Exposure apparatus and display substrate

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to the technical field of display, and provides an exposure device and a display substrate. The exposure device is used for preparing the display substrate, and comprises a carrier body, a plurality of support columns, a light absorption layer and a light extinction structure. The carrier body has a support surface. The plurality of support columns are arrayed on the support surface of the carrier body and are used for supporting the display substrate to be prepared. The light absorption layer covers the support surface and the surface of the support columns and is used for absorbing incident light of a target wavelength. The light extinction structure is distributed on the support surface of the carrier body and is located between adjacent support columns. The light extinction structure is used for performing multiple light path conversions on light incident to the surface thereof to be absorbed. The height of the light extinction structure is less than or equal to the height of the support column. The light extinction structure of the present disclosure eliminates the difference between the exposure amount of the pattern edge of the gap region and the exposure amount of the pattern edge of the support column 200 region, thereby eliminating the display unevenness problem of the display substrate prepared by the exposure device due to the difference in exposure amount.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the technical field of display, in particular to an exposure device and a display substrate. BACKGROUND

[0002] In the related art, the exposure device for preparing the display substrate has the problem of mura (uneven display) due to uneven exposure at specific positions, resulting in low product yield of the display substrate.

[0003] It should be noted that the information disclosed in the above background section is only used to strengthen the understanding of the background of the present disclosure, and therefore can include information that does not constitute prior art known to those of ordinary skill in the art. SUMMARY

[0004] The present disclosure aims to overcome the deficiencies of the prior art, and provides an exposure device and a display substrate.

[0005] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, an exposure device for preparing a display substrate is provided, the exposure device comprising: a stage body having a support surface; a plurality of support columns arrayed on the support surface of the stage body, the support columns being used to support the display substrate to be prepared; a light-absorbing layer covering the support surface and the surface of the support columns, the light-absorbing layer being used to absorb incident light of a target wavelength; and light-absorbing structures distributed on the support surface of the stage body and located between adjacent support columns, the light-absorbing structures being used to perform multiple optical path conversions on light incident to their surfaces for absorption, and the height of the light-absorbing structures being less than or equal to the height of the support columns.

[0006] In exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, the light-absorbing structures comprise a plurality of first light-absorbing structures; wherein the plurality of first light-absorbing structures are periodically arrayed on the support surface, the surface of the first light-absorbing structures is covered with the light-absorbing layer, the bottom surface of the first light-absorbing structures contacts the support surface, and the first light-absorbing structures have a first included angle between the side wall and the bottom surface, the range of the first included angle being 45°≤α<90°.

[0007] In exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, the first light-absorbing structures have a right projection on the support surface in one or more of a circle, a triangle, and a polygon.

[0008] In an example embodiment of the present disclosure, when the first light extinction structure is circular in the orthographic projection on the support surface, any two adjacent first light extinction structures are tangent in the orthographic projection on the support surface; or when the first light extinction structure is triangular or polygonal in the orthographic projection on the support surface, among any two adjacent first and second pyramids, the bottom of the first pyramid has a first side facing the second pyramid, the bottom of the second pyramid has a second side facing the first pyramid, and there is no gap between the first side and the second side.

[0009] In an example embodiment of the present disclosure, the first light extinction structure includes a first structure layer and a second structure layer parallel to the support surface, the first structure layer is located at any position on the side of the second structure layer away from the support surface, and the orthographic projection of the first structure layer on the support surface is located within the orthographic projection of the second structure layer on the support surface.

[0010] In an example embodiment of the present disclosure, the light extinction structure includes the second light extinction structure, the second light extinction structure includes: a conductive layer located on one side of the support surface; and a semi-permeable membrane layer covering the conductive layer on the side of the conductive layer away from the support surface; wherein the light transmittance of the semi-permeable membrane layer on the side away from the conductive layer is greater than the light transmittance on the side facing the conductive layer.

[0011] In an example embodiment of the present disclosure, the refractive index of the conductive layer is greater than the refractive index of the semi-permeable membrane layer.

[0012] In an example embodiment of the present disclosure, the semi-permeable membrane layer includes a plurality of inorganic layers, and the inorganic layers include one or more of a niobium oxide layer, a silicon oxide layer, and a silicon nitride layer.

[0013] In the example embodiments of the present disclosure, the second light extinction structure comprises a first component, the first component comprises a third structure layer and a fourth structure layer parallel to the support surface, the third structure layer is located at any position on the side of the fourth structure layer away from the support surface, and the third structure layer in the orthographic projection of the support surface overlaps the fourth structure layer in the orthographic projection of the support surface; or the second light extinction structure comprises a first component and a second component, the first component is located on the side of the second component away from the support surface, the first component comprises a fifth structure layer and a sixth structure layer parallel to the support surface, the fifth structure layer is located at any position on the side of the sixth structure layer away from the second component, and the fifth structure layer in the orthographic projection of the support surface is located within the sixth structure layer in the orthographic projection of the support surface; the second component comprises a seventh structure layer and an eighth structure layer, the seventh structure layer is located at any position on the side of the eighth structure layer away from the support surface, and the seventh structure layer in the orthographic projection of the support surface overlaps the eighth structure layer in the orthographic projection of the support surface; wherein the first component comprises the conductive layer and the semi-transparent membrane layer, and the second component comprises the conductive layer.

