Fundamental properties of inert gas mixtures for plasma display panels

Summary form only given. A fundamental kinetic model is used to compare the luminous efficiency of different compositions of Ne-Xe, He-Xe and Ne-Xe-Ar mixtures in plasma display panels. Exact solutions of the kinetic Boltzmann equation in an homogeneous, unbounded system are used, accurately accounting for all the known processes of excitation as well as ionization and other losses. A self-sustaining condition is used to estimate the breakdown electric field E/sub k/, accounting also for Penning ionization. The excitation frequency of Xe states, which emit UV photons is calculated for applied electric field values ranging from 0.2E/sub k/ to 5E/sub k/. Light generation efficiency, defined as the ratio of the volume density of UV emission intensity per unit time versus dissipated electrical power, is an increasing function of the Xe concentration N/sub Xe/, in both the Ne-Xe and He-Xe cases, although He-Xe mixtures were found to be somewhat less efficient. For both Ne-Xe and He-Xe mixtures, a Xe concentration of /spl sim/10% provides a good balance between the conflicting requirements of high luminous efficiency and low breakdown voltage level. Addition of small amounts of Ar in Ne-Xe mixtures leads to insignificant changes in efficiency or breakdown voltage level. A one dimensional self-consistent simulation of an ac plasma display cell is also used to investigate the effect of gas mixture composition on luminous efficiency.