A solid-state matrix addressed display

A technique has been developed that will produce a hysteresis in the electrical conductivity of CdSe. This phenomenon can be used to control the luminous emittance of electroluminescent cells by fabricating a solid state switch made of this CdSe material in series with an electroluminescent element. A panel has been fabricated using a multiplicity of these elements by wiring the EL elements in rows and the CdSe elements in columns. This panel is energized by applying a bias voltage uniformly to all the elements and addressing a particular element with voltage pulses applied by matrix techniques. This paper will describe the principles of operation and outline the construction techniques for this display. The performance characteristics of a 100 element panel will be discussed. This panel, with 20 lines per inch resolution, has been operated with addressing pulses of 25 microseconds duration, and an output brightness of 20 foot-lamberts. The construction process is adaptable to mass production, resulting in an ultimate low cost. The display has memory, thus allowing random access, and operates on very little power. The demonstration of this display represents a significant advancement to the state of the art, since it possesses the characteristics necessary for the development of practical large area displays.