GB1249890A - Light source - Google Patents

Abstract

1,249,890. Glow discharge lamps. IMPERIAL CHEMICAL INDUSTRIES Ltd. 24 Oct., 1969 [13 Nov., 1968], No. 53778/68. Heading H1D. A gas-filled glow discharge light cell comprises fibrous insulating material 4 in the gap between two electrodes 1 and 2a, at least one of which has at least a part of its area pervious to light. The fibrous material may be a coherent woven or non-woven mat or a woven or non-woven base carrying a flock pile. Materials mentioned are nylon chiffon, paper tissue, polyester woven net, and glass fibre. The fibres are preferably aligned substantially parallel to the electric field. The electrodes may be metal, e.g. Cu or Al, conducting glass, or a conducting organic or inorganic polymer, and may be in the form of interconnected strips or a mesh or an etched film supported on a substrate of mica, polythene or polyethylene terephthalate. Conducting glass spheres or powder may be embedded in a transparent polymer matrix. Multiple spaced connections may be made to the electrodes if these are of low conductivity. The gas filling may be a noble gas, SF 6 , nitrogen, a halogenated hydrocarbon, CO 2 , air or mixtures thereof. Examples are nitrogen or a mixture of nitrogen and neon at a pressure of 70 torr, a mixture of nitrogen at 20 torr and neon at 280 torr, and air at atmospheric pressure. The cell shown has spacers 3 between the electrodes, and an insulating layer 2b covering electrode 2a. The insulating layer 2b may be glass or an organic polymer and may be coloured by the addition of a pigment. Electrode 1 may also be separated from the gas filling by an insulating layer. A phosphor may be coated on electrode 1, on the insulator 2b or on the fibrous material 4. A cell is described having two sets of electrodes formed by etching aluminized polyster film and arranged as a cross-bar addressing system (Fig. 3, not shown). The spacers 3 may be replaced by one or more sheets of material having perforations which form small cells. The devices may be flexible and may be produced in sheets or ribbons by a continuous process.