electrode are provided so as to face each other with an insulating layer interposed therebetween, and minute holes are formed so as to penetrate the second electrode and the insulating layer, respectively. In a particle emission device configured to emit predetermined particles from the particle emission surface of the first electrode through the micropores by applying a voltage between the electrode and the second electrode. The particle emitting device, wherein the insulating layer has a thickness of less than 1 μm, and the particle emitting surface is substantially flat. 2. The particle emitting device according to claim 1, wherein the insulating layer has a thickness of 0.5 μm or less. 3. The particle emitting device according to claim 1, wherein the insulating layer has a thickness of 0.1 μm or more. 4. The particle emitting surface is the surface of the first electrode,
The particle emitting device according to claim 1, 2 or 3. 5. The particle emitting surface is the surface of a thin film made of a particle emitting substance which covers the first electrode and has a work function smaller than that of the constituent material of the first electrode. The particle emission device described in 1. 6. The thin film is provided only under the micropores,
The particle emitting device according to claim 5. 7. The particle emitting device according to claim 5, wherein the thin film is provided over substantially the entire region where at least the first electrode and the second electrode overlap. 8. The particle emitting device having the first electrode, the second electrode, the plurality of micropores and the insulating layer according to claim 1, wherein a region of the insulating layer between the plurality of micropores. A particle emitting device having a structure from which is removed in at least a part thereof. 9. The particle emitting device according to claim 8, wherein substantially all of the insulating layer is removed in a region where the first electrode and the second electrode overlap each other. 10. The particle emitting device according to claim 8, wherein the second electrode provided with the micropores has a honeycomb shape or a lattice shape. 11. The gap between the first electrode and the second electrode is 1 μm.
The particle emitting device according to claim 8, 9 or 10, which is less than m. 12. The gap between the first electrode and the second electrode is 0.5.
12. The particle emitting device according to claim 11, having a size of less than or equal to μm. 13. The gap between the first electrode and the second electrode is 0.1.
The particle emission device according to claim 11 or 12, which has a diameter of at least μm. 14. The particle emitting device according to claim 8, which has the particle emitting surface or the thin film according to any one of claims 1 to 7. 15. A field emission device comprising the particle emission device according to claim 1. 16. A first panel comprising a cathode electrode line, a gate electrode line, an insulating layer between these electrode lines, and minute holes for emitting particles, a plurality of light emitters, and these light emitters, respectively. 16. The field emission device according to claim 15, which is configured as a field emission light emitting device with a second panel including electrodes. 17. The field emission device according to claim 16, which is configured as a field emission display device in which the light emitter is a phosphor. 18. A step of forming a first electrode on a substrate,
A step of forming an insulating layer on the first electrode, a step of forming a second electrode on the insulating layer, and a step of forming micropores penetrating the second electrode and the insulating layer, respectively. A particle emitting device according to any one of claims 1 to 7, or comprising the particle emitting device.
A method for manufacturing a field emission device according to 5, 16, or 17. 19. A step of forming a first electrode on a substrate,
Forming an insulating layer on the first electrode, forming a second electrode on the insulating layer, and forming a plurality of micropores penetrating the second electrode and the insulating layer, respectively. 15. The particle emitting device according to claim 8, further comprising: a step and a step of removing at least a part of the insulating layer in a region of the insulating layer between the plurality of micropores. Alternatively, it is provided with this particle emission device.
A method for manufacturing a field emission device according to item 17. 20. The method for manufacturing a particle emission device or a field emission device according to claim 19, wherein the insulating layer portion is removed by overetching through the micropores of the second electrode.