[0014] In the example embodiments of the present disclosure, the thickness of the semi-transparent membrane layer is less than the thickness of the conductive layer; the material of the light absorption layer comprises one or more of aluminum oxide, zirconium oxide, and silicon carbide ceramic; and the material of the conductive layer comprises at least one of light-conducting glass, plastic, and transparent ceramic.

[0015] According to the second aspect of the present disclosure, a display substrate is also provided, which is prepared using the exposure device of any of the example embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0016] The exposure device provided by the present disclosure is provided with a light extinction structure on the carrier body, the light extinction structure is arranged between adjacent support columns, the light extinction structure can absorb the light incident between the support columns after multiple light path conversions, so that the light incident between the support columns will not be reflected, thereby avoiding the generation of a gray area at the edge of the pattern in the gap area between the support columns, eliminating the difference in exposure amount between the edge of the pattern in the gap area and the edge of the pattern in the area of the support column 200, and eliminating the problem of display unevenness caused by the difference in exposure amount of the display substrate processed by the exposure device, i.e., eliminating the mura phenomenon caused by the carrier, and improving the product qualification rate.

[0017] It should be understood that the above general description and the following detailed description are only exemplary and explanatory, and cannot limit the present disclosure. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0018] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and form part of this specification, illustrate embodiments consistent with this disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of this disclosure. It is obvious that the drawings described below are merely some embodiments of this disclosure, and those skilled in the art can obtain other drawings based on these drawings without any inventive effort.

[0019] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an exposure apparatus according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0020] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an exposure device in related technologies;

[0021] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an exposure apparatus according to another embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0022] Figures 4a to 4d for Figure 3 A magnified view of a partial extinction structure;

[0023] Figures 5a to 5e This is a top view of a first matte structure according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0024] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an exposure apparatus according to another embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0025] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an exposure apparatus according to another embodiment of the present disclosure. Detailed Implementation

[0026] Exemplary embodiments will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, these exemplary embodiments can be implemented in many forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein; rather, they are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the concept of the exemplary embodiments to those skilled in the art. The same reference numerals in the drawings denote the same or similar structures, and therefore detailed descriptions of them will be omitted. Furthermore, the drawings are merely illustrative of this disclosure and are not necessarily drawn to scale.

[0027] Although relative terms such as "up" and "down" are used in this specification to describe the relative relationship of one component of an icon to another, these terms are used only for convenience, such as according to the orientation of the examples shown in the accompanying drawings. It is understood that if the device of the icon is flipped upside down, the component described as "up" will become the component described as "down." When a structure is "up" of another structure, it may mean that the structure is integrally formed on the other structure, or that the structure is "directly" mounted on the other structure, or that the structure is "indirectly" mounted on the other structure through another structure.

[0028] The terms “a,” “one,” “the,” “the,” and “at least one” are used to indicate the presence of one or more elements / components / etc.; the terms “including” and “having” are used to indicate an open-ended inclusion and to mean that there may be other elements / components / etc. in addition to the listed elements / components / etc.; the terms “first,” “second,” and “third,” etc., are used only as markers and are not a limitation on the number of objects.

[0029] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an exposure apparatus according to one embodiment of the present disclosure, such as... Figure 1 As shown, the exposure equipment is used to prepare a display substrate. The exposure equipment may include a stage body 100, a plurality of support pillars 200 and an extinction structure 300. The stage body 100 has a support surface and a light-absorbing layer. The light-absorbing layer is used to absorb incident light of the target wavelength. The plurality of support pillars 200 are arrayed on the support surface of the stage body 100. The extinction structure 300 is distributed on the support surface of the stage body 100 and located between adjacent support pillars 200. The extinction structure 300 is used to perform multiple optical path conversions on the light incident on its surface to absorb the incident light, and the height of the extinction structure 300 is less than or equal to the height of the support pillars 200.

[0030] The exposure apparatus provided in this disclosure has an extinction structure 300 on the stage body 100. The extinction structure 300 is disposed between adjacent support pillars 200. The extinction structure 300 can absorb the light incident between the support pillars 200 after multiple optical path conversions, so that the light incident between the support pillars 200 will not be reflected. This can avoid the generation of gray areas at the pattern edges in the gap area between the support pillars, thereby eliminating the difference in exposure between the pattern edges in the gap area and the pattern edges in the support pillar 200 area. This eliminates the problem of uneven display caused by exposure difference in the display substrate processed by the exposure apparatus, that is, eliminates the mura phenomenon caused by the stage and improves the product yield.

[0031] The support column 200 on the stage body 100 is used to support the display substrate to be prepared, so that after the display substrate is prepared, the display substrate can be conveniently removed from the exposure device. If there is no support column 200, a vacuum adsorption will be formed between the display substrate and the support surface of the stage body 100, and it will be difficult to remove the prepared display substrate from the exposure device. It can be understood that the support surface of the present disclosure is the surface of the stage body 100 facing the exposure light source side.

