Abstract: A spacer (200) for a field emission display (201) is disclosed. The spacer (200) includes a lower resistive region (220) and an upper insulative region (222). The spacer (200) has a member (210) which is coated with a resistive coating (212) extending between the lower end of the member and a height (h.sub.2) less than the total height (h.sub.1) of the spacer (200). An insulative coating (218) is formed on the member (210) and extends between the upper end of the resistive coating (212) and the upper end of the member (210). The resistive coating (212) has a secondary electron yield less than 2 over the lower resistive region (220) of the spacer (200). The insulative coating (218) has a secondary electron yield between 0.75-2 over the upper insulative region (222) of the spacer (200).