Depositing layers in OLED devices using viscous flow

A method of depositing in a pattern an organic layer onto an OLED display substrate, comprising the steps of:

• a) providing a manifold and an OLED display substrate in a chamber at reduced pressure and spaced relative to each other;
• b) providing a structure sealingly covering one surface of the manifold, the structure including a plurality of nozzles with orifices, the nozzles extending through the structure into the manifold, and the nozzles being spaced from each other in correspondence with the pattern to be deposited onto the OLED display substrate;
• c) orienting the OLED display substrate with respect to the nozzles in the structure;
• d) vaporizing organic materials in the manifold;
• and
• e) applying an inert gas under pressure into the manifold so that the inert gas provides a viscous gas flow through each of the nozzles, such viscous gas flow transporting at least portions of the vaporized organic materials from the manifold through the nozzles to provide collimated beams of the inert gas and of the vaporized organic materials that exit the nozzles smoothly in streamlines parallel to the walls of the orifice and projecting the collimated beams onto the OLED display substrate for depositing a pattern of an organic layer on the substrate.

A method of depositing in a three-color pattern organic light-emitting layers onto an OLED display substrate, comprising the steps of:

• a) providing a manifold and an OLED display substrate in a chamber at reduced pressure and spaced relative to each other;
• b) providing a structure sealingly covering at least one surface of the manifold, the structure including a plurality of nozzles with orifices, the nozzles extending through the structure into the manifold, and the nozzles being spaced from each other in correspondence with the pattern to be deposited onto the OLED display substrate;
• c) orienting the OLED display substrate with respect to the nozzles in the structure in correspondence with a first-color pattern of a first organic light-emitting layer to be deposited on the substrate;
• d) delivering first-color forming vaporized organic light-emitting materials into the manifold;
• e) applying an inert gas under pressure into the manifold so that the inert gas provides a viscous gas flow through each of the nozzles, such viscous gas flow transporting at least portions of the first-color forming vaporized organic light-emitting materials from the manifold through the nozzles to provide collimated beams of the inert gas and of the first-color forming vaporized organic light-emitting materials and projecting the collimated beams onto the OLED display substrate for depositing a first-color pattern of the first organic light-emitting layer on the substrate;
• f) reorienting the OLED display substrate with respect to the nozzles in the structure in correspondence with a second-color pattern of a second organic light-emitting layer to be deposited on the substrate;
• g) delivering second-color forming vaporized organic light-emitting materials into the manifold;
• h) applying an inert gas under pressure into the manifold so that the inert gas provides a viscous gas flow through each of the nozzles, such viscous gas flow transporting at least portions of the second-color forming vaporized organic light-emitting materials from the manifold through the nozzles to provide collimated beams of the inert gas and of the second-color forming vaporized organic light-emitting materials and projecting the collimated beams onto the OLED display substrate for depositing a second-color pattern of the second organic light-emitting layer on the substrate;
• i) reorienting the OLED display substrate with respect to the nozzles in the structure in correspondence with a third-color pattern of a third organic light-emitting layer to be deposited on the substrate;
• j) delivering third-color forming vaporized organic light-emitting materials into the manifold;
• and
• k) applying an inert gas under pressure into the manifold so that the inert gas provides a viscous gas flow through each of the nozzles, such viscous gas flow transporting at least portions of the third-color forming vaporized organic light-emitting materials from the manifold through the nozzles to provide collimated beams of the inert gas and of the third-color forming vaporized organic light-emitting materials and projecting the collimated beams onto the OLED display substrate for depositing a third-color pattern of the third organic light-emitting layer on the substrate
• wherein the collimated beams of the inert gas and of the vaporized organic materials in each of e), h), and k) exit the nozzles smoothly in streamlines parallel to the walls of the orifice.

A method of concurrently depositing in a three-color pattern organic light-emitting layers onto an OLED display substrate, comprising the steps of:

• a) providing a manifold assembly and an OLED display substrate in a chamber at reduced pressure and spaced relative to each other, the manifold assembly including a first manifold, a second manifold, and a third manifold;
• b) providing a separate structure sealingly covering at least one surface of each one of the first, second, and third manifolds, each separate structure including a plurality of nozzles with orifices, the nozzles extending through each structure into a corresponding manifold, and the nozzles in each separate structure being spaced from each other in correspondence with the three-color pattern to be deposited onto the OLED display substrate;
• c) orienting the OLED display substrate with respect to the nozzles in one of the separate structures;
• d) delivering concurrently first-color forming vaporized organic light-emitting materials into the first manifold, second-color forming vaporized organic light-emitting materials into the second manifold, and third-color forming vaporized organic light-emitting materials into the third manifold assembly;
• and
• e) applying an inert gas under pressure concurrently into each one of the first, second, and third manifolds so that the inert gas provides a viscous gas flow through each of the plurality of nozzles in each of the separate structures, such viscous gas flow transporting concurrently at least portions of the first-color forming, second-color forming, and third-color forming vaporized organic light-emitting materials from a respectively corresponding manifold through corresponding nozzles to provide collimated beams of the inert gas and of the first-color forming, second-color forming, and third-color forming vaporized organic right-emitting materials that exit from the corresponding nozzles smoothly in streamlines parallel to the walls of the orifice and projecting the collimated beams onto the OLED display substrate for concurrently depositing a three-color pattern on the substrate.

A method of depositing in a pattern vaporized material onto a surface, comprising:

• a) providing vaporized material in a manifold of reduced pressure;
• b) providing a structure sealingly covering at least one surface of the manifold, the structure including a plurality of nozzles with orifices, the nozzles extending through the structure into the manifold, and the nozzles being spaced from each other in correspondence with the pattern to be deposited onto the surface;
• and
• c) applying an inert gas under pressure into the manifold so that the inert gas provides a viscous gas flow through each of the nozzles, such viscous gas flow transporting at least portions of the vaporized material from the manifold through the nozzles to provide collimated beams of the inert gas and of the vaporized material that exit the nozzles smoothly in streamlines parallel to the walls of the orifice and projecting the collimated beams onto the at least one surface thereby depositing organic material on the least one surface.

A method of simultaneously depositing in a pattern organic material onto an OLED display substrate, comprising:

• a) providing a plurality of manifolds relative to an OLED substrate in a chamber at reduced pressure and spaced relative to each other;
• b) providing a structure sealingly covering at least one surface of each of the manifolds, the structure including a plurality of nozzles with orifices, the nozzles extending through the structure into the manifold, and the nozzles being spaced from each other in correspondence with the pattern to be deposited onto the OLED display substrate;
• c) providing different vaporized organic materials into each manifold;
• and
• d) applying an inert gas under pressure into the manifolds so that the inert gas provides a viscous gas flow through each of the nozzles, such viscous gas flow transporting at least portions of the vaporized organic light-emitting materials from the manifolds through the nozzles to provide collimated beams of the inert gas and of the vaporized organic light-emitting materials that exit the nozzles smoothly in streamlines parallel to the walls of the orifice and projecting the collimated beams onto the OLED display substrate for depositing a pattern of an organic light-emitting layer on the substrate.