# US 12,193,262 B2 · Display apparatus

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- Number: US 12,193,262 B2
- Document ID: US12193262B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 16/997,101
- Filed: 2020-08-19
- Published: 2021-03-04
- Granted: 2025-01-07
- Earliest claimed: 2019-09-03
- Assignees: Samsung Display Co., Ltd.
- Applicants: Samsung Display Co., Ltd.
- Inventors: Sunho Kim; Sunhee Lee; Gunhee Kim; Hyun Kim
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12193262B2

## CPC

- H10K 59/8723: {Vertical spacers, e.g. arranged between the sealing arrangement and the OLED}
- H10K 59/122: Pixel-defining structures or layers, e.g. banks
- H10K 59/8731: {multilayered coatings having a repetitive structure, e.g. having multiple organic-inorganic bilayers}
- H10K 59/131: Interconnections, e.g. wiring lines or terminals
- H10K 77/111: {Flexible substrates}
- H10K 2102/311: {Flexible OLED}
- H10K 2102/351: {Thickness}
- H10K: ORGANIC ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES

## Abstract

A display apparatus includes a substrate having a display area and a peripheral area surrounding the display area. Display elements are arranged in the display area. A spacer is disposed between the display elements and includes a lateral side having a first slope. A thin film encapsulation layer covers the display area and includes a buffer encapsulation layer, an inorganic, encapsulation layer, an organic encapsulation layer, and a composite encapsulation layer sequentially stacked on one another. The composite encapsulation layer includes a plurality of sub-layers stacked on each other. Each of the sub-layers has a thickness that is less than a thickness of the inorganic encapsulation layer. An upper surface of the buffer encapsulation layer has a second slope that is smaller than the first slope. The second slope overlaps the first slope in a direction of a thickness of the substrate.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A display apparatus comprising:
a substrate including a display area and a peripheral area surrounding the display area;
display elements arranged in the display area;
a spacer disposed between the display elements, the spacer including a lateral side having a first slope; and
a thin film encapsulation layer covering the display area, the thin film encapsulation layer comprising a buffer encapsulation layer, an inorganic encapsulation layer, an organic encapsulation layer, and a composite encapsulation layer sequentially stacked on one another,
wherein the composite encapsulation layer comprises a plurality of sub-layers stacked on each other, each of the sub-layers has a thickness that is less than a thickness of the inorganic encapsulation layer,
wherein an upper surface of the buffer encapsulation layer has a second slope that is smaller than the first slope, the second slope overlapping the first slope in a direction of a thickness of the substrate.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The display apparatus of claim 1, wherein a modulus of the composite encapsulation layer is less than a modulus of the inorganic encapsulation layer.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The display apparatus of claim 2, wherein the modulus of the composite encapsulation layer is in a range of about 5% to about 20% of the modulus of the inorganic encapsulation layer.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The display apparatus of claim 1, wherein the buffer encapsulation layer comprises an organic-inorganic hybrid material.

### Claim 5 (depends on 4)

The display apparatus of claim 4, wherein the buffer encapsulation layer comprises silicon oxide that includes carbon.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The display apparatus of claim 1, wherein:
1 dyad is a stack structure of a first sub-layer and a second sub-layer, the first sub-layer and the second sub-layer comprising different materials or different composition ratios from each other; and
the composite encapsulation layer comprises 1.5 dyads to 10 dyads.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The display apparatus of claim 1, further comprising:
a capping layer disposed between the display elements and the thin film encapsulation layer,
wherein the capping layer comprises a refractive index of about 1.6 to about 3.

### Claim 8 (depends on 1)

The display apparatus of claim 1, further comprising an inorganic barrier layer disposed between the display elements and the buffer encapsulation layer,
wherein the inorganic barrier layer has a thickness that is less than the thickness of the inorganic encapsulation layer.

### Claim 9 (depends on 8)

The display apparatus of claim 8, wherein the thickness of the inorganic barrier layer is in a range of about 500 Å to about 1000 Å.

### Claim 10

A display apparatus comprising:
a substrate including a display area and a peripheral area surrounding the display area;
display elements arranged in the display area; and
a thin film encapsulation layer covering the display area, the thin film encapsulation layer comprising an inorganic encapsulation layer, an organic encapsulation layer, and a composite encapsulation layer sequentially stacked on one another,
wherein the composite encapsulation layer comprises a plurality of sub-layers stacked on each other and a thickness of the composite encapsulation layer is less than a thickness of the inorganic encapsulation layer, wherein at least one sub-layer of the plurality of sub-layers includes an organic-inorganic hybrid material.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

The display apparatus of claim 10, wherein:
the thin film encapsulation layer further comprises a buffer encapsulation layer disposed between the display elements and the inorganic encapsulation layer,
wherein the buffer encapsulation layer comprises an organic material or an organic-inorganic hybrid material.

### Claim 12 (depends on 11)

The display apparatus of claim 11, wherein the buffer encapsulation layer comprises SiOxCyHz,
wherein x>0, y>0, and z≥0.

### Claim 13 (depends on 10)

The display apparatus of claim 10, further comprising:
a capping layer disposed between the display elements and the thin film encapsulation layer,
wherein the capping layer comprises a refractive index of about 1.6 to about 3.

### Claim 14 (depends on 13)

The display apparatus of claim 13, further comprising:
a protection layer disposed between the capping layer and the thin film encapsulation layer, the protection layer comprising an inorganic material,
wherein a refractive index of the protection layer is less than the refractive index of the capping layer.

### Claim 15 (depends on 10)

The display apparatus of claim 10, wherein:
the plurality of sub-layers includes a first sub-layer and a second sub-layer alternately stacked on each other,
wherein the first sub-layer comprises an inorganic film and the second sub-layer comprises an organic-inorganic hybrid material.

### Claim 16

A flexible display apparatus comprising:
a flexible substrate including a display area and a peripheral area surrounding the display area;
display elements arranged in the display area;
a spacer disposed between the display elements, the spacer including a lateral side having a first slope; and
a thin film encapsulation layer covering the display area, the thin film encapsulation layer including a buffer encapsulation layer disposed above the display area and an inorganic encapsulation layer disposed above the buffer encapsulation layer, the buffer encapsulation layer comprising an organic-inorganic hybrid material;
wherein an upper surface of the buffer encapsulation layer has a second slope that is smaller than the first slope, the second slope overlapping the first slope in a direction of a thickness of the substrate.