The invention pertains to an alternating type of plasma panel. Each pixel is defined by three parallel and coplanar electrodes and by an electrode which is perpendicular to the other three electrodes and is separated from the other three electrodes by at least one dielectric layer. Two of the three parallel electrodes are connected to circuits giving the refresh signals to each pixel during operation. The electrode perpendicular to the other three and that electrode, of the other three parallel electrodes, which is not connected to a refresh circuit, are connected to circuits that give addressing signals to each pixel during operation. The electrodes that are connected to the refresh circuits constitute two arrays of electrodes connected to two refresh circuits.

A gas discharge display system utilizing matrix discharge logic utilizing bulk writing of selected block or matrix area on a display panel. Panels incorporated in the invention are constructed to operate by matrix discharge logic whereby each information display site in a panel is constituted by at least a pair of positionally related cell sides, each cell side being positionally related to the other of the cell sides such that when the related side is off or has been erased, it will be written or rewritten by influence of the positional relationship to the related side, these sites being supplied with operating potentials by circuit means provided for bulk writing information to a selected block of display sites in the panel.

In a gas discharge display element according to the present invention, two pairs of electrodes are arranged in a discharge space of a display cell and one of the electrode pairs which forms a first discharge space between the first electrodes is driven such that discharge having a memory function and capable of being memory-driven is produced during a time in which light emission of the display cell is sustained. The other electrode pair is driven with a voltage pulse having duration smaller than that of the driving voltage pulse for the first electrode pair such that discharge a is obtained in the other space defined between the electrodes of the other electrode pair using the discharge in the first space as a seed discharge. The duration of the drive pulse for the second electrode pair preferably terminates before the discharge current is reduced due to the formation of a wall charge.

A plasma display panel has twin X and twin Y orthogonal drive lines in place of the single X and single Y drive lines of prior art panels. Each pair of twin drive lines are in close proximity and spaced a relatively much greater distance from the next pair. The dielectric layer covering the drive lines is sufficiently thick to cause the voltage potentials on the twin drive lines to image as one potential on the surface of the dielectric. Each one of the twin drive lines is connected to a selection line such that the raising of any two X selection lines and two Y selection lines produces a write-erase potential on a particular gas cell.

The display panel comprises a gas-filled envelope, made up of a hermetically sealed base plate and face plate, which includes electrodes disposed to form a dot matrix array of cell regions. The array of cell regions includes D. C. cells in which the electrodes are in contact with the gas, and A. C. cells which are insulated from the gas. The electrodes are disposed both on the base plate of the panel and the face plate, and each cell region includes both a D. C. cell and an A. C. cell which cooperate to provide the desired operation. In operation of the panel, sustaining pulses are applied to the A. C. portion of a cell region, with the potential of the sustaining pulses being insufficient in amplitude to cause glow. The A. C. cells are caused to produce visible glow by first causing the D. C. cells associated therewith to glow, and then the glow of the A. C. cells is sustained by the sustaining pulses.