Coplanar Capillary Plasma Electrode Discharge Flat-Panel Lamps Based on Porous Anodic Alumina

A coplanar capillary plasma electrode discharge is a promising source owing to its superior performance. In this study, a coplanar capillary plasma electrode discharge flat-panel plasma lamp fabricated from porous anodic alumina and glass was designed to investigate its properties. Coplanar capillary plasma electrode discharge flat-panel lamps with porous anodic alumina dielectric layers were fabricated and investigated. Changing of the frequency and voltage of the power supply and altering of the thickness of the dielectric layers and the interval distance of the electrode were carried out to optimize the performance of the lamps by decreasing the spark-ignition voltage and enhancing the luminous efficacy. The luminance can exceed 7200 Cd/m2 and the white light flux efficacy is more than 4.92 lm/W. The discharge process of capillary plasma electrode discharge was modeled and simulated using COMSOL Multiphysics. The electron density and temperature were also analyzed. The results show that small plasma jets were produced at the pores of the porous anodic alumina, which helped stabilize the plasma. The voltage in the gas gap changes sharply with the geometry of the porous anodic alumina dielectric layer, leading to a higher electric field. The spark-ignition voltage decreased. Small plasma jets increase the plasma uniformity. The electron density and electron temperature reach approximately 1.94 × 108 m3 and 3.34 eV, respectively. A high electric field intensity produced at the porous anodic alumina validated the promising potential in related fields.