Plasma Displays are becoming very popular as improved display technology is needed to take advantage of broadband networks and Hi-definition broadcast format.

Plasma is essentially an ionised gas. The inert or non-reactive gases such as argon or neon are used in displays.

When an electric current is applied to an inert gas, photons that produce ultraviolet light are released.

The photons,then interact with red, green or blue phosphors, or the combination to produce visible light in each of the hundreds of thousands of pixels. The intensity and brightness of the light is adjusted by the pulse of the current applied.

Much like a combination of flourescent and neon lighting.

The number pixels determines the resolution,The greater the number of pixels, the higher resolution, and each pixel is activated in this manner,

As each pixel is indivually activated, there are no visible scan lines,and a smooth evenly lit image across display surface is created.

There may be a couple of drawbacks to plasma, such as burn-in, which happens when a still image is shown for so long that a "ghost" image appears to remain on the screen.

Manufacturers are now adding screensavers and other technologies to prevent burn-in.

Another disadvantage that is being improved is the lifespan in viewing hours, before dimming to half brightness. Typically, plasmas would last for around 30000 hours, though this number varies among manufacturers and is steadily improving.

Plasmas are gaining in popularity,and is expected to account for 41 percent of the large screen display market, which is expected to grow to $5.5 billion by 2007. Expected revenues are expected to be around $2.27 billion. The competition among manufacturers appears be heading in the direction of who can produce the largest as Samsung SDI has developed what it claims is the world's largest PDP (plasma display panel), measuring 102 inches diagonally.

It may be that technological improvements may not be as cost effective when compared with other technologies such as LCD's. A great disadvantage is power consumption, and PDP's should be professionally installed due to their fragile nature.

Because of the wide viewing 160 angle, that is presented, plasmas are best viewed when installed on a wall.

Since each pixel is individually lit, the opportunity for light and dark areas is greatly reduced and higher contrast ratios, which is the measure of the blackest black compared to the whitest white, can be achieved. While this can limit a plasma's gray scaling, it does produce darker blacks.

The jury is still out on whether the problems facing plasma technology, such as lifespan and power consumption can be overcome and other technologies are to become more cost effective. The technology may have reached it cost effective limit, as some maufacturers are discontinuing production beyond 2007.

These factors should be taken into consideration, when making a purchasing decision.

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