Display panel

Abstract

The present application provides a display panel. The display panel includes an electrostatic protection circuit. The electrostatic protection circuit includes at least one thin film transistor. The thin film transistor includes an active layer. The active layer has a channel portion. By providing at least one auxiliary electrode on the channel portion and making the auxiliary electrode in direct contact with the channel portion, the uniformity of the plasma acting on the channel portion can be improved by using the added auxiliary electrode, thereby reducing the leakage current of the thin film transistor, and thus the display quality of the display panel can be improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of display technologies, and in particular, to a display panel. Background Art

[0002] During the production, testing, and transportation of display panels, static electricity will inevitably be introduced. The instantaneous kilovolt high voltage generated by friction or contact can break down the display panel, resulting in the failure of components inside the display panel.

[0003] In related technologies, an electrostatic protection circuit is usually provided inside the display panel to release the high level generated by the accumulation of static electricity and avoid damage to the components inside the display panel caused by static electricity. However, when the display panel is working normally, there is a leakage current in the thin-film transistor in the electrostatic protection circuit, which will cause the display panel to be unable to display normal gray levels and brightness, affecting the display quality of the display panel.

[0004] Therefore, it is necessary to provide a display panel to improve this defect. Summary of the Invention

[0005] Embodiments of this application provide a display panel, which can reduce the leakage current of the thin-film transistor in the electrostatic protection circuit and improve the display quality of the display panel.

[0006] Embodiments of this application provide a display panel, the display panel includes an electrostatic protection circuit, the electrostatic protection circuit includes at least one thin-film transistor, the thin-film transistor includes an active layer, and the active layer has a channel portion;

[0007] Wherein, at least one auxiliary electrode is provided on the channel portion, and the auxiliary electrode is in direct contact with the channel portion.

[0008] According to an embodiment of this application, a plurality of the auxiliary electrodes are provided on the channel portion, and the plurality of auxiliary electrodes are spaced apart along the channel length direction.

[0009] According to an embodiment of this application, at least a part of the channel portion is bent.

[0010] According to an embodiment of this application, the channel portion has a plurality of bent segments, and the bending directions of any two adjacent bent segments are different.

[0011] According to an embodiment of this application, one auxiliary electrode is provided on each bent segment.

[0012] According to an embodiment of this application, the channel portion has at least two sub-channel portions, and the sub-channel portions are spaced apart along the channel width direction.

[0013] According to an embodiment of this application, two adjacent sub-channel portions are arranged parallel or symmetrically to each other.

[0014] According to an embodiment of the present application, the thin film transistor further includes a source electrode and a drain electrode, and the auxiliary electrode is disposed on the same layer as the source electrode and the drain electrode.

[0015] According to an embodiment of the present application, the thin film transistor includes a gate electrode, and the auxiliary electrode is disposed on a surface of the active layer close to or away from the gate electrode.

[0016] According to an embodiment of the present application, the material of the active layer is an oxide semiconductor or a silicon semiconductor.

[0017] Beneficial effects of the embodiments of the present application: The embodiments of the present application provide a display panel. The display panel includes an electrostatic protection circuit. The electrostatic protection circuit includes at least one thin film transistor. The thin film transistor includes an active layer. The active layer has a channel portion. By providing at least one auxiliary electrode on the channel portion and making the auxiliary electrode in direct contact with the channel portion, the uniformity of the plasma acting on the channel portion can be improved by using the additional auxiliary electrode, thereby reducing the leakage current of the thin film transistor, and thus improving the display quality of the display panel. Description of the Drawings

[0018] Figure 1 It is a partial schematic diagram of the display panel according to the first embodiment provided by the embodiment of the present application;

[0019] Figure 2 is Figure 1 A cross-sectional view of the display panel according to the first embodiment shown along the A-A' direction;

[0020] Figure 3 It is a partial schematic diagram of the display panel according to the second embodiment provided by the embodiment of the present application;

[0021] Figure 4 It is a partial schematic diagram of the display panel according to the third embodiment provided by the embodiment of the present application;

