Candescent Technologies Corporation

Other

Complete Multilayer Solutions Limited

Anthony John Cooper

Floyd R Pothoven

Theodore S Fahlen

Paul N Ludwig

Igor L Maslennikov

Robert J Pressley

A field effect emission device ( ) for a visual display has a ceramic substrate ( ). On an emission side ( ) of the substrate, it has an emission layer ( ) including a lattice of conductive emitter and gates line stripes ( ). For electrical connection to the emitter and gate stripes, the substrate has apertures ( ), into which the strip material&mdash;or other conductive material&mdash;extends as vias ( ). The device substrate is made up of several substrate layers bonded together. Each layer piece has connection strips ( ) set into its opposite surfaces and intereonnecting vias ( ), of the same material as the strips. The connection strips of adjacent layers about or at least vias of one layer abut with the connection strips of the next layer, providing electrical contact. The connection strips and the vias are arranged to spread or fan out the connections from the stripe pitch, typically 0.0125&Prime;, to that of driver chip contacts, typically 0.050&Prime;, to be connected to the contact pads ( ).

Visual display

The apparatus for sealing face plates ( ) and cathodes ( ) has three stations ( ). The first ( ) is a preheater, the second ( ) is an alignment and irradiation station and the third ( ) is a controlled cooling station. Beneath each station, a vacuum pump ( ) capable of drawing ultralow pressures is provided. The preheater is equipped with upper and lower banks of radiant heaters and reflectors ( ). The upper heaters are Provided above a quartz: window ( ) of a chamber ( ) constituting the station. The pressure in the preheater is pumped down to that in the alignment and irradiation station prior to opening of the gate valve between them and transfer of the face plate and cathode. At the alignment and irradiation station, further heaters ( ) are provided. Those above the face plate and cathode, the face plate being uppermost, are mounted on frames ( ) about hinges ( ), whereby they can be swung up to clear this station's top quartz window, exposing the face plate to the view of an optical system ( ) and a laser ( ). Manipulation controls ( ) are provided for manipulating the position of the face plate to be pixel alignment, as measured by the optical system ( ), with the cathode. The laser is traversed around further. The cooling station ( ) has meanwhile been pumped down and the sealed device is transferred to it. The temperature of the device is allowed to rise very slowly, in order to reduce the risk of thermal cracking to as great an extent as possible. As the temperature slowly falls, air is slowly introduced, so that the finished device can be removed to the ambient surroundings.

A getter (50) situated in a cavity of a hollow structure (40-46), such as a flat-panel device, is activated by directing light energy locally through part of a hollow structure and onto the getter. The light energy is typically provided by a laser beam (60). The getter, typically of the non-evaporable type, is usually inserted as a single piece of gettering material into the cavity. The getter normally can be activated/re-activated multiple times in this manner, typically during the sealing of different parts of the structure together.

Local energy activation of getter typically in environment below room

A structure, such as a flat-panel device, is sealed together by a gap-jumping technique in which an edge (44S) of a wall (44) is positioned near a matching sealing area (40S) of a plate structure (40) such that a gap (48) at least partially separates the edge of the wall from the sealing area of the plate structure. The gap usually has an average height of 25 .mu.m or more. Energy is then transferred locally to material of the wall along the gap to cause material of the wall and the plate structure to bridge the gap and seal the plate structure to the wall. The energy-transferring step is typically performed with light energy provided by a laser (56). Local energy transfer can also be utilized to tack the plate structure to the wall at multiple spaced-apart locations (44A) along the wall. The tacking operation is typically performed as a preliminary step to sealing the plate structure to the wall.

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Escondido, CA, United States of America

Anthony John Cooper