Low-power-consumption flat-panel light-emitting device driven by field-emission electron source using high-crystallinity single-walled carbon nanotubes

Thin electrode films assembled through a wet process using single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) are expected to play a role in reducing power consumption and saving energy in field-emission electron sources. The flat-panel light-emitting device for this study featured a line-sequential-scanning-type electrode structure equipped with electrodes for on-and-off controls of electron emissions, on which high-crystallinity SWCNTs were uniformly distributed. The device successfully emitted electrons on the flat panel in a stable manner. A technology for amplifying the luminance output by controlling the persistence characteristics of a fluorescent screen was also successfully developed. By combining such elemental technologies, a flat-panel light-emission device, as a stand-alone planar lighting device, which achieves a high-luminance efficiency of 87 lm/W and energy-conserved driving, was assembled for the first time in the world. The creation of field-emission electron sources driven with ultralow power consumption, along with applications that utilize such devices, is expected in the future. (C) 2017 The Japan Society of Applied Physics