[0022] Figure 5 It is a partial schematic diagram of the display panel according to the fourth embodiment provided by the embodiment of the present application;

[0023] Figure 6 It is a partial schematic diagram of the display panel according to the fifth embodiment provided by the embodiment of the present application;

[0024] Figure 7 It is a cross-sectional view of the display panel according to the sixth embodiment provided by the embodiment of the present application along the A-A' direction. Detailed Embodiments

[0025] The following descriptions of the embodiments are made with reference to the attached drawings to illustrate specific embodiments that the present application may be implemented in. The directional terms mentioned in the present application, such as [up], [down], [front], [back], [left], [right], [inside], [outside], [side], etc., are only with reference to the directions of the attached drawings. Therefore, the directional terms used are used to illustrate and understand the present application, rather than to limit the present application. In the drawings, units with similar structures are represented by the same reference numerals.

[0026] The present application is further described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0027] The embodiments of the present application provide a display panel, which can reduce the leakage current of the thin film transistor in the electrostatic protection circuit and improve the display quality of the display panel.

[0028] See also Figure 1 and Figure 2 The display panel includes a substrate 10 and an electrostatic protection circuit disposed on the substrate 10. In an embodiment of the present application, the display panel is a liquid crystal display panel, and the substrate 10 is a glass substrate.

[0029] Specifically, the display panel can be a Fringe Field Switching (FFS) mode liquid crystal display panel, the display panel can include a display area and a non-display area surrounding the display area, and the electrostatic protection circuit can be arranged at the four corners of the non-display area surrounding the display area and the top of the non-display area.

[0030] Furthermore, the electrostatic protection circuit includes at least one thin film transistor 20 , and the thin film transistor 20 includes an active layer 21 , and the active layer 21 has a source contact portion 211 , a drain contact portion 212 and a channel portion 210 , and the channel portion 210 is arranged between the source contact portion 211 and the drain contact portion 212 .

[0031] The thin film transistor 20 also includes a gate 22, a source 23 and a drain 24. The gate 22 is arranged on the substrate 10, and the source 23 and the drain 24 are arranged on the side of the active layer 21 away from the gate 22. The source 23 contacts the source contact portion 211 of the active layer 21, and the drain 24 contacts the drain contact portion 212 of the active layer 21.

[0032] It should be noted that the gate 22 is disposed on the substrate 10, and the gate 22 may be located above the substrate 10 and in direct contact with the substrate 10; or, the gate 22 may be located above the substrate 10, but spaced apart from the substrate 10, and separated by other film layers (such as a barrier layer, a buffer layer, etc.).

[0033] In Figure 2 the illustrated embodiment, the gate 22 is located above the substrate 10 and is in direct contact with the substrate 10. A gate insulating layer 11 is provided above the gate 22, and the active layer 21 is disposed on the surface of the gate insulating layer 11 facing away from the gate 22. The source electrode 23 and the drain electrode 24 are disposed on the surface of the active layer 21 facing away from the gate insulating layer 11.

[0034] Further, at least one auxiliary electrode 30 is provided on the channel portion 210, and the auxiliary electrode 30 is in direct contact with the channel portion 210.

[0035] In one embodiment, a plurality of the auxiliary electrodes 30 are provided on the channel portion 210, and the plurality of auxiliary electrodes 30 are spaced apart along the channel length direction.

[0036] It should be noted that, in the embodiments of the present application, the channel length direction is Figure 1 the first direction X shown, the channel width direction is Figure 1 the second direction Y shown, and the thickness direction of the display panel is Figure 2 the third direction Z shown. In the embodiments of the present application, the first direction X is perpendicular to the second direction Y, and the third direction Z is perpendicular to the first direction X and the second direction Y respectively. In practical applications, the first direction X and the second direction Y may also intersect with each other but are not perpendicular, and this is not uniquely limited herein.

[0037] As Figure 1 shown, on the plane defined by the first direction X and the second direction Y, the channel portion 210 is in a straight long strip shape, and four auxiliary electrodes 30 are provided on the channel portion 210. The four auxiliary electrodes 30 are spaced apart from each other along the first direction X on the channel portion 210. The four auxiliary electrodes 30 are not connected to each other. Except for contacting the channel portion 210, the auxiliary electrode 30 is not connected to other signal traces.

