Lowering the ignition voltage by the dual microhollow cathode configuration for multichannel flat panel lamp

We have developed a dual microhollow cathode configuration, employing one power supply circuit with a resistor that is suitable for lamp starting without additional power supplier. We also investigated their electrical characteristics and photo images, varying the applied voltage. The electrical and optical measurements showed that the discharge passed through four distinct stages: no discharges, the first microhollow cathode discharges, the both of the first and second microhollow cathode discharges, and finally the main discharge. As a result, the Vs and Es p of a dual microhollow configuration were lower by a factor of about 2 than those of a diode at 40 Torr. We have also observed that the parallel operation can be possible with a single resistor in nine channels flat panel lamp.