Vapor deposition apparatus and vapor deposition method

Abstract

The application provides an evaporation device and an evaporation method. The device comprises a crucible, a crucible cover, M crucible nozzles and a flow guide device. The crucible is used to generate an evaporation gas. The crucible cover is used to cover the top of the crucible. The M crucible nozzles are arranged on the crucible cover and used to spray the evaporation gas out of the crucible. M is a positive integer. The flow guide device is arranged in the crucible. The flow guide device comprises a flow guide plate and N flow guide pieces. N flow guide holes are arranged on the flow guide plate. The N flow guide pieces are arranged on the flow guide plate through at least two support pieces. The N flow guide pieces are used to adsorb or reflect impurity particles in the evaporation gas passing through the N flow guide holes. N is a positive integer less than or equal to M. The evaporation device can effectively block the impurity particles from being sprayed out of the crucible nozzle, thereby improving the stability and uniformity of the evaporation film layer and improving the performance and yield of the display panel.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of evaporation equipment, and more particularly, to an evaporation device and an evaporation method. BACKGROUND

[0002] Organic light emitting diode (OLED) has fast response time, large viewing angle, high contrast, light weight, low power consumption and other characteristics, and is one of the popular fields of display device research at present. In addition, OLED has unique flexibility, and can be used to manufacture bendable and foldable display screens, which shows great potential in new applications such as wearable devices, flexible electronic devices and curved display devices.

[0003] At present, in the process of preparing an OLED display panel, each layer of organic light emitting material needs to be uniformly evaporated on a substrate, that is, an evaporation device needs to be arranged below the substrate. The evaporation material in the evaporation device is evaporated or gasified after being heated, and is sprayed out of the nozzle of the evaporation device, so that the material is uniformly attached to the substrate to form a high-quality film layer.

[0004] However, in the above process, some organic materials or metal materials may be grayed or partially deteriorated after being heated and evaporated, resulting in impurity particles. These impurity particles and effective materials are evaporated together through the nozzle and deposited on the substrate, which will affect the performance and yield of the display panel. SUMMARY

[0005] The present application provides an evaporation device and an evaporation method, which can effectively block impurity particles from being sprayed out of the crucible nozzle, thereby improving the stability and uniformity of the evaporation film layer and improving the performance and yield of the display panel.

[0006] In a first aspect, an evaporation device is provided, which includes a crucible, a crucible cover, M crucible nozzles and a flow guide device. The crucible is used to generate evaporation gas. The crucible cover is used to cover the top of the crucible. The M crucible nozzles are arranged on the crucible cover and used to spray the evaporation gas out of the crucible. M is a positive integer. The flow guide device is arranged in the crucible. The flow guide device includes a flow guide plate and N flow guide pieces. N flow guide holes are arranged on the flow guide plate. The N flow guide pieces are arranged on the flow guide plate by at least two supporting pieces. The N flow guide pieces are used to adsorb or reflect impurity particles in the evaporation gas passing through the N flow guide holes. N is a positive integer less than or equal to M.

[0007] In the embodiments of the present application, the N flow guides can adsorb and reflect the impurity particles in the evaporation gas passing through the N flow holes, so that the flow guide device can effectively block the impurity particles from being sprayed out of the crucible nozzle, thereby improving the stability and uniformity of the evaporation film layer and improving the performance and yield of the display panel.

[0008] In combination with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, a cross-sectional area of the N flow guides is greater than or equal to a cross-sectional area of the N flow holes.

[0009] In the embodiments of the present application, by setting the sum of the cross-sectional areas of the N flow guides to be greater than or equal to the cross-sectional area of the N flow holes, the N flow guides can more effectively adsorb or reflect the impurity particles in the evaporation gas passing through the N flow holes, thereby improving the stability and uniformity of the evaporation film layer.

[0010] In combination with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the N flow guides include at least one first flow guide, the at least one first flow guide is in the shape of a circular truncated cone, and the circular truncated cone includes a bottom surface and a side surface; the bottom surface is arranged on the flow guide plate by the at least two support pieces, and an included angle between a generatrix of the circular truncated cone and a plane on which the bottom surface is located is less than or equal to 45 degrees.

[0011] In the embodiments of the present application, by setting the at least one first flow guide to be in the shape of a circular truncated cone, the evaporation gas can be adsorbed or reflected by the bottom surface of the circular truncated cone, and on the other hand, the evaporation gas passing through the side surface of the flow guide device can be further adsorbed and reflected by the side surface of the circular truncated cone. In this way, the effect of adsorbing and reflecting the impurity particles by the flow guide device is improved, thereby further improving the performance and yield of the display panel.

[0012] In combination with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, a sum of cross-sectional areas of the N flow holes is greater than or equal to two percent of a cross-sectional area of the flow guide plate.

[0013] In the embodiments of the present application, by setting the sum of the cross-sectional areas of the N flow holes to be greater than or equal to two percent of the cross-sectional area of the flow guide plate, the evaporation time can be shortened, and the evaporation efficiency of the evaporation device can be improved.