[0032] As shown in Figure 1 The lower surface of the display substrate directly contacts the support column 200, so that there is no air medium or a very small amount of air medium between the support column 200 and the display substrate, and thus in the area of the support column 200, most of the incident light is absorbed by the light-absorbing layer, and only a small part of the light is reflected.

[0033] The height of the light extinction structure 300 is less than or equal to the height of the support column 200, so as to prevent the light extinction structure 300 from being too high to contact the display substrate and affect the display substrate, and to avoid unnecessary adsorption force between the light extinction structure 300 and the display substrate due to contact, thereby increasing the difficulty of removing the display substrate.

[0034] The surface of the support surface and the support column 200 of the present disclosure is covered with a light-absorbing layer, which can be understood as a film layer structure capable of absorbing incident light. Considering that the incident light here is light with a target wavelength generated by an exposure light source, the light-absorbing layer described in the present disclosure can be further understood as a film layer structure capable of absorbing incident light with a target wavelength generated by an exposure light source.

[0035] Under the action of the light-absorbing layer, part of the light incident on the support surface will be absorbed and part will be reflected in the gap area between the support columns 200. Because there is air medium in this area, a gray area will be formed around the pattern light shielding part under the influence of the air medium. Figure 2 The gray area in the B' area is actually a weakening of the actual exposure amount after the light is diffracted and irradiated to the light shielding area, and part of the area is weakly exposed to cause Pattern missing or abnormal characteristics, and because the degree of light curing of the material is different, the development intensity is uneven, and the missing degree also changes. Because the gray area will cause a significant difference in exposure amount between the gap area between the support columns and the area of the support column, it will directly cause the pattern parameter to change, which may include, for example, line width change, line spacing change, shape change, etc., thereby causing the pattern difference between the area directly opposite the support column 200 and the gap area between the support columns to be obvious, resulting in the prepared display substrate having a mura (display unevenness) problem, thereby reducing the preparation qualification rate of the display substrate. It should be understood that Figure 2The middle mask is only used to illustrate the principle of generating the gray area. In actual cases, the mask can cover the entire display substrate, or as shown in Figure 2 The display substrate is not particularly limited in the present disclosure.

[0036] The present disclosure sets up light-absorbing structure 300 in the gap area between support columns 200. Light-absorbing structure 300 can convert the optical path of incident light multiple times through its specific optical structure and finally absorb most of the incident light, i.e., eliminate the gray area formed by the air medium in the gap area between support columns 200, i.e., eliminate the gray area B' area in Figure 2 , so that the exposure amount of the gap area and the exposure amount of the support column 200 area converge. In this way, the display substrate prepared by the exposure device can avoid mura problems, and the preparation qualification rate of the display substrate can be improved. For the specific structure of light-absorbing structure 300 and its working principle, please refer to the subsequent embodiments, which will not be expanded here.

[0037] The support column 200 area in the present disclosure can be understood as the area facing the support column 200 in the thickness direction of the support column 200, that is, the area covered by the orthogonal projection of the support column 200 on the support surface. Similarly, the gap area between the support columns 200 can be understood as the area facing the gap between the support columns 200 in the thickness direction of the support column 200, that is, the area covered by the orthogonal projection of the adjacent two support columns 200 on the support surface.

[0038] In the exemplary embodiments, the material of the light-absorbing layer can include one or more of aluminum oxide, zirconium oxide, and silicon carbide ceramic. Further, the light-absorbing layer can be a single film layer formed of the above-mentioned materials or a composite film layer formed of the above-mentioned materials. For example, the light-absorbing layer can be a film layer formed of aluminum oxide and / or a film layer formed of zirconium oxide and / or a film layer formed of silicon carbide ceramic. For another example, the light-absorbing layer can also be a composite film layer formed of aluminum oxide, zirconium oxide, and silicon carbide, etc.

[0039] Figure 3 FIG. 2 is a structural schematic diagram of an exposure device according to another embodiment of the present disclosure, Figures 4a to 4d Figure 3 FIG. 3 is a partial enlarged view of the light-absorbing structure in FIG. 2, in which the arrows represent light rays, as shown in Figure 3 Figures 4a to 4d In the exemplary embodiments, the light-absorbing structure 300 can include a plurality of first light-absorbing structures 310, which are periodically arrayed on the support surface, and the surface of the first light-absorbing structure 310 is covered with a light-absorbing layer, the bottom surface of the first light-absorbing structure 310 contacts the support surface, and the first light-absorbing structure 310 has a first included angle a between the sidewall and the bottom surface, and the range of the first included angle a is 45°≤a<90°.

[0040] ​​The first extinction structure 310 can be a cone-shaped structure with a light-absorbing layer covering its surface. This ensures that most of the light incident on the first extinction structure 310 is absorbed by the light-absorbing layer, while a small portion is reflected by the sidewalls of the cone-shaped structure. The first included angle α is in the range of 45°≤α<90°, preferably 72°≤α<90°. This ensures that when light is incident on the sidewalls of the first extinction structure 310, the light reflected from the sidewalls of the cone-shaped structure will be incident on the adjacent first extinction structure 310 in the direction of the stage body 100, rather than being reflected in a direction away from the stage body 100. This further reduces the amount of light reflected to the display substrate.

