The effects of the evaporation rate of MgO films using an electron beam on the MgO properties and the discharge characteristics of a plasma display panel (PDP) were investigated and analyzed. MgO films were deposited with the various MgO evaporation rates. The MgO properties such as the crystal orientation, the surface roughness, and the film structure were inspected using XRD (X-ray diffraction), AFM (atomic force microscopy). From the experiments and Paschen law, the maximum value of the secondary electron emission coefficient $({gamma})$ was obtained at the evaporation rate of $5{AA}/sec$. The XRD results and cathode-luminescence (CL) spectra show the ${gamma}$ values are correlated with F/F+ centers of the molecular structure of MgO films. The minimum firing voltage and the maximum luminous efficiency were obtained at an evaporation rate of $5{AA}/sec$. In the MgO film deposited at $5{AA}/sec$, the (200) orientation and F+ center were most intensive.