US 11,690,254 B2Granted

Methods of fabricating OLED panel with inorganic pixel encapsulating barrier

AssigneeApplied Materials, Inc.

InventorsJi Young Choung, Dieter Haas, Yu-hsin Lin, Jungmin Lee, Seong Ho Yoo, Si Kyoung Kim

Life of this patent

Estimating the term…

Loading patent…

Abstract

Embodiments described herein relate to sub-pixel circuits and methods of forming sub-pixel circuits that may be utilized in a display such as an organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display. The device includes a plurality of sub-pixels, each sub-pixel of the plurality of sub-pixels defined by adjacent pixel-defining layer (PDL) structures with inorganic overhang structures disposed on the PDL structures, each sub-pixel having an anode, organic light-emitting diode (OLED) material disposed on the anode, and a cathode disposed on the OLED material. The device is made by a process including the steps of: depositing the OLED material and the cathode by evaporation deposition, and depositing an encapsulation layer disposed over the cathode.

Claims30

Dependent claims

A method of forming a device, comprising:

positioning a substrate having:
an anode,
a first opening of a first sub-pixel defined by adjacent first inorganic overhang structures disposed over adjacent pixel-defining layer (PDL) structures disposed over the substrate;
depositing, at an OLED angle θOLED defined using the first inorganic overhang structures, a first OLED material over a first portion and a second portion of the substrate, the first portion corresponding to the first sub-pixel and the second portion corresponding to a second sub-pixel;
depositing, at a cathode angle θcathode defined using the first inorganic overhang structures, a first cathode over the first portion and the second portion of the substrate, wherein the first inorganic overhang structures are used in defining deposition angles of the OLED angle θOLED and the cathode angle θcathode;
depositing a first encapsulation layer over the first cathode and over the first portion and the second portion of the substrate such that the first sub-pixel comprises:
the first OLED material having an OLED edge extending under first and second extensions of an upper portion of the first inorganic overhang structures;
and
the first cathode extending under the first and second extensions of the upper portion of the first inorganic overhang structures and past the OLED edge;
and
removing the first OLED material, the first cathode, and the first encapsulation layer over the second portion.

8 more elements

A method of forming a device, comprising:

positioning a substrate having:
an anode,
a first opening of a first sub-pixel defined by adjacent first inorganic overhang structures disposed over pixel-defining layer (PDL) structures disposed over the substrate;
depositing, at an OLED angle θOLED defined using the first inorganic overhang structures, a first OLED material over a first portion and a second portion of the substrate, the first portion corresponding to the first sub-pixel and the second portion corresponding to a second sub-pixel;
depositing, at a cathode angle θcathode defined using the first inorganic overhang structures, a first cathode over the first portion and the second portion of the substrate, wherein the first inorganic overhang structures are used in defining deposition angles of the OLED angle θOLED and the cathode angle θcathode;
depositing a first encapsulation layer over the first cathode and over the first portion and the second portion of the substrate such that the first sub-pixel comprises:
the first OLED material, having an OLED edge extending under first and second extensions of an upper portion of the first inorganic overhang structures;
the first cathode extending under the first and second extensions of the upper portion of the first inorganic overhang structures and past the OLED edge,
the first cathode having a cathode edge contacting a lower portion of one of the first inorganic overhang structures;
and
the first encapsulation layer over the first cathode of the first sub-pixel, wherein the first encapsulation layer extends:
to contact a first composition at first and second sidewalls of the lower portion of the first inorganic overhang structures of the first sub-pixel;
to contact a second composition of the upper portion of the first inorganic overhang structures at an underside surface of the first and second extensions of the first inorganic overhang structures of the first sub-pixel;
and
over at least a first portion of an uppermost surface of the upper portion of the first inorganic overhang structures of the first sub-pixel;
removing the first OLED material, the first cathode, and the first encapsulation layer over the second portion.

