MgO thin films as a protective layer in plasma display panels (PDPs) were
deposited by an advanced ion-plating (AIP) apparatus that we had developed.
The AIP method enables plasma operation at low-pressures of 10−3
Pa. The MgO thin films were mainly (111) oriented with a small amount of
randomly oriented textures. The preferred orientation of the films was
dependent on deposition conditions; oxygen content and substrate
temperature. Fine columnar structures grew with sharp apexes at the film
surface. Secondary electron emission coefficient from a film deposited by
the AIP method was higher than that by a conventional electron beam
evaporation method. The MgO protective layer could be expected to improve
PDPs by our AIP deposition.