[0041] Multiple first extinction structures 310 are periodically arrayed on the support surface, meaning that multiple first extinction structures 310 are periodically arrayed on the support surface. In this exemplary embodiment, periodic arrangement can be understood as the first extinction structures 310 being arranged at least in a certain direction (e.g., Figure 3 The first extinction structures 310 are arranged at equal intervals (in the X direction, or other directions). The arrangement period of the first extinction structures 310 is the center-to-center distance between adjacent first extinction structures 310. Figure 4a The center distance m between adjacent first extinction structures 310 in the periodic arrangement direction is defined as follows:

[0042] After light is reflected to the adjacent first extinction structure 310, most of the light is absorbed by the adjacent first extinction structure 310, and a small portion of the light is reflected to the adjacent first extinction structure 310 again. After multiple reflections and absorptions, the array of first extinction structures 310 absorbs the vast majority of the incident light. As a result, the light absorption rate of the gap region between the support pillars 200 is comparable to the light absorption rate of the support pillar 200 region, thereby resolving the difference in exposure of the gap region to the pattern edge and the support pillar 200 region to the pattern edge.

[0043] Specifically, such as Figure 3 As shown, the matting structure 300 is formed by arranging multiple cone-shaped first matting structures 310, with a first included angle α between the sidewall of the cone and the supporting surface of the platform. Figure 4c and Figure 4d As shown, when the exposed light ray a is vertically downward and reaches the side wall of the first vertebra (i.e., the inclined surface in the figure), most of the light is absorbed due to the light-absorbing layer on the surface of the vertebra. The unabsorbed light ray b is reflected to the adjacent second vertebra. Under the action of the light-absorbing layer on the surface of the second vertebra, most of the light ray b is absorbed, and the remaining unabsorbed part is reflected as light ray c. After multiple absorption, reflection, and reabsorption processes, all the light is absorbed.

[0044] In the example embodiment, the first included angle between the side wall of the vertebral body and the supporting surface is 45°≤a<90°, preferably, when the first included angle is 72°≤a<90°, the second included angle β between the reflected light b formed by the light a incident to the surface of the first vertebral body and the surface of the second vertebral body is <90°, so that the light b is not reflected upward (i.e. reflected toward the direction of the substrate) but is reflected downward as shown by the light c, thereby ensuring that the light is finally absorbed after multiple absorption and reflection via the first light-absorbing structure 310, and the effect is better. Figure 4c and Figure 4d As shown in the figure, when the first included angle is 45°≤a<60°, the light is absorbed twice by the light-absorbing layer of the surface of the adjacent two first light-absorbing structures 310 after reflection, and the reflected light is toward the display substrate, because the light intensity is greatly reduced after the light is absorbed by the light-absorbing layer once, therefore, as shown in the figure, the first light-absorbing structure 310 can eliminate the gray area after absorbing the light twice, and compared with the prior art without light-absorbing structure, the pattern uniformity of the display substrate can be improved.

[0045] As shown in the figure, when the first included angle is 45°≤a<60°, the light is absorbed twice by the light-absorbing layer of the surface of the adjacent two first light-absorbing structures 310 after reflection, and the reflected light is toward the display substrate, because the light intensity is greatly reduced after the light is absorbed by the light-absorbing layer once, therefore, as shown in the figure, the first light-absorbing structure 310 can eliminate the gray area after absorbing the light twice, and compared with the prior art without light-absorbing structure, the pattern uniformity of the display substrate can be improved. Figure 4a Figure 4a As shown in the figure, when the first included angle is 45°≤a<60°, the light is absorbed twice by the light-absorbing layer of the surface of the adjacent two first light-absorbing structures 310 after reflection, and the reflected light is toward the display substrate, because the light intensity is greatly reduced after the light is absorbed by the light-absorbing layer once, therefore, as shown in the figure, the first light-absorbing structure 310 can eliminate the gray area after absorbing the light twice, and compared with the prior art without light-absorbing structure, the pattern uniformity of the display substrate can be improved.

[0046] As shown in the figure, when the first included angle is 60°≤a<72°, the adjacent two first light-absorbing structures 310 are the first vertebral body 311 and the second vertebral body 312 respectively, at this time, the second included angle β between the reflected light b formed by the light a incident to the side wall of the first vertebral body 311 and the side wall of the second vertebral body 312 is 90°, so that the light is reflected back to the first vertebral body 311, which can also eliminate the gray area and improve the pattern uniformity of the display substrate. Figure 4b As shown in the figure, when the first included angle is 60°≤a<72°, the adjacent two first light-absorbing structures 310 are the first vertebral body 311 and the second vertebral body 312 respectively, at this time, the second included angle β between the reflected light b formed by the light a incident to the side wall of the first vertebral body 311 and the side wall of the second vertebral body 312 is 90°, so that the light is reflected back to the first vertebral body 311, which can also eliminate the gray area and improve the pattern uniformity of the display substrate.

