Display device including sensor area with light-blocking layer

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11469278-B2
Application number	US-202016921397-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 6, 2020
Priority date	Jul 26, 2019
Publication date	Oct 11, 2022
Grant date	Oct 11, 2022

Abstract

A display device is provided including a display area and a non-display area located on a periphery of the display area. The display area includes a sensor area for an optical sensor and a non-sensor area. The display device includes a substrate portion, a thin film transistor (TFT) layer disposed over an entire surface of the substrate portion, and a light emitting diode (LED) disposed on the TFT layer. The TFT layer includes at least one TFT. A thickness of the substrate portion in the sensor area is smaller than a thickness of the substrate portion in the non-sensor area.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A display device including a display area and a non-display area located on a periphery of the display area, the display area including a sensor area for an optical sensor and a non-sensor area, the display device comprising:
a substrate portion;
a light-blocking layer disposed in the sensor area on the substrate portion;
a thin film transistor (TFT) layer disposed over an entire surface of the substrate portion and comprising at least one TFT; and
a light emitting diode (LED) disposed on the TFT layer,
wherein the substrate portion comprises a first substrate and a second substrate facing the first substrate,
at least one of the first substrate and the second substrate comprises an opening in the sensor area of the substrate portion, and
a thickness of the substrate portion in the sensor area is smaller than a thickness of the substrate portion in the non-sensor area.

2. The display device of claim 1 , wherein the substrate portion further comprises a first barrier layer disposed between the first substrate and the second substrate, and the first substrate includes a first flexible substrate and the second substrate includes a second flexible substrate.

3. The display device of claim 2 , wherein the first flexible substrate comprises a through hole passing therethrough in the sensor area in a thickness direction and exposes at least part of a bottom surface of the first barrier layer.

4. The display device of claim 3 , further comprising a sacrificial pattern directly disposed on a region of the bottom surface of the first barrier layer exposed by the through hole.

5. The display device of claim 3 , wherein the exposed part of the bottom surface of the first barrier layer further comprises a carbonized surface, and a coarseness level of the bottom surface of the first barrier layer in the sensor area is greater than a coarseness level of the bottom surface of the first barrier layer in the non-sensor area.

6. The display device of claim 3 , wherein the through hole further passes through at least part of the first barrier layer, and a thickness of the first barrier layer in the sensor area is smaller than a thickness of the first barrier layer in the non-sensor area.

7. The display device of claim 6 , wherein a coarseness level of the bottom surface of the first barrier layer in the sensor area is greater than a coarseness level of the bottom surface of the first barrier layer in the non-sensor area.

8. The display device of claim 6 , wherein the through hole completely passes through the first barrier layer and exposes a bottom surface of the second flexible substrate.

9. The display device of claim 8 , wherein the exposed bottom surface of the second flexible substrate further comprises a carbonized surface, and a coarseness level of the bottom surface of the second flexible substrate in the sensor area is greater than a coarseness level of the bottom surface of the second flexible substrate in the non-sensor area.

10. The display device of claim 8 , wherein the through hole further passes through at least part of the second flexible substrate, and a thickness of the second flexible substrate in the sensor area is smaller than a thickness of the second flexible substrate in the non-sensor area.

11. The display device of claim 10 , wherein a coarseness level of the bottom surface of the second flexible substrate in the sensor area is greater than a coarseness level of the bottom surface of the second flexible substrate in the non-sensor area.

12. The display device of claim 10 , further comprising a second barrier layer disposed between the second flexible substrate and the TFT layer, wherein the through hole completely passes through the second flexible substrate and exposes at least part of a bottom surface of the second barrier layer.

13. The display device of claim 12 , further comprising a sacrificial pattern directly disposed on a region of the bottom surface of the second barrier layer exposed by the through hole.

14. The display device of claim 12 , wherein the exposed bottom surface of the second barrier layer further comprises a carbonized surface, and a coarseness level of the bottom surface of the second barrier layer in the sensor area is greater than a coarseness level of the bottom surface of the second barrier layer in the non-sensor area.

15. The display device of claim 14 , wherein the through hole further passes through at least part of the second barrier layer, and a thickness of the second barrier layer in the sensor area is smaller than a thickness of the second barrier layer in the non-sensor area.

16. The display device of claim 2 , wherein the TFT layer comprises a semiconductor layer disposed on the substrate portion, a gate electrode disposed on the semiconductor layer, and source/drain electrodes disposed on the gate electrode and each connected to the semiconductor layer, and wherein the light-blocking layer is a metal layer.

17. The display device of claim 1 , wherein the light-blocking layer comprises a plurality of light-blocking metal patterns arranged to be spaced apart from each other.

18. The display device of claim 17 , wherein the plurality of light-blocking metal patterns are overlapped with the semiconductor layer.

19. The display device of claim 1 , wherein the light-blocking layer is a metal layer that comprises titanium (Ti) or molybdenum (Mo).

20. The display device of claim 1 , wherein the substrate portion further comprises a burr protruding from a periphery of the sensor area of the substrate portion.

21. The display device of claim 1 , wherein the sensor area and the non-sensor area each comprise a plurality of pixels, and a density of the pixels arranged in the sensor area is smaller than a density of the pixels arranged in the non-sensor area.

22. The display device of claim 21 , wherein the sensor area comprises a pixel arrangement area, in which the pixels are arranged, and a transmitting area, in which the pixels are not arranged, and wherein a conductive material is not disposed in the transmitting area.

23. A display device including a display area and a non-display area located on a periphery of the display area, the display area including a sensor area for an optical sensor and a non-sensor area, the display device comprising:
a substrate portion comprising a first substrate and a second substrate facing the first substrate;
a light-blocking layer;
a thin film transistor (TFT) layer disposed over an entire surface of the substrate portion and comprising at least one TFT; and
a light emitting diode (LED) disposed on the TFT layer,
wherein a through hole passes entirely through the first substrate and the second substrate and overlaps the light-blocking layer, in the sensor area, in a thickness direction.

24. The display device of claim 23 , further comprising:
a barrier layer disposed between the substrate portion and the TFT layer; and
a humidity penetration blocking pattern disposed between the substrate portion and the TFT layer, wherein the humidity penetration blocking pattern comprises silicon oxynitride.

25. The display device of claim 24 , wherein the humidity penetration blocking pattern is disposed in and overlapped with the sensor area.

26. A display device including a display area and a non-display area located on a periphery of the display area, the display area including a sensor area for an optica

Assignees

• Samsung Display Co Ltd

Inventors

• Hong Sung Jin
• Lee Seung Chan
• Kim Gun Hee
• Kim Dong Hyun
• Kim Sang Hoon
• Moon Soo Hyun
• Jeon Joo Hee

Classifications

• Y02E10/549

  Organic PV cells · CPC title

• H01L51/5284

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L27/3234 Primary

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L51/0097

  Electricity · mapped topic

• H01L2251/5338

  Electricity · mapped topic