A parent has been awarded for a new CRT design that eliminates the internal shadow mask, and promises a bright, rugged, high-resolution/large-format, multiscan/multi-sync display with potentially low manufacturing costs. The design incorporates a light-valve within the CRT. Modulation of the electron gun and the function of the shadow mask are replaced by two chemical reactions typical of phosphors: decay stimulation and quenching. These reactions are controlled through illumination of the phosphors by non- visible light projected through the light-valve. The image is generated in traditional raster form, but with a single, non-modulated electron gun; control of each pixel is made through modulation of the light-valve. The design decreases manufacturing alignment requirements and eliminates the need to focus the electron gun. Advantages include: high-G resistance due to elimination of the shadow mask; brighter displays because the electron beam is not occluded or absorbed by the shadow mask; elimination of decay rate as a parameter in phosphor choice and frame state; and digital interfacing to image sources. Applications include: large- format displays without the physical constraints of the shadow mask and by elimination of distortion control requirements of the electron beam at the image edges; variable rates by modulating the decay rate of the phosphors through quenching; and stereoscopic displays without crosstalk through control of left-right phosphor decay rates.

Date Published: 1 February 1998
PDF: 9 pages
Proc. SPIE 3228, Multimedia Networks: Security, Displays, Terminals, and Gateways, (1 February 1998); doi: 10.1117/12.300895

Published in SPIE Proceedings Vol. 3228:
Multimedia Networks: Security, Displays, Terminals, and Gateways
Louis S. Lome; V. Michael Bove Jr.; Barbara Derryberry; Clifford R. Holliday; Louis S. Lome; Vishal Markandey; Andrew G. Tescher; Bhaskaran Vasudev, Editor(s)