A very thin flat multi-figure digital or alpha-numeric display tube

The "PLANITRON" is a new, fiat, multi-figure, alpha-numeric gas-discharge display device of exceptionally thin structure. The device uses the cathode-sheath glow. It is rugged and thin--less than 6mm in overall thickness except for the tiny seal-off glass tip located somewhere at its back. Each figure of the display is composed of segmented multiple-electrode elements, located in the same plane as the anode and the electronic barrier or suppressor electrodes. Configurations and locations of the barrier electrodes, together with the recombination-control effect afforded by the inner surface of the glass envelope, were studied. The problems of unwanted cross-talk or "leap-fire" to near-by segments of figures and control of the striking voltages were solved effectively.