[0047] Figure 4c As shown in the figure, when the first included angle is 72°≤a<77°, the adjacent two first light-absorbing structures 310 are the first vertebral body 311 and the second vertebral body 312 respectively, at this time, the second included angle β between the reflected light b formed by the light a incident to the side wall of the first vertebral body 311 and the side wall of the second vertebral body 312 is <90°, so that the light b is reflected downward to form the light c, at this time, the included angle between the light c and the side wall of the first vertebral body 311 is 90°, in this way, the light a is absorbed three times by the adjacent two first light-absorbing structures 310, which significantly improves the absorption effect of the light, thereby effectively eliminating the influence of the gray area and improving the uniformity of the support column area and the gap area between the support columns.

[0048] As shown in the figure, when the first included angle is 72°≤a<77°, the adjacent two first light-absorbing structures 310 are the first vertebral body 311 and the second vertebral body 312 respectively, at this time, the second included angle β between the reflected light b formed by the light a incident to the side wall of the first vertebral body 311 and the side wall of the second vertebral body 312 is <90°, so that the light b is reflected downward to form the light c, at this time, the included angle between the light c and the side wall of the first vertebral body 311 is 90°, in this way, the light a is absorbed three times by the adjacent two first light-absorbing structures 310, which significantly improves the absorption effect of the light, thereby effectively eliminating the influence of the gray area and improving the uniformity of the support column area and the gap area between the support columns. Figure 4d ​​In the case where the first included angle is 77°≤α<90°, the two adjacent first extinction structures 310 are the first cone 311 and the second cone 312, respectively. At this time, the second included angle β between the reflected ray b formed by the incident ray a on the side wall of the first cone 311 and the side wall of the second cone 312 is β<90°, so the ray b is reflected downward to form the ray c. The ray c is reflected by the side wall of the first cone 311 to form the ray d, which is then incident on the second cone 312. The included angle between the ray d and the side wall of the second cone 312 is the critical angle of 90°. Thus, the ray a is absorbed four times by the two adjacent first extinction structures 310, compared to... Figure 4c The structure can further enhance the absorption of light, thereby more effectively eliminating gray areas and improving the uniformity of the support column area and the gap area between the support columns.

[0049] Therefore, in summary Figures 4a to 4d It is understood that in this exemplary embodiment, the range of the first included angle is 45°≤α<90°. Preferably, when the first included angle is 72°≤α<90°, the light is absorbed at least three times, thus effectively improving the light absorption effect and eliminating the gray area at the edge of the pattern, thereby effectively improving the uniformity of the display substrate in the support pillar area and the gap area between the support pillars.

[0050] like Figure 4c As shown in this exemplary embodiment, the first extinction structure 310 includes a first structural layer 301 and a second structural layer 302 parallel to the support surface. The first structural layer 301 is located at any position on the side of the second structural layer 302 away from the support surface, and the orthographic projection of the first structural layer 301 on the support surface lies within the orthographic projection of the second structural layer 302 on the support surface. Thus, the first extinction structure 310 forms a structure that is narrow at the top and wide at the bottom, with a vertex on its top surface. It is understood that when the cone-shaped structure forms a structure that is wide at the top and narrow at the bottom, the first extinction structure 310 will have a top surface. This means that incident light will be reflected when it hits the top surface, thereby weakening the light absorption efficiency of the extinction structure 300 and thus reducing the effect of reducing exposure differences. In this exemplary embodiment, by forming a structure that is narrow at the top and wide at the bottom, and by forming a vertex at the top without a top surface, the incident light is irradiated onto the sidewall of the cone. After multiple absorptions and reflections through the above process, the incident light is effectively absorbed.

[0051] Figures 5a to 5e This is a top view of a first matte structure according to an embodiment of the present disclosure, such as... Figures 5a to 5e As shown, in an exemplary embodiment, the orthographic projection of the first matting structure 310 onto the support surface can be one or more of a circle, a triangle, and a polygon. The polygon can have four or more sides. Figure 5aAs shown, when the orthographic projection of the first matting structure 310 on the supporting surface is a circle, the first matting structure 310 is a conical structure that is narrow at the top and wide at the bottom. For example... Figure 5b As shown, when the orthographic projection of the first matting structure 310 on the supporting surface is a triangle, the first matting structure 310 is a triangular pyramid structure that is narrow at the top and wide at the bottom. For example... Figure 5c As shown, when the orthographic projection of the first matting structure 310 onto the supporting surface is a quadrilateral, the first matting structure 310 is a square pyramidal structure. For example... Figure 5e As shown, when the orthographic projection of the first matting structure 310 onto the support surface is a hexagon, the first matting structure 310 is a hexagonal pyramid structure. Of course, in other embodiments, the orthographic projection of the first matting structure 310 onto the support surface can also be other structures, which will not be described in detail here.

[0052] In this exemplary embodiment, to further improve the light absorption efficiency and reduce light reflection, the first extinction structures 310 are arranged closely together. Specifically, when the orthographic projection of the first extinction structure 310 on the support surface is circular, the orthographic projections of any two adjacent first extinction structures 310 on the support surface are tangent, thus any two adjacent conical bases are in direct contact. Under this structure, the period m between two adjacent first extinction structures 310 is the sum of the radii r of the circular bases of the two first extinction structures 310.

