Addressing structure using ionizable gaseous medium
US4896149A · kind A · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jan 19, 1988 |
| Grant date | Jan 23, 1990 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jan 19, 2008 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG11C27/024
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
An addressing structure uses an ionizable gas to address data storage elements (16) defined by the overlapping areas of multiple column electrodes (18) on a first substrate (48) and multiple channels (20) on a second substrate (54). A layer of dielectric material (46) separates the first and second substrates. Each of the channels is filled with the ionizable gas and includes a reference potential electrode that receives a data drive signal and a row electrode that receives a data strobe signal. For each storage element, the ionizable gas functions as an electrical switch that changes between a conducting or plasma state and a nonconducting or de-ionized state in response to an applied data strobe signal. The ionizable gas functions to either store data in or read data out of the storage element. Data are read out by switching the ionizable gas between nonconducting and conducting states to, respectively, first normalize the voltage across an integrating capacitor (118) and then develop across it a voltage proportional to that of the data drive signal previously stored by the storage element. The data stored in all of the storage elements can be quickly erased by applying ground po…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.