33.1: Invited Paper: Extremely Uniform and Highly Efficient Plasma‐Discharge Sources by using Transfer Mold Micro‐Projection Cathode Arrays for Large area and Flat‐Type Ultra‐Violet Lighting Applications.

Mercury‐free ultra‐violet light source, which were generated by high pressure plasma discharge sources in the atmospheric pressure region, have been proposed by using conventional dielectric barrier discharge. However, dielectric barrier discharge devices having conventional flat‐type electrodes as well as coaxial‐type electrodes, would be degraded by the avalanche and the deformation of electrode due to the secondary ion bombardment by high discharge‐starting voltages and abnormal discharges, under the conditions of ac voltages with typical peak‐to‐peak amplitudes of 1.5–6 kV. In this study, low dischargestarting voltage under high pressure can be expected by the enhancement of the local electric field concentration on cathode arrays having extremely uniform and sharp tips of Transfer Mold micro‐projection cathode arrays. These Transfer Mold microprojection cathode arrays have been fabricated by using Transfer Mold field emitter arrays (FEAs) fabrication method and evaluated for discharge characteristics as the first step for UV lighting applications. Transfer Mold micro‐projection cathode arrays can be useful for the extremely uniform plasma source applications having the low breakdown voltage, then expected to be applied to large area and flat‐type UV lighting applications to a great extent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]