[0014] In combination with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, in a case where a cross section of the N flow holes is circular, a length of the at least two support pieces is less than or equal to a radius of the circle, or in a case where the cross section of the N flow holes is polygonal, the length of the at least two support pieces is less than or equal to one half of a diagonal length of the polygon.

[0015] In the embodiments of the present application, the length of the support is set based on the shape of the flow guide hole, which can ensure that the support has good structural strength and stability, prevent the support from bending, deforming or vibrating due to being too long, and thus improve the performance of the entire evaporation device.

[0016] In combination with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the evaporation device is a line source evaporation device, and the cross section of the crucible cover and the flow guide plate is rectangular; the M crucible nozzles are arranged along the length direction of the crucible cover, and the N flow guide holes are arranged along the length direction of the flow guide plate.

[0017] In combination with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the evaporation device is a point source evaporation device, and the cross section of the flow guide plate is circular.

[0018] In combination with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the device further comprises a blocking structure; the blocking structure is arranged above the M crucible nozzles, the blocking structure comprises Q through holes, and the blocking structure is used to block impurity particles in the evaporation gas, where Q is a positive integer.

[0019] In the embodiments of the present application, by arranging the blocking structure above the M crucible nozzles, the blocking structure can further block impurity particles in the evaporation gas, thereby further reducing the probability of impurity particles being deposited together with the effective evaporation material on the substrate, and thus improving the stability and uniformity of the evaporation film layer and the performance and yield of the display panel.

[0020] In combination with the first aspect, in some implementations of the first aspect, the diameter of the Q through holes is greater than or equal to 45 microns and less than or equal to 1000 microns.

[0021] In the embodiments of the present application, by setting the diameter of the Q through holes in the blocking structure, the performance of the blocking structure can be controlled, so that the blocking structure can be applicable to different application scenarios.

[0022] Secondly, an evaporation method is provided, which comprises: evaporating or gasifying a material using the evaporation device in any one of the implementations of the first aspect, the material comprising an organic material and / or a metal material. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0023] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a line source evaporation device provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0024] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a point source evaporation device provided by the embodiments of the present application;

[0025] Figure 3These are a front view and a top view of a first guide member provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0026] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of a line source vapor deposition apparatus provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0027] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of a flow guiding device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0028] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of a point source evaporation deposition apparatus provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0029] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of another flow guiding device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0030] Figure 8 This is a schematic diagram of the blocking structure provided in the embodiments of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0031] In the description of the embodiments of this application, unless otherwise stated, " / " means "or", for example, A / B can mean A or B; "and / or" in this document is merely a description of the relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can represent: A existing alone, A and B existing simultaneously, and B existing alone. In this application, "at least one" means one or more, and "more" means two or more. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or multiple items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c can represent: a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, or abc, where a, b, and c can be single or multiple.

[0032] The use of prefixes such as "first" and "second" in this application embodiment is solely for distinguishing different descriptive objects and does not limit the position, order, priority, quantity, or content of the described objects. The use of ordinal numbers and other prefixes to distinguish descriptive objects in this application embodiment does not constitute a limitation on the described objects. The description of the described objects is found in the claims or the context of the embodiments, and the use of such prefixes should not constitute unnecessary restrictions.

[0033] The technical solutions in this application will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0034] OLEDs are currently one of the hottest research areas in display devices due to their fast response time, wide viewing angle, high contrast, light weight, and low power consumption. Furthermore, their unique flexibility allows for the manufacture of bendable and foldable displays, which gives them great potential in new applications such as wearable devices, flexible electronic devices, and curved display devices.

[0035] Currently, in the fabrication of OLED display panels, it is necessary to uniformly deposit each layer of organic light-emitting materials onto a substrate. This requires a deposition apparatus located beneath the substrate. The deposition material within the apparatus is heated and evaporated or vaporized, then ejected from the nozzles of the apparatus, ensuring uniform adhesion of the material to the substrate to form a high-quality film. For example, ... Figure 1 As shown, the line-source vapor deposition apparatus includes a crucible 101, a crucible lid 102, and a crucible nozzle 103. Multiple vapor deposition chambers can be arranged within the crucible for storing and heating the vapor deposition material. The crucible lid seals the crucible. During vapor deposition, the vapor deposition material in the multiple vapor deposition chambers is heated. Upon heating, the vapor deposition material can evaporate or vaporize into vapor deposition gas. This vapor deposition gas is ejected through the crucible nozzle, thereby depositing the vapor deposition material onto the substrate. Alternatively, for example, a similar apparatus can be used... Figure 2 The point source evaporation apparatus shown performs evaporation. Compared with the line source evaporation apparatus, the main advantages of the point source evaporation apparatus include: high material utilization, strong uniformity control, suitability for small area high-precision deposition, flexible multilayer structure manufacturing, and reduced substrate heat load.

