Plasma Display Panel

Abstract

Provided is a plasma display panel that can increase bright room contrast and luminous efficiency. The plasma display panel includes a first substrate; a second substrate which is separated from the first substrate and faces the first substrate; a plurality of barrier ribs formed between the first and second substrates and defining a plurality of discharge cells; a plurality of sustain electrodes formed between the first and second substrates, comprising inner sustain electrodes and outer sustain electrodes; a plurality of scan electrodes formed in parallel to the sustain electrodes and comprising inner scan electrodes and outer scan electrodes; a plurality of address electrodes formed between the first and second substrates and extending in a direction crossing an extending direction of the sustain electrodes and the scan electrodes; an inner sustain connection electrode that electrically connects the inner sustain electrodes formed in adjacent discharge cells arranged in an extending direction of the address electrodes; and a discharge prevention element that prevents the generation of discharge in a non-discharge region around the inner sustain connection electrode, wherein the sustain electrodes and the scan electrodes are repeatedly and alternately disposed in each of the discharge cells, and adjacent electrodes of the outer sustain and outer scan electrodes formed in the two adjacent discharge cells arranged in an extending direction of the address electrodes are electrically connected to each other.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The above and other features and advantages of the present embodiments will become more apparent by describing in detail exemplary embodiments thereof with reference to the attached drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a plan view illustrating a plasma display panel (PDP) according to an embodiment;

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along a line II-II of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment;

FIG. 3 is a plan view illustrating a modified version of the PDP of FIG. 1, according to an embodiment;

FIG. 4 is a diagram for explaining a method of driving a PDP according to an embodiment;

FIG. 5 is a first example timing diagram for explaining a driving signal of a PDP according to an embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a second example timing diagram for explaining a driving signal of a PDP according to an embodiment;

FIG. 7 is a plan view illustrating a plasma display panel according to another embodiment;

FIG. 8 is a plan view illustrating a modified version of the PDP of FIG. 7, according to an embodiment;

FIG. 9 a plan view illustrating a plasma display panel according to another embodiment; and

FIG. 10 is a plan view illustrating a modified version of the PDP of FIG. 9, according to an embodiment.

Claims

1. A plasma display panel comprising: a first substrate;a second substrate which is separated from the first substrate and faces the first substrate;a plurality of barrier ribs formed between the first and second substrates and defining a plurality of discharge cells;a plurality of sustain electrodes formed between the first and second substrates, comprising inner sustain electrodes and outer sustain electrodes;a plurality of scan electrodes formed in parallel to the sustain electrodes and comprising inner scan electrodes and outer scan electrodes;a plurality of address electrodes formed between the first and second substrates and extending in a direction crossing the sustain electrodes and the scan electrodes;an inner sustain connection electrode that electrically connects the inner sustain electrodes formed in adjacent discharge cells arranged in the extending direction of the address electrodes; anda discharge prevention element that prevents the generation of discharge in a non-discharge region around the inner sustain connection electrode,wherein the sustain electrodes and the scan electrodes are repeatedly and alternately disposed in each of the discharge cells,and wherein adjacent electrodes of the outer sustain and outer scan electrodes formed in two adjacent discharge cells arranged in an extending direction of the address electrodes are electrically connected to each other.

2. The plasma display panel of claim 1, wherein the discharge prevention element is a dummy barrier rib formed on the second substrate.

3. The plasma display panel of claim 2, wherein the dummy barrier rib is located between an end portion of one of the scan electrodes and the inner sustain connection electrode.

4. The plasma display panel of claim 1, wherein the shortest distance between the inner sustain connection electrode and an end portion of the outer scan electrode is greater than the shortest distance between the inner sustain electrode and the inner scan electrode in such a manner that prevents the generation of discharge around the inner sustain connection electrode.

5. The plasma display panel of claim 4, wherein the distance between the inner sustain connection electrode and the outer scan connection electrode is at least twice the distance between the inner sustain electrode and the inner scan electrode.

6. The plasma display panel of claim 1, wherein the outer sustain electrodes, the inner sustain electrodes, the outer scan electrodes, and the inner scan electrodes are closed loop shaped electrodes.

7. The plasma display panel of claim 6, further comprising a short bar that electrically connects the outer sustain electrodes disposed between the outer sustain electrodes, further comprising a short bar that electrically connects the inner sustain electrodes disposed between the inner sustain electrodes,further comprising a short bar that electrically connects the outer scan electrodes disposed between the outer scan electrodes,and further comprising a short bar that electrically connects the inner scan electrodes disposed between the inner scan electrodes.

8. The plasma display panel of claim 7, wherein the short bars are formed at locations corresponding to portions of the barrier ribs.

9. The plasma display panel of claim 1, wherein the outer sustain electrodes, the inner sustain electrodes, the outer scan electrodes, and the inner scan electrodes respectively, are open type split electrodes.

10. The plasma display panel of claim 9, further comprising transparent electrodes contacting the outer sustain electrodes, the inner sustain electrodes, the outer scan electrodes, and the inner scan electrodes.

11. The plasma display panel of claim 1, wherein each of a plurality of voltages applied to the inner sustain electrodes and the outer sustain electrodes is independently controlled, and each of a plurality of voltages applied to the inner scan electrodes and the outer scan electrodes is independently controlled.

12. The plasma display panel of claim 11, wherein each of the voltages applied to the inner sustain electrodes and the outer sustain electrodes during address discharge prevents the diffusion of the address discharge from the inner sustain electrodes towards the outer sustain electrodes, and wherein each of the voltages applied to the inner scan electrodes and the outer scan electrodes during the address discharge prevents the diffusion of the address discharge from the inner scan electrodes towards the outer scan electrodes.

13. The plasma display panel of claim 11, wherein each of the voltages applied to the inner sustain electrodes and the outer sustain electrodes during sustain discharge after the address discharge allows the diffusion of the sustain discharge from the inner sustain electrodes towards the outer sustain electrode, and wherein each of the voltages applied to the inner scan electrodes and the outer scan electrodes during sustain discharge after the address discharge allows the diffusion of the sustain discharge from the inner scan electrodes towards the outer scan electrodes.