Array substrate, method of fabricating array substrate, display panel, and method of fabricating display panel

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11744118-B2
Application number	US-202217721023-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 14, 2022
Priority date	Apr 27, 2017
Publication date	Aug 29, 2023
Grant date	Aug 29, 2023

Abstract

The present disclosure generally relates to the field of display technology, and in particular, to an array substrate, a method of fabricating the array substrate, a display panel including the array substrate, and a method of fabricating the display panel. An array substrate includes: a base substrate; an electrode layer provided on the substrate; a first pixel defining layer on the electrode layer defining a plurality of pixel regions; and a second pixel defining layer on the first pixel defining layer, wherein the second pixel defining layer has a plurality of first grooves and a plurality of second grooves alternately arranged between two adjacent rows of pixel regions.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An array substrate, comprising:
a base substrate;
an electrode layer on the base substrate; and
a pixel defining layer on the electrode layer defining a plurality of sub-pixel regions arranged in columns and rows in the base substrate, wherein the sub-pixel regions in a same column of sub-pixel regions have a same color, and the sub-pixel regions in two adjacent columns of sub-pixel regions have different colors,
wherein the pixel defining layer comprises: a plurality of vertical parts, each of which extending in a first direction between two adjacent columns of sub-pixel regions; and a plurality of horizontal parts, each of which extending in a second direction between two adjacent rows of sub-pixel regions,
wherein at least one of the plurality of horizontal parts comprises a plurality of first grooves and a plurality of second grooves,
wherein at least one of the plurality of first grooves connects to two adjacent sub-pixel regions in a same column of sub-pixel regions having a first color via two first openings, respectively, and at least one of the plurality of second grooves connects to two adjacent sub-pixel regions in a same column of sub-pixel regions having a second color, which is different from the first color, via two second openings, and
wherein a width of the first opening in the second direction is smaller than a width of the sub-pixel region, which connects to one of the first grooves via the first opening, in the second direction, and the first opening is aligned with the sub-pixel region.

2. The array substrate according to claim 1 , wherein in two adjacent rows of horizontal parts, the plurality of first grooves in one of the two rows of horizontal parts connect to the sub-pixel regions in columns of sub-pixel regions having the first color, and the plurality of first grooves in the other of the two rows of horizontal parts connect to the sub-pixel regions in columns of sub-pixel regions having a third color, which is different from the first color and the second color.

3. The array substrate according to claim 2 , wherein the first openings in odd rows of horizontal parts are aligned with each other in the first direction, the first openings in even rows of horizontal parts are aligned with each other in the first direction, and the first openings in odd rows of horizontal parts and the first openings in even rows of horizontal parts are staggered with respect to each other in the first direction.

4. The array substrate according to claim 1 , wherein the first openings connecting to a same column of sub-pixel regions are aligned with each other in the first direction, and the first openings connecting to different columns of sub-pixel regions are staggered with respect to each other in the first direction.

5. The array substrate according to claim 1 , wherein bottom surfaces of the plurality of second grooves are coplanar with top surfaces of the plurality of vertical parts, the plurality of second grooves divided the horizontal part into a plurality of horizontal sub-parts, and the plurality of first grooves are arranged in the plurality of horizontal sub-parts, respectively.

6. The array substrate according to claim 5 , wherein at least one of the plurality of horizontal sub-parts comprises a bottom and a raised portion extending in a third direction perpendicular to the first direction and the second direction along an edge of the bottom, and the first opening is arranged in the raised portion.

7. The array substrate according to claim 6 , wherein at an intersection of the horizontal part and the vertical part, the horizontal part is at a position above the vertical part in the third direction.

8. The array substrate according to claim 1 , further comprising a light-emitting layer formed in the plurality of sub-pixel regions and at least one of the first grooves,
wherein a height of the light-emitting layer formed in the first groove with respect to the base substrate is higher than a height of the light-emitting layer formed in the plurality of sub-pixel regions with respect to the base substrate.

9. The array substrate according to claim 1 , further comprising a light-emitting layer formed in the plurality of sub-pixel regions, the plurality of the first grooves and the plurality of the second grooves,
wherein a width of the light-emitting layer formed in the plurality of first grooves in the second direction is different from a width of the light-emitting layer formed in the plurality of second grooves in the second direction.

10. The array substrate according to claim 1 , wherein a thickness of the pixel defining layer at the vertical part is smaller than a thickness of the pixel defining layer at at least one intersection of the horizontal part and the vertical part.

11. The array substrate according to claim 5 , wherein a maximum length of the vertical part extending continuously in the first direction is longer than a distance between two adjacent first openings in one horizontal sub-part in the second direction.

12. The array substrate according to claim 1 , wherein each sub-pixel region having the first color in the plurality of sub-pixel regions connects to the first groove via the first opening, and two adjacent rows of sub-pixel regions in a same column of sub-pixel regions connect to a same first groove;
each sub-pixel region having the second color in the plurality of sub-pixel regions connects to the second groove via the second opening, and two adjacent rows of sub-pixel regions in a same column of sub-pixel regions connect to a same second groove.

13. The array substrate according to claim 3 , wherein the plurality of horizontal sub-parts comprises a first horizontal sub-part and a second horizontal sub-part, the first groove arranged in the first horizontal sub-part has a first length in the second direction, the first groove arranged in the second horizontal sub-part has a second length in the second direction, and the second groove has a third length in the second direction,
the first length is longer than the second length, and the second length is longer than the third length.

14. The array substrate according to claim 1 , wherein at least a portion of the plurality of first grooves and the plurality of second grooves have different lengths extending in the second direction.

15. The array substrate according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the plurality of horizontal parts has a first width in the first direction, at least one of the plurality of vertical parts has a second width in the second direction, and the first width is bigger than the second width.

16. The array substrate according to claim 1 , wherein the pixel defining layer further comprises a peripheral part surrounding the plurality of sub-pixel regions,
a distance between a top surface of the base substrate and a top surface of the peripheral part is substantially equal to a distance between the top surface of the base substrate and a top surface of the vertical part.

17. The array substrate according to claim 16 , wherein the peripheral part has a third width in the first direction, and has a forth width in the second direction, the third width is different from the forth width.

18. The array substrate according to claim 16 , wherein the third width is bigger than the forth width.

19. The array substrate according to claim 1 , wherein the plurality of vertical parts and the plurality of horizontal parts of the pixel defining layer are formed in a single structure.

20. A display

Assignees

• Boe Technology Group Co Ltd

Inventors

• Zhao Dejiang
• Liu Wenqi

Classifications

• H10K59/122 Primary

  Pixel-defining structures or layers, e.g. banks · CPC title

• H10K59/121

  characterised by the geometry or disposition of pixel elements · CPC title

• H10K59/1201

  Manufacture or treatment · CPC title

• H10K59/353 Primary

  characterised by the geometrical arrangement of the RGB subpixels · CPC title

• H10K59/173

  comprising banks or shadow masks · CPC title