Gas-Discharge Indicators

gas-filled devices for the visual reproduction of data. The luminescence of a glow-discharge cathode is used in gas-discharge indicators. They have high reliability and durability (up to 10,000 hrs), great intensity (hundreds to thousands of nits), and low input.

A distinction is made among signal indicators, in which the data are presented in the form of a point or small glowing area (neon indicator tubes and indicators of low voltage levels); character displays, in which the data are displayed in the form of various characters formed by glow electrodes that have separate terminals; linear (analog and discrete) displays, in which the data are displayed in the form of a glowing column, whose length is proportional to the intensity of the current flowing through the device, or in the form of a luminous point, whose position is determined by the number of pulses supplied to the input of the unit controlling the operation of the indicator; and matrix indicators, in which the data are displayed in the form of a series of luminous points on a flat screen consisting of several tens of thousands of gas-discharge cells forming a matrix of rows and columns.