Display device with plasma discharge propagating delay line read-in

Claim 1

A DISPLAY DEVICE COMPRISING: A HOUSING HAVING AN ELECTRICALLY CONDUCTIVE TRANSPARENT WALL ALONG A PORTION THEREOF, SAID HOUSING CONTAINING A GASEOUS MEDIUM CAPABLE OF SUSTAINING PLASMA DISCHARGE, A PLURALITY OF ELECTRODES MOUNTED IN SAID HOUSING IN A PLANE SPACED FROM SAID TRANSPARENT WALL, AN ELECTRICALLY CONDUCTIVE ELEMENT, MEANS FOR PROVIDING ELECTRICAL RESISTANCE BETWEEN EACH OF SAID ELECTRODES AND SAID ELECTRICALLY CONDUCTIVE ELEMENT, ELECTRICALLY CONDUCTIVE MEANS MOUNTED WITHIN SAID HOUSING BETWEEN SAID ELECTRODES AND SAID TRANSPARENT WALL AND DEFINING A PLURALITY OF APERTURES ALIGNED WITH RESPECTIVE ONES OF SAID ELECTRODES, MEANS FOR APPLYING BETWEEN SAID ELECTRICALLY CONDUCTIVE ELEMENT AND SAID ELECTRICALLY CONDUCTIVE MEANS A FIRST VOLTAGE OF A MAGNITUDE LESS THAN THE IONIZATION POTENTIAL OF SAID GASEOUS MEDIUM, MEANS FOR APPLYING BETWEEN ONE OF SAID ELECTRODES AND SAID ELECTRICALLY CONDUCTIVE MEANS A SECOND VOLTAGE SUFFICIENT TO INITIATE PLASMA DISCHAGE IN A REGION OF SAID GASEOUS MEDIUM BETWEEN SAID ONE ELECTRODE AND SAID ELECTRICALLY CONDUCTIVE MEANS, WHEREBY SAID PLASMA DISCHARGE PROPAGATES TO REGIONS OF SAID GASEOUS MEDIUM BETWEEN OTHER ONES OF SAID ELECTRODES AND SAID ELECTRICALLY CONDUCTIVE MEANS, AND MEANS FOR APPLYING BETWEEN SAID ELECTRICALLY CONDUCTIVE TRANSPARENT WALL AND SAID ELECTRICALLY CONDUCTIVE MEANS A THIRD VOLTAGE SUFFICIENT TO DEVELOP PLASMA DISCHARGE IN A REGION OF SAID GASEOUS MEDIUM BETWEEN SAID ELECTRICALLY CONDUCTIVE MEANS AND SAID TRANSPARENT WALL WHICH IS COUPLED VIA ONE OF SAID APERTURES TO A REGION OF SAID GASEOUS MEDIUM IN WHICH PLASMA DISCHARGE EXISTS AT THE TIME OF APPLICATION OF SAID THIRD VOLTAGE.