·ACTFEL –
alternating current thin film electroluminescence; gives off light when
influenced by electrical
current.
·Electroluminescence – the direct conversion of electrical energy into
light.
·Thin layer
- a very thin deposition of a colloidal
substance (phosphor, dielectric, silver) onto the ITO coated glass plate.
·ITO – Indium
Tin Oxide (In203:Sn02) A thin
layer of indium oxide that has been doped with tin; transparent, conductive coating on glass
plate.
·Phosphor –
powders made of materials such as zinc sulfide, doped with either copper or manganese to achieve the emission colors when exposed to
an electric field.
·Dielectric layer – an insulating layer that serves to even out the electric field across
the phosphor layer and
prevents short circuits. The dielectric
in this case is barium titanate.
·Electrodes –
form the plates of the capacitor; one front electrode of transparent ITO and one back electrode of silver.
·
·Acknowledgements
·Initial development of this lab activity was performed
by James Dizikes and Lloyd Bumm with
the support of a Nanotechnology Undergraduate Education program grant.
NSF DMR-0304664
·