13 more elements

A method of forming a device, comprising:

positioning a substrate having:
an anode,
a first opening of a first sub-pixel defined by adjacent first inorganic overhang structures disposed over pixel-defining layer (PDL) structures disposed over the substrate;
and
a second opening of a second sub-pixel defined by adjacent second inorganic overhang structures disposed over the PDL structures;
depositing, at an OLED angle θOLED defined using the first inorganic overhang structures, a first OLED material over a first portion and a second portion of the substrate, the first portion corresponding to the first sub-pixel and the second portion corresponding to the second sub-pixel;
and
depositing, at a cathode angle θcathode defined using the first inorganic overhang structures, a first cathode over the first portion and the second portion of the substrate, wherein the first inorganic overhang structures are used in defining deposition angles of the OLED angle θOLED and the cathode angle θcathode;
depositing a first encapsulation layer over the first cathode and over the first portion and the second portion of the substrate such that the first sub-pixel comprises:
the first OLED material, having an OLED edge extending under first and second extensions of an upper portion of the first inorganic overhang structures;
the first cathode, as deposited according to the cathode angle θcathode defined by the first inorganic overhang structures, extending under the first and second extensions of the upper portion of the first inorganic overhang structures and past the OLED edge;
and
the first encapsulation layer over the first cathode;
and
removing the first OLED material, the first cathode, and the first encapsulation layer over the second portion.

12 more elements

A method of forming a device, comprising:

positioning a substrate having:
an anode,
a first opening of a first sub-pixel defined by adjacent first inorganic overhang structures disposed over adjacent pixel-defining layer (PDL) structures disposed over the substrate, each of the first inorganic overhang structures comprising:
an upper portion of the first inorganic overhang structures comprising a first inorganic material, wherein the first inorganic material is conductive or nonconductive;
a lower portion of the first inorganic overhang structures comprising a second inorganic material, wherein the second inorganic material is conductive or nonconductive;
and
one of:
a first cathode extending under an underside edge of the upper portion and contacting the second inorganic material of a first composition of the lower portion at one of first and second sidewalls of the lower portion;
or
an assistant cathode disposed under the lower portion, the cathode extending under the underside edge and contacting a top surface of the assistant cathode of the first composition;
depositing, at an OLED angle θOLED defined using the first inorganic overhang structures, a first OLED material over a first portion and a second portion of the substrate, the first portion corresponding to the first sub-pixel and the second portion corresponding to a second sub-pixel;
depositing, at a cathode angle θcathode defined using the first inorganic overhang structures, the first cathode over the first portion and the second portion of the substrate, wherein the first inorganic overhang structures are used in defining deposition angles of the OLED angle θOLED and the cathode angle θcathode;
depositing a first encapsulation layer over the first cathode and over the first portion and the second portion of the substrate such that the first sub-pixel comprises:
the first OLED material having an OLED edge extending under first and second extensions of the upper portion of the first inorganic overhang structures;
and
the first cathode extending under the first and second extensions of the upper portion of the first inorganic overhang structures and past the OLED edge;
and
removing the first OLED material, the first cathode, and the first encapsulation layer over the second portion.

15 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Facts

Application: 18/049,825Filed 26 Oct 2022 · continuation
Priority: 4 Sep 2020
Published: US 2023/0076050 A19 Mar 2023
Granted: 27 Jun 2023
Term ends: Not estimatedThe source records don’t support an estimate.

Classification10 codes

H10K 59/173
Passive-matrix OLED displays: comprising banks or shadow masks
H10K 50/84
Constructional details: passivation; Containers; Encapsulations
H10K 50/844
Passivation; Containers; Encapsulations: encapsulations
H10K 59/122
Active-matrix OLED [AMOLED] displays: pixel-defining structures or layers, e.g. banks

Family

Application63/075,025Us provisional application · filed 4 Sep 2020
Application63/075,028Us provisional application · filed 4 Sep 2020
Application63/084,445Us provisional application · filed 28 Sep 2020
Application17/193,347Parent of this continuation · filed 5 Mar 2021
US 2023/0076050 A1Pre-grant publication · published 9 Mar 2023
US 11,610,952 B2Related patent
US 2022/0077252 A1Published application
US 11,690,254 B2This patent

From the US filing history. Foreign family members aren’t listed.