[0038] In one embodiment, the plurality of auxiliary electrodes 30 may be equally spaced along the first direction X on the channel portion 210.

[0039] In one embodiment, in the second direction Y, the length of the auxiliary electrode 30 is greater than the length of the channel portion 210. In this way, the contact area between the auxiliary electrode 30 and the channel portion 210 can be increased, the resistance between the auxiliary electrode 30 and the channel portion 210 can be reduced, and it is ensured that the auxiliary electrode 30 can conduct adjacent short channels. In some other embodiments, in the second direction Y, the length of the auxiliary electrode 30 may also be equal to the length of the channel portion 210.

[0040] As Figure 2As shown, the four auxiliary electrodes 30 are all located on the surface of the channel portion 210 facing away from the substrate 10, and are in direct contact with the channel portion 210. There is a gap between two adjacent auxiliary electrodes 30, and this gap exposes a part of the channel portion 210.

[0041] In this embodiment, the auxiliary electrodes 30 are disposed on the same layer as the source electrode 23 and the drain electrode 24, and the auxiliary electrodes 30 and the source electrode 23 and the drain electrode 24 can be formed by the same metal film deposition process.

[0042] In this embodiment, the material of the active layer is an oxide semiconductor. Specifically, the material of the active layer is indium gallium zinc oxide (IGZO). In some other embodiments, the material of the active layer can also be a silicon semiconductor, such as amorphous silicon or polycrystalline silicon.

[0043] Take Figure 2 as an example. Assuming that no auxiliary electrode 30 is provided above the channel portion 210, after the source electrode 23 and the drain electrode 24 are formed on the active layer 21, an insulating layer made of a silicon oxide material still needs to be formed on the active layer 21, the source electrode 23 and the drain electrode 24 by chemical vapor deposition. Since the length of the channel portion 210 is relatively long, during the chemical vapor deposition process, the plasma cannot act uniformly on all regions of the channel portion 210, resulting in non-uniform oxygen supplementation to the channel portion 210, making the thin film transistor prone to generate a relatively large leakage current and affecting the display effect of the display panel.

[0044] In this embodiment, by providing four auxiliary electrodes 30 above the channel portion 210, the four auxiliary electrodes 30 shield a part of the surface of the channel portion 210 and divide the channel portion 210 with a relatively long length into five short channels with relatively short lengths. Two adjacent short channels can be electrically connected through the auxiliary electrode 30. During the subsequent chemical vapor deposition process, the plasma can act more uniformly on the five short channels with relatively short lengths, making the oxygen supplementation of the short channels relatively more uniform. In this way, the leakage current of the thin film transistor can be reduced, thereby improving the display effect of the display panel and improving the protection effect of the electrostatic protection circuit.

[0045] In practical applications, the number of the auxiliary electrodes 30 provided above the channel portion 210 can be set according to the channel length of the channel portion 210, and is not limited to 4 in the above embodiment. One, two, three or more auxiliary electrodes 30 can also be provided on the channel portion 210.

[0046] In one of the embodiments, at least a part of the channel portion 210 is bent.

[0047] Such as Figure 3 shown, Figure 3The structure of the display panel of the second embodiment shown is the same as that of Figure 1 the display panel of the first embodiment shown, except that: Figure 3 In the display panel of the second embodiment shown, the channel portion 210 has a plurality of bent segments 2101, and the bending directions of any two adjacent bent segments 2101 are different. One of the two adjacent bent segments 2101 protrudes along the second direction Y, and the other protrudes in the direction opposite to the second direction Y. The plurality of bent segments 2101 are sequentially connected to form a wavy channel portion 210.

[0048] Compared with Figure 1 the embodiment shown, Figure 3 in the embodiment shown, without increasing the size of the thin film transistor, by making at least part of the channel portion 210 curved, the channel length of the thin film transistor can be increased, the impedance of the thin film transistor can be improved, thereby the leakage current of the thin film transistor can be further reduced, and further the display effect of the display panel can be improved, and the protection effect of the electrostatic protection circuit can be enhanced.