[0053] Furthermore, when the first extinction structure 310 is conical, the first extinction structure 310 can be configured according to... Figure 5a The first matting structures 310 are arranged in the manner shown, i.e., the first matting structures 310 are orthogonally arranged along the row and column directions, i.e., the multiple first matting structures 310 are generally arranged in a rectangular distribution. The line connecting the center of the orthogonal projection of one conical cone on the support surface and the center of the orthogonal projection of another adjacent cone on the support surface in the row direction extends along the row direction, and the line connecting the center of the orthogonal projection of one cone on the support surface and the center of the orthogonal projection of another adjacent cone on the support surface in the column direction extends along the column direction.

[0054] Alternatively, the first extinction structure 310 can be configured as follows: Figure 5d The arrangement is as shown, meaning the first extinction structures 310 are sequentially distributed in the row direction and staggered in the column direction, or sequentially distributed in the column direction and staggered in the row direction. (Comparison) Figure 5a and Figure 5dAs can be seen, by staggering the first light extinction structure 310 in the row direction or the column direction, the gap between the first light extinction structure 310 can be further reduced, so that the first light extinction structure 310 is more compact. As can be understood, the greater the gap between the first light extinction structure 310, the more light is reflected, and correspondingly, the effect of balancing the exposure amount of the gap area between the support columns 200 and the exposure amount of the support column 200 area is reduced. In the present exemplary embodiment, in order to sufficiently balance the exposure amount of the gap area between the support columns 200 and the exposure amount of the support column 200 area and eliminate the gray area effect, when the first light extinction structure 310 is a circular cone, the arrangement shown in FIG. 10 can be preferentially selected. Figure 5d

[0055] As shown in Figure 5b , Figure 5c and Figure 5e , when the orthographic projection of the first light extinction structure 310 on the support surface is a triangle or a polygon, in any adjacent first and second vertebrae, the bottom of the first vertebrae has a first side facing the second vertebrae, and the bottom of the second vertebrae has a second side facing the first vertebrae, and there is no gap between the first side and the second side. In other words, when the first light extinction structure 310 is a triangular pyramid or a polygonal pyramid, any two adjacent first light extinction structures 310 are in contact through the edges of their bottoms, and the bottom edges of the two vertebrae are in close contact, so that there is no gap between the first light extinction structures 310, so that the first light extinction structures 310 are more compact, achieving the purpose of balancing the exposure amount of the support column 200 area and the gap area between the support columns 200. As can be understood, when the polygonal pyramid is a quadrangular pyramid or a hexagonal pyramid, the above-mentioned close arrangement of adjacent two first light extinction structures 310 can be easily achieved, reducing the difficulty of arrangement.

[0056] Figure 6 For the structure of the exposure apparatus according to another embodiment of the present disclosure, as shown in Figure 6 , in the exemplary embodiment, the light extinction structure 300 can include a second light extinction structure 320, and the second light extinction structure 320 can include a first component 321, which includes a third structure layer 3203 and a fourth structure layer 3204 parallel to the support surface, the third structure layer 3203 is located at any position on the side of the fourth structure layer 3204 away from the support surface, and the orthographic projection of the third structure layer 3203 on the support surface overlaps the orthographic projection of the fourth structure layer 3204 on the support surface. That is, the second light extinction structure 320 is a structure with equal width from top to bottom. As can be seen from Figures 4a to 4d and Figure 6 , the first light extinction structure 310 and the second light extinction structure 320 have different topographic features.

[0057] As shown in Figure 6 ​As shown, in an exemplary embodiment, the second light-absorbing structure 320 may include a conductive layer 3211 and a semi-permeable membrane layer 3212. The conductive layer 3211 is located on one side of the support surface, and the semi-permeable membrane layer 3212 covers the conductive layer 3211 on the side of the conductive layer 3211 facing away from the support surface. The light transmittance of the semi-permeable membrane layer 3212 on the side facing away from the conductive layer 3211 is greater than the light transmittance on the side facing the conductive layer 3211. The light transmittance of the semipermeable membrane layer 3212 on the side away from the conductive layer 3211 is greater than that on the side facing the conductive layer 3211. This can be understood as follows: when light is incident from the side of the semipermeable membrane layer 3212 away from the conductive layer 3211, the semipermeable membrane layer 3212 exhibits transmission characteristics, meaning that most of the light will pass through the semipermeable membrane layer 3212. However, when light is incident from the side of the semipermeable membrane layer 3212 facing the conductive layer 3211, the semipermeable membrane layer 3212 exhibits reflection characteristics, meaning that most of the light will be reflected by the semipermeable membrane layer 3212. Thus, the light is confined within the conductive layer 3211 by the asymmetric transmission characteristics of the semipermeable membrane layer 3212, and then absorbed by the light-absorbing layer of the supporting surface.

[0058] For example, such as Figure 6 As shown, when light a is incident on the semi-transparent film layer 3212, it will pass through the second function to form light a'. Most of the light a' is absorbed by the light-absorbing layer covering the support surface when it is incident on the support surface. A small number of unabsorbed light b' are reflected to the semi-transparent film layer 3212 and reflected as light c'. In this way, after multiple absorption-reflection-reabsorption, the light intensity can be reduced to a sufficiently low level, so that the exposure of the edge of the pattern in the gap area between the support pillars 200 is similar to the exposure of the edge of the pattern in the support pillar 200 area. That is, the difference between the gray area in the gap area and the gray area in the support pillar 200 area is eliminated, so that the display substrate generated by the exposure equipment does not have the problem of uneven display.

