Display device having a first contact electrode and a second contact electrode

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11844244-B2
Application number	US-202117444745-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 9, 2021
Priority date	Nov 3, 2020
Publication date	Dec 12, 2023
Grant date	Dec 12, 2023

Abstract

A display device includes: a substrate; first banks spaced apart from each other on the substrate; a first electrode and a second electrode covering the first banks and spaced apart from each other; a light-emitting element between the first electrode and the second electrode; a first contact electrode connected to the first electrode and contacting one end of the light-emitting element; and a second contact electrode connected to the second electrode and contacting another end of the light-emitting element. The first contact electrode includes a first material, the second contact electrode includes a second material, and physical properties of the first material and the second material are different from each other.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A display device comprising:
a substrate;
first banks spaced apart from each other on the substrate;
a first electrode and a second electrode covering the first banks and spaced apart from each other;
a light-emitting element between the first electrode and the second electrode;
a first contact electrode connected to the first electrode and contacting one end of the light-emitting element; and
a second contact electrode connected to the second electrode and contacting another end of the light-emitting element,
wherein the first contact electrode comprises crystallized indium tin oxide, and the second contact electrode comprises amorphous indium tin oxide.

2. The display device of claim 1 , wherein an etching rate for a phosphoric acid-based etchant or a sulfuric acid-based etchant of the first contact electrode is lower than an etching rate for the phosphoric acid-based etchant or the sulfuric acid-based etchant of the second contact electrode.

3. The display device of claim 1 , wherein sheet resistance of the first contact electrode is less than sheet resistance of the second contact electrode, and
wherein the sheet resistance of the first contact electrode is 50% or less of the sheet resistance of the second contact electrode.

4. The display device of claim 1 , wherein transmittance of the first contact electrode is different from transmittance of the second contact electrode.

5. The display device of claim 4 , wherein the transmittance of the first contact electrode for light having a wavelength of 550 nm is greater than the transmittance of the second contact electrode for light having the wavelength of 550 nm.

6. The display device of claim 5 , wherein the transmittance of the first contact electrode for light having the wavelength of 550 nm is at least 5% higher than the transmittance of the second contact electrode for light having the wavelength of 550 nm.

7. The display device of claim 1 , further comprising:
a first element insulating layer between the first electrode and the second electrode and the light-emitting element; and
a second element insulating layer on an upper surface of the light-emitting element,
wherein the first contact electrode directly contacts an upper surface of one side of the second element insulating layer,
wherein the second contact electrode directly contacts an upper surface of another side of the second element insulating layer, and
wherein each of the first contact electrode and the second contact electrode exposes an upper surface of a central portion of the second element insulating layer.

8. The display device of claim 7 , further comprising a third element insulating layer integrally covering and contacting the first contact electrode and the second contact electrode.

9. A display device comprising:
a substrate;
first banks spaced apart from each other on the substrate;
a first electrode and a second electrode covering the first banks and spaced apart from each other;
a light-emitting element between the first electrode and the second electrode;
a first contact electrode connected to the first electrode and contacting one end of the light-emitting element; and
a second contact electrode connected to the second electrode and contacting another end of the light-emitting element,
wherein the first contact electrode comprises indium tin oxide, and the second contact electrode comprises indium zinc oxide.

10. The display device of claim 9 , wherein an etching rate for a phosphoric acid-based etchant or a sulfuric acid-based etchant of the second contact electrode is 5 times or more an etching rate for the phosphoric acid-based etchant or the sulfuric acid-based etchant of the first contact electrode.

11. A method of manufacturing a display device, the method comprising:
a substrate preparation operation of preparing a substrate on which first banks that are spaced apart from each other are arranged;
an electrode forming operation of forming a first electrode and a second electrode covering the first banks and spaced apart from each other;
a first element insulating layer forming operation of forming a first element insulating layer on the first electrode and the second electrode;
a light-emitting element disposing operation of disposing a light-emitting element between the first electrode and the second electrode on the first element insulating layer;
a second element insulating layer forming operation of forming a second element insulating layer on an upper surface of the light-emitting element;
a first contact electrode material forming operation of forming a first contact electrode material layer on the entire second element insulating layer;
a first contact electrode forming operation of forming a first contact electrode exposing a central portion and an end portion of another side of the second element insulating layer;
a second contact electrode material forming operation of forming a second contact electrode material on the entire first contact electrode; and
a second contact electrode forming operation of forming a second contact electrode exposing a central portion and an end portion of one side of the second element insulating layer,
wherein the first contact electrode comprises crystallized indium tin oxide, and the second contact electrode comprises amorphous indium tin oxide.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein sheet resistance of the first contact electrode is 50% or less of sheet resistance of the second contact electrode.

13. The method of claim 11 , wherein transmittance of the first contact electrode for light having a wavelength of 550 nm is larger than transmittance of the second contact electrode for light having the wavelength of 550 nm.

14. The method of claim 11 , wherein the first contact electrode forming operation further comprises a first contact electrode crystallization process of heat-treating the first contact electrode.

15. The method of claim 11 , wherein the first contact electrode forming operation and the second contact electrode forming operation are performed through a photolithography process.

Assignees

• Samsung Display Co Ltd

Inventors

• Ko Min Suk
• Kang Tae Wook
• Seo Kab Jong
• Jeon Bo Geon

Classifications

• H10W90/00 Primary

  Package configurations · CPC title

• H10K59/124

  Insulating layers formed between TFT elements and OLED elements · CPC title

• H10K59/122 Primary

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

• H10K50/828

  Transparent cathodes, e.g. comprising thin metal layers · CPC title

• H10K50/816

  Multilayers, e.g. transparent multilayers · CPC title