[0049] Furthermore, an auxiliary electrode 30 is provided on each of the bent segments 2101.

[0050] As Figure 3 shown, the channel portion 210 has four sequentially connected bent segments 2101, and an auxiliary electrode 30 is provided above the middle region of each bent segment 2101.

[0051] In one embodiment, the channel portion 210 has at least two sub-channel portions, and the sub-channel portions are spaced apart along the channel width direction.

[0052] As Figure 4 shown, Figure 4 the structure of the display panel of the third embodiment shown is the same as that of Figure 1 the display panel of the first embodiment shown, except that: Figure 4 In the display panel of the third embodiment shown, the channel portion 210 has two sub-channel portions, namely a first sub-channel portion 2102 and a second sub-channel portion 2103. Both the first sub-channel portion 2102 and the second sub-channel portion 2103 are linear and strip-shaped. The first sub-channel portion 2102 and the second sub-channel portion 2103 are spaced apart in the second direction Y and are parallel to each other.

[0053] The first end of the first sub-channel portion 2102 and the first end of the second sub-channel portion 2103 are connected to the same source contact portion, and the second end of the first sub-channel portion 2102 and the second end of the second sub-channel portion 2103 are connected to the same drain contact portion.

[0054] Compared withFigure 1 The embodiment shown, Figure 4 The illustrated embodiment reduces the channel width of the channel portion 210 by dividing the channel portion 210 into two sub-channel portions spaced apart from each other in the channel width direction, thereby reducing the risk of device failure caused by heat accumulation generated by high static voltage or high current.

[0055] In one embodiment, in the second direction Y, the widths of the first sub-channel portion 2102 and the second sub-channel portion 2103 are equal.

[0056] In practical applications, the channel portion 210 can be divided not only into the two sub-channel portions in the above embodiment, but also into three or more sub-channel portions spaced apart from each other, which can also achieve similar technical effects as the above embodiment, and is not limited here.

[0057] like Figure 5 As shown, Figure 5 The structure of the display panel of the fourth embodiment shown in FIG. Figure 4 The structure of the display panel of the third embodiment shown is substantially the same, except that: Figure 5 In the display panel of the fourth embodiment shown, the auxiliary electrode 30 spans over at least two adjacent sub-channel portions.

[0058] exist Figure 5 In the illustrated embodiment, a plurality of auxiliary electrodes 30 are disposed above the channel portion 210, and the plurality of auxiliary electrodes 30 are all across the first sub-channel portion 2102 and the second sub-channel portion 2103, and electrically connect the first sub-channel portion 2102 with the second sub-channel portion 2103. Under this structure, not only can the risk of device failure due to heating caused by high voltage or high current be reduced, but also the uniformity of plasma acting on the channel portion 210 in subsequent processes can be improved, thereby reducing the leakage current of the thin film transistor, improving the display effect of the display panel, and improving the protection effect of the electrostatic protection circuit.

[0059] In some other embodiments, multiple auxiliary electrodes may be respectively provided on different sub-channel portions, and the auxiliary electrodes on different sub-channel portions may be disconnected from each other. For example, multiple auxiliary electrodes 30 may be respectively provided on the first sub-channel portion 2102 and the second sub-channel portion 2103, and the auxiliary electrode 30 on the first sub-channel portion 2102 is not connected to the auxiliary electrode 30 on the second sub-channel portion 2103.

[0060] In one embodiment, two adjacent sub-channel portions are arranged symmetrically to each other.

[0061] like Figure 6 As shown, Figure 6The structure of the display panel of the fifth embodiment shown is the same as that of Figure 5 the display panel of the fourth embodiment shown, with the difference that: Figure 5 in the display panel of the fourth embodiment shown, the sub-channel portions are all linear and strip-shaped, Figure 6 while at least part of the sub-channel portions in the display panel of the fifth embodiment shown are curved.