[0059] In the exemplary embodiment, the refractive index of the conductive layer 3211 is greater than that of the semi-permeable film layer 3212. The advantage of this setting is that after the light entering the conductive layer 3211 is reflected by the support surface, some of the light will have an incident angle at the interface between the semi-permeable film layer 3212 and the conductive layer 3211 that is greater than or equal to the critical angle. Because the refractive index of the conductive layer 3211 is greater than that of the semi-permeable film layer 3212, this part of the light can undergo total internal reflection at the interface between the conductive layer 3211 and the semi-permeable film layer 3212, reducing the amount of light transmitted out of the semi-permeable film layer 3212. This allows the extinction structure 300 to fully absorb most of the light, eliminating the difference in exposure between the gap area between the support pillars 200 and the area of ​​the support pillars 200.

[0060] In the example embodiment, the material of the conductive layer 3211 can include, but is not limited to, light-conducting glass, plastic, transparent ceramic, etc., and the conductive layer 3211 can be a multi-layer structure formed of the above-mentioned materials. The thickness of the conductive layer 3211 can be 8 um to 1000 um, for example, 8 um, 100 um, 500 um, 1000 um, etc.

[0061] In the example embodiment, the semi-permeable membrane layer 3212 can include a plurality of inorganic layers, including one or more of a niobium oxide layer, a silicon oxide layer, and a silicon nitride layer. In addition, the semi-permeable membrane layer 3212 can have different membrane layer structures for different wavelengths of light sources. For example, the semi-permeable membrane layer 3212 can be a titanium oxide layer-silicon oxide layer-titanium oxide layer-silicon oxide layer, or a niobium oxide layer-silicon oxide layer-niobium oxide layer-silicon oxide layer, etc.

[0062] In the example embodiment, the semi-permeable membrane layer 3212 can be one or more, i.e., a plurality of semi-permeable membrane layers 3212 can be stacked on the side of the conductive layer 3211 away from the support surface. Generally, the thickness of a single semi-permeable membrane layer 3212 can be greater than or equal to 30 nm, and when the semi-permeable membrane layer 3212 is a plurality, the total thickness of the plurality of semi-permeable membrane layers 3212 can reach the um or mm level. It should be noted that the total height of the second light extinction structure 320 formed by the conductive layer 3211 and the plurality of semi-permeable membrane layers 3212 should not exceed the height of the support column 200.

[0063] Figure 7 For the structure of the exposure apparatus according to still another embodiment of the present disclosure, as shown in Figure 7 In the example embodiment, the second light extinction structure 320 can include a first component 321 and a second component 322, the second component 322 is located between the first component 321 and the support surface, the first component 321 includes a fifth structure layer 3205 and a sixth structure layer 3206 parallel to the support surface, the fifth structure layer 3205 is located at any position on the side of the sixth structure layer 3206 away from the second component 322, and the orthogonal projection of the fifth structure layer 3205 on the support surface is located within the orthogonal projection of the sixth structure layer 3206 on the support surface; the second component 322 includes a seventh structure layer 3207 and an eighth structure layer 3208, the seventh structure layer 3207 is located at any position on the side of the eighth structure layer 3208 away from the support surface, and the orthogonal projection of the seventh structure layer 3207 on the support surface overlaps with the orthogonal projection of the eighth structure layer 3208 on the support surface.

[0064] Specifically, in combination with Figure 6 and Figure 7 , the second light extinction structure 320 in the example embodiment can simultaneously include the first component 321 and the second component 322, and the second light extinction structure 320 can be a multi-layer structure formed by the first component 321 and the second component 322. Figure 6The difference in the structure shown is that, in this exemplary embodiment, the morphology of the first component 321 is different from... Figure 6 The morphology of the first component 321 shown is different; that is, the first component 321 can have the morphological features shown in FIG. 4, namely, a cone-shaped structure that is narrow at the top and wide at the bottom. In addition to the morphological features, the first component 321 in this exemplary embodiment can have Figure 6 All structural features of the first component 321 shown.

[0065] In this exemplary embodiment, the second component 322 has a structure with equal width at the top and bottom, and the second component 322 has only a conductive layer 3211.

[0066] This exemplary embodiment can combine the structure shown in FIG4 and Figure 6 The advantages of the structure shown. Specifically, considering... Figure 6 In the structure shown, the semi-permeable membrane layer 3212 cannot completely transmit light from the outside; a small portion of light is still reflected by the semi-permeable membrane layer 3212. Therefore, by setting the first component 321 as... Figure 7 The cone-shaped structure shown has a surface covered with a semi-permeable membrane layer 3212. The interior of the cone-shaped structure and the second component 322 located below it are made of the same material, which is a conductive layer 3211. This can further improve the light absorption effect in the gap area between the support columns.

