A liquidic matrix-addressed display

Experiments with fluid logic circuits operated in an air-dyed water mode have demonstrated the basic validity of a large area, flat panel, matrix-addressed liquidic display. Such a display is conceptually attractive, since the switching, storage, and display functions are performed by the same medium. The measurements made have demonstrated that a reflective or emissive liquidic display, matrix addressed "a line at a time," has the following advantages: a flat panel geometry, a wide viewing angle, TV or better resolution, high contrast and brightness, a gray scale and color capability, speed (for TV resolution) from dc up to 3 frames/s, a range of sizes from small up to blackboard or larger, permanent memory, and high thermal, radiation, and shock resistance. The power requirements are less than (0.015/τ) W/cm²of display area, where τ is the frame time in seconds. Most importantly, the liquidic display can be constructed in a cheap integrated form. An elemental integrated liquidic display has been built with laminated layers of photoformed ceramic and has been successfully operated. Measurements made on the deflection of a fine stream of water (a polar liquid) by a nonuniform electric field have shown that this dielectrophoretic effect forms an elegant low-voltage transducer for the liquidic display. Such a transducer can be used on the periphery of a fluidically addressed matrix. Alternatively, because of its simplicity, it is feasible to have a threshold transducer at each element and electrically matrix address the transducers.