[0062] In Figure 6 the embodiment shown, the channel portion 210 includes a first sub-channel portion 2102 and a second sub-channel portion 2103. The first sub-channel portion 2102 and the second sub-channel portion 2103 are spaced apart from each other in the second direction Y. Both the first sub-channel portion 2102 and the second sub-channel portion 2103 include a plurality of curved segments. The bending direction of any one curved segment on the first sub-channel portion 2102 is opposite to the bending direction of the corresponding curved segment on the second sub-channel portion 2103. The first sub-channel portion 2102 and the second sub-channel portion 2103 are symmetrically arranged with each other.

[0063] As Figure 7 shown, Figure 7 the structure of the display panel of the sixth embodiment shown is the same as that of Figure 1 and Figure 2 the display panel of the first embodiment shown, with the difference that: Figure 1 and Figure 2 the display panel of the first embodiment shown is a bottom-gate structure, Figure 7 while the display panel shown is a top-gate structure, and the auxiliary electrode 30 is disposed on the surface of the active layer 21 close to the gate 22.

[0064] Specifically, in Figure 7 the embodiment shown, the active layer 21 is located above the substrate 10 and is in direct contact with the substrate 10. The source electrode 23, the drain electrode 24, and the auxiliary electrode 30 are disposed on the surface of the active layer 21 facing away from the substrate 10. The gate insulating layer 11 is disposed on the surface of the source electrode 23, the drain electrode 24, and the auxiliary electrode 30 facing away from the substrate 10. The gate 22 is disposed on the surface of the gate insulating layer 11 facing away from the substrate 10.

[0065] It should be noted that the electrostatic protection circuit in the embodiments of the present application may have one or more thin film transistors. When the electrostatic protection circuit has multiple thin film transistors, the structures of the multiple thin film transistors may be the same as the structure of the thin film transistor 20 in the embodiments of the present application. The circuit structure of the electrostatic protection circuit in the embodiments of the present application may refer to the circuit structure of the existing electrostatic protection circuit, which is not limited herein.

[0066] Advantages of the embodiments of the present application: The embodiments of the present application provide a display panel. The display panel includes an electrostatic protection circuit. The electrostatic protection circuit includes at least one thin film transistor. The thin film transistor includes an active layer. The active layer has a channel portion. By providing at least one auxiliary electrode on the channel portion and making the auxiliary electrode in direct contact with the channel portion, the uniformity of the plasma acting on the channel portion can be improved by using the added auxiliary electrode, thereby reducing the leakage current of the thin film transistor, and thus the display quality of the display panel can be improved.

[0067] In summary, although the present application is disclosed above with preferred embodiments, the above preferred embodiments are not intended to limit the present application. Those of ordinary skill in the art can make various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit and scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application is based on the scope defined by the claims.

Claims

1. A display panel, characterized in that, Including an electrostatic protection circuit, the electrostatic protection circuit includes at least one thin film transistor, the thin film transistor includes an active layer, and the active layer has a channel portion; Wherein, a plurality of auxiliary electrodes are provided on the channel portion, the plurality of auxiliary electrodes are spaced apart along the channel length direction, and the auxiliary electrodes are in direct contact with the channel portion; the active layer has a plurality of bending segments, and the bending directions of any two adjacent bending segments are different, and the plurality of bending segments are sequentially connected to form the channel portion.

2. The display panel according to claim 1, wherein One auxiliary electrode is provided on each bending segment.

3. The display panel according to claim 1, wherein The channel portion has at least two sub-channel portions, and the sub-channel portions are spaced apart along the channel width direction.

4. The display panel according to claim 3, wherein Two adjacent sub-channel portions are arranged parallel or symmetric to each other.

5. The display panel according to claim 1, wherein The thin film transistor further includes a source electrode and a drain electrode, and the auxiliary electrode is provided on the same layer as the source electrode and the drain electrode.

6. The display panel according to claim 1, characterized in that, The thin film transistor includes a gate electrode, and the auxiliary electrode is provided on the surface of the active layer close to or far from the gate electrode.

7. The display panel according to claim 1, wherein The material of the active layer is an oxide semiconductor or a silicon semiconductor.

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