Display apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10121844-B2
Application number	US-201715430095-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Feb 10, 2017
Priority date	Mar 22, 2016
Publication date	Nov 6, 2018
Grant date	Nov 6, 2018

Abstract

A display apparatus includes a substrate; a plurality of display units on the substrate, each including a thin film transistor including at least one inorganic layer, a passivation layer on the thin film transistor, and a display device electrically connected to the thin film transistor; and a plurality of encapsulation layers respectively encapsulating the plurality of display units. The substrate includes a plurality of islands spaced apart, a plurality of connection units connecting the plurality of islands, and a plurality of through holes penetrating through the substrate between the plurality of connection units. The plurality of display units are on the plurality of islands, respectively. The at least one inorganic layer and the passivation layer extend on the plurality of connection units. The passivation layer includes a trench exposing the at least one inorganic layer. The encapsulation layer contacts the at least one inorganic layer exposed via the trench.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A display apparatus comprising:
a substrate;
a plurality of display units disposed on the substrate, each of the plurality of display units comprising a thin film transistor including at least one inorganic layer, a passivation layer disposed on the thin film transistor, and a display device electrically connected to the thin film transistor; and
a plurality of encapsulation layers respectively encapsulating the plurality of display units,
wherein the substrate comprises a plurality of islands spaced apart from one another, a plurality of connection units that are connecting the plurality of islands to one another, and a plurality of through holes penetrating through the substrate between the plurality of connection units,
wherein the plurality of display units are disposed on the plurality of islands, respectively,
wherein the at least one inorganic layer and the passivation layer extend on the plurality of connection units,
wherein the passivation layer comprises a trench that exposes a portion of the at least one inorganic layer, and
wherein the encapsulation layer contacts an exposed portion of the at least one inorganic layer via the trench.

2. The display apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the trench is disposed on a connection unit of the plurality of connection units.

3. The display apparatus of claim 2 , wherein the trench extends across a width of the connection unit and is aligned with a lateral surface of an island of the plurality of islands.

4. The display apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the trench is on an island of the plurality of islands and completely surrounds a display unit of the plurality of display units.

5. The display apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the at least one inorganic layer comprises a first insulating layer between an active layer and a gate electrode of the thin film transistor, and a second insulating layer disposed on the gate electrode, and
wherein the trench exposes a portion of the first insulating layer or the second insulating layer.

6. The display apparatus of claim 1 , wherein each of the encapsulation layer contacts a lateral surface of an island of the plurality of islands.

7. The display apparatus of claim 1 , wherein each of the encapsulation layer comprises at least one of tin fluorophosphates glass, chalcogenide glass, tellurite glass, borate glass, and phosphate glass.

8. The display apparatus of claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of encapsulation layers comprises at least one inorganic layer and at least one organic layer, and
wherein the at least one inorganic layer contacts an exposed portion of the at least one inorganic layer of the thin film transistor via the trench.

9. The display apparatus of claim 8 , wherein at least one of the at least one inorganic layer and the at least one organic layer comprises silicon oxide comprising carbon and hydrogen.

10. The display apparatus of claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of encapsulation layers comprises a first inorganic layer, a second inorganic layer, and an organic layer between the first inorganic layer and the second inorganic layer, and
wherein at least one of the first inorganic layer and the second inorganic layer contacts a lateral surface of an island of the plurality of islands and contacts an exposed portion of the at least one inorganic layer of the thin film transistor via the trench.

11. The display apparatus of claim 10 , wherein a connection unit of the plurality of connection units comprises flexures disposed on at least a portion of the connection unit, and the second inorganic layer disposed on the first inorganic layer extends over the flexures.

12. The display apparatus of claim 10 , wherein each of the plurality of display units comprises a display region and a non-display region around the display region, and a dam unit surrounding at least a portion of the display region is disposed in the non-display region, and
wherein the first inorganic layer and the second inorganic layer cover the dam unit and contact each other around the dam unit.

13. The display apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the thin film transistor comprises an active layer, a gate electrode, a source electrode, and a drain electrode,
wherein the display device comprises a first electrode, a second electrode, and an intermediate layer comprising an organic emission layer between the first electrode and the second electrode,
wherein the first electrode extends from one of the source electrode and the drain electrode, and
wherein each of the plurality of display units further comprises a color filter comprising a portion overlapped by the first electrode.

14. The display apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of islands and the plurality of connection units are one body.

15. The display apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of islands are repeated in a first direction and a second direction that is different from the first direction,
wherein four connection units are connected to each of the plurality of islands, and
wherein four connection units connected to one island from among the plurality of islands extend in different directions and are respectively connected to four adjacent islands that surround the one island.

16. The display apparatus of claim 15 , wherein the four connection units comprise a pair of first connection units on opposite sides of the one island and each extending in the first direction, and a pair of second connection units on opposite sides of the one island and each extending in the second direction,
wherein a first wiring unit is disposed on the two first connection units, and a second wiring unit is disposed on the two second connection units, and
wherein the first wiring unit and the second wiring unit cross on the one island.

17. The display apparatus of claim 16 , wherein the first wiring unit comprises a region curved in the second direction along a through hole of the plurality of through holes, and
wherein the second wiring unit comprises a region curved in the first direction along the through hole.

18. The display apparatus of claim 16 , wherein the thin film transistor comprises an active layer, a gate electrode, a source electrode, and a drain electrode, and
wherein the source electrode, the drain electrode, the first wiring unit, and the second wiring unit comprise a same material.

19. The display apparatus of claim 16 , wherein the first wiring unit comprises a first voltage line, a second voltage line, and at least one data line, and
wherein the second wiring unit comprises at least one scan line.

20. The display apparatus of claim 19 , wherein the display device comprises a first electrode, a second electrode, and an intermediate layer between the first electrode and the second electrode and comprising an organic emission layer,
wherein the first voltage line electrically connects first electrodes respectively included in the plurality of display units, and
wherein the second voltage line electrically connects second electrodes respectively included in the plurality of display units.

21. The display apparatus of claim 15 , wherein two adjacent islands among the plurality of islands are connected to each other by one connection unit, and
wherein each of the two adjacent islands connected to the one connection unit and a direction in which the one connection unit extends make an acute angle.

22. The display apparatus of claim 21 , wherein each of the plurality of islands has a

Assignees

• Samsung Display Co Ltd

Inventors

• Park Gyungsoon
• Kim Ilgon
• Jeong Minjae

Classifications

• Y02E10/549

  Organic PV cells · CPC title

• H01L51/5253

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L2251/5338

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L27/326

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L51/5237

  Electricity · mapped topic