[0067] like Figure 7 As shown, when ray a reaches the surface of the vertebral structure, a small portion of the ray is reflected by the semi-permeable membrane layer 3212 as ray b. Because of the angle of the vertebral structure's slope, ray b reaches the adjacent vertebral structure. On the surface of the adjacent vertebral structure, it is similar to... Figure 4c or Figure 4d Based on the principle of optical path, the light is split again, with one part being reflected and the other part refracted into the light-guiding material, and so on, until the light is completely absorbed. This eliminates the exposure differences caused by reflections from different areas of the stage.

[0068] Simultaneously, when ray a reaches the surface of the cone structure, most of the ray is refracted and enters the light-guiding material of the cone structure, denoted as ray a'. Ray a' is reflected by the inner side of the semi-permeable membrane layer 3212 as ray b', and a smaller portion of the ray is refracted again out of the cone structure, denoted as ray b'". Ray b' undergoes multiple reflections within the light-guiding material and is eventually absorbed by the light-absorbing material on the stage surface. Because the refractive index of the conductive layer 3211 is greater than that of the semi-permeable membrane layer 3212, according to the law of refraction, ray b'' will not travel upwards, but will instead propagate downwards at an angle similar to ray b. Consequently, the angle between ray b' and the inclined surface of the adjacent cone structure is smaller, resulting in multiple reflections and refractions between adjacent cone structures, ultimately leading to complete absorption of the ray. This eliminates the exposure differences caused by reflections from different areas of the stage.

[0069] Other embodiments of the disclosure will be apparent to those skilled in the art from consideration of the specification and practice of the features disclosed herein. It is intended that the specification and examples be considered as exemplary only, with a true scope and spirit of the disclosure being indicated by the following claims.

Claims

1. An exposure apparatus, characterized in that, The exposure equipment is used to prepare a display substrate, and the exposure equipment includes: The platform body has a supporting surface; Multiple support pillars are arrayed on the support surface of the stage body, and the support pillars are used to support the display substrate to be prepared; A light-absorbing layer is applied to the support surface and the surface of the support column, and the light-absorbing layer is used to absorb incident light of the target wavelength. An extinction structure is distributed on the support surface of the stage body and located between adjacent support columns. The extinction structure is used to perform multiple optical path conversions on the light incident on its surface for absorption, and the height of the extinction structure is less than or equal to the height of the support column. The matting structure includes a second matting structure, which includes a first component and a second component. The first component is located on the side of the second component away from the support surface. The first component is a cone-shaped structure that is narrow at the top and wide at the bottom. The second component is a structure with equal width at the top and bottom. Any two adjacent cone-shaped structures in the first component are in close contact through the edge of their bottom. The first component includes a conductive layer and a semi-permeable membrane layer, and the second component includes a conductive layer located on one side of the support surface. The semi-permeable membrane layer covers the conductive layer on the side of the conductive layer away from the support surface, and the light transmittance of the semi-permeable membrane layer on the side away from the conductive layer is greater than the light transmittance on the side facing the conductive layer.

2. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that, The extinction structure includes a plurality of first extinction structures; The plurality of first extinction structures are periodically arrayed on the support surface. The surface of the first extinction structure is covered with the light-absorbing layer. The bottom surface of the first extinction structure contacts the support surface, and there is a first included angle ° between the sidewall and the bottom surface of the first extinction structure.

3. The exposure apparatus according to claim 2, characterized in that, The first included angle is in the range of 45°≤α<90°, and the orthographic projection of the first extinction structure onto the support surface is one or more of a circle, a triangle, and a polygon.

4. The exposure apparatus according to claim 3, characterized in that, When the orthographic projection of the first extinction structure onto the support surface is a circle, the orthographic projections of any two adjacent first extinction structures onto the support surface are tangent. or, When the orthographic projection of the first matting structure onto the support surface is a triangle or a polygon, in any adjacent first and second vertebrae, the bottom of the first vertebrae has a first side facing the second vertebrae, and the bottom of the second vertebrae has a second side facing the first vertebrae, with no gap between the first side and the second side.

5. The exposure apparatus according to claim 2, characterized in that, The first matting structure includes a first structural layer and a second structural layer parallel to the support surface. The first structural layer is located at any position on the side of the second structural layer away from the support surface, and the orthographic projection of the first structural layer on the support surface is located within the orthographic projection of the second structural layer on the support surface.

6. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that, The refractive index of the conductive layer is greater than that of the semi-permeable membrane layer.

7. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that, The semi-permeable membrane layer includes multiple inorganic layers, and the inorganic layers include one or more of niobium oxide layer, silicon oxide layer, and silicon nitride layer.

8. The exposure apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that, The first component includes a fifth structural layer and a sixth structural layer parallel to the support surface. The fifth structural layer is located at any position on the side of the sixth structural layer away from the second component, and the orthographic projection of the fifth structural layer on the support surface lies within the orthographic projection of the sixth structural layer on the support surface. The second component includes a seventh structural layer and an eighth structural layer. The seventh structural layer is located at any position on the side of the eighth structural layer away from the support surface, and the orthographic projection of the seventh structural layer on the support surface overlaps with the orthographic projection of the eighth structural layer on the support surface.

9. A display substrate, characterized in that, The display substrate is prepared using the exposure equipment described in any one of claims 1-8.

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