University of Dundee

Mervyn John Rose

Ravi Silva

John Shannon

Janos Peter Hajto

A field emission backplate formed by laser crystallizing of an area of amorphous semiconductor based material. Emitter sites result from the rough surface texture caused by the crystallization process. The crystallization may be localized using laser interferometry, and profiled emitter tips grown on the localized crystalline areas. Such backplates can be used in field emission devices emitting into either a vacuum or a wide band gap light-emitting polymer. Furthermore, a backplate having self-aligned gates can be formed by depositing an insulator layer and a metal layer over the emitter tips, removing the top of the metal layer and etching away the insulator, leaving each tip surrounded by a metal rim. A planarizing agent can be used to refine this process.

Field emission backplate

A field emission device having improved properties and which finds use in display devices, such as a flat panel displays. Known devices and displays suffer from problems such as complexity of fabrication and limited color gamut. The present device provides a field emission backplate which is made from a substantially semiconductor based material and has a plurality of grown tips. The device also includes at least one electro-luminescent or photo-luminescent material having a fluorescent material such as a fluorescent dye doped material chemically attached thereto.

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Perthshire, United Kingdom

Mervyn John Rose