[0036] However, in use Figure 1 and Figure 2 During the vapor deposition process in the illustrated apparatus, some organic or metallic materials may undergo ashing (i.e., residues left after material combustion or decomposition) or partial deterioration (change in chemical composition) after evaporation, producing impurity particles. These impurity particles, along with the effective material, are evaporated through the nozzle and deposited onto the substrate, affecting the performance and yield of the display panel. For example, these impurity particles may cause areas on the display surface that cannot emit light or shine normally, affecting the user's visual experience. Furthermore, for metallic materials, high evaporation temperatures may cause boiling. These splashed metal particles may be ejected along with the vapor deposition gas as they pass through the crucible nozzle, ultimately depositing onto the substrate and affecting the uniformity of the deposition layer. Additionally, the varying heating rates at different locations on the crucible and the different material ejection rates from the nozzles at different positions may also affect the uniformity and stability of the film.

[0037] This application provides a vapor deposition apparatus and a vapor deposition method. The vapor deposition apparatus can effectively block impurity particles from being ejected from the crucible nozzle, thereby improving the stability and uniformity of the vapor-deposited film and improving the performance and yield of the display panel.

[0038] An evaporation apparatus provided in this application includes: a crucible 101, a crucible cover 102, M crucible nozzles 103, and a flow guiding device. The crucible 101 is used to generate evaporation gas, the crucible cover 102 is used to cover the top of the crucible 101, and the M crucible nozzles 103 are disposed on the crucible cover 102 to allow the evaporation gas to be ejected from the crucible 101, where M is a positive integer. The flow guiding device is disposed in the crucible 101 and includes: a flow guiding plate 104 and N flow guiding elements 105. The flow guiding plate 104 has N flow guiding holes 106, and the N flow guiding elements 105 are disposed on the flow guiding plate 104 by at least two support members 107. The N flow guiding elements 105 are used to adsorb or reflect impurity particles in the evaporation gas passing through the N flow guiding holes 106, where N is a positive integer less than or equal to M.

[0039] Optionally, the vapor deposition apparatus can be a line source vapor deposition apparatus, or the vapor deposition apparatus can be a point source vapor deposition apparatus.

[0040] Optionally, the N guide holes 106 can be of any shape. For example, the cross-section of the N guide holes 106 can be circular, polygonal, etc.

[0041] Optionally, the N flow guides 105 can be of any shape; for example, the cross-sections of the N flow guides 105 can be circular, polygonal, etc. Further optionally, the shapes of the N flow guides 105 are the same as the shapes of the N flow guide holes 106.

[0042] Optionally, the dimensions of the N guide holes 106 can be the same or different. The dimensions of the N guide holes 106 can be set according to the actual vapor deposition needs. For example, in an online source vapor deposition apparatus, if the rate of material evaporation or vaporization in the first vapor deposition chamber is greater than that in the second vapor deposition chamber, then the size of the first guide hole corresponding to the first vapor deposition chamber can be greater than the size of the second guide hole corresponding to the second vapor deposition chamber, so that the size of the guide holes 106 is adapted to the vapor deposition efficiency of the vapor deposition chamber. The N guide holes 106 include the aforementioned first guide hole and second guide hole.

[0043] Alternatively, the guide plate 104 can be fixed inside the crucible 101 in a variety of different ways, including: bolt and screw fixing, welding fixing, snap-on and slot fixing, magnetic fixing, clamping structure fixing, pin fixing, or suspension fixing.

[0044] In this embodiment, since the N flow guides 105 can adsorb and reflect impurity particles in the vapor deposition gas passing through the N flow guide holes 106, the flow guide device can effectively block impurity particles from being ejected from the crucible nozzle 103, thereby improving the stability and uniformity of the vapor deposition film and improving the performance and yield of the display panel.

[0045] In one possible implementation, the cross-sectional area of ​​the N guide elements 105 is greater than or equal to the cross-sectional area of ​​the N guide holes 106.

[0046] In this embodiment, by setting the cross-sectional area of ​​the N flow guides 105 to be greater than or equal to the cross-sectional area of ​​the N flow guide holes 106, the N flow guides 105 can more effectively adsorb or reflect impurity particles in the vapor deposition gas passing through the N flow guide holes 106, thereby improving the stability and uniformity of the vapor deposition film.

[0047] In one possible implementation, the N flow guides 105 include at least one first flow guide, which is in the shape of a frustum, the frustum including a bottom surface and a side surface; the bottom surface is disposed on the flow guide plate 104 by at least two support members 107, and the angle between the generatrix of the frustum and the plane containing the bottom surface is less than or equal to 45 degrees.

[0048] Optionally, the frustum may include a top surface, and the area of ​​the base of the frustum is smaller than the area of ​​the top surface.

[0049] Alternatively, the frustum may not include a top surface; in this case, the interior of the frustum may be openwork. For example, as shown... Figure 3 As shown, the first flow guide is in the shape of a frustum, which includes a bottom surface and a side surface. The bottom surface is set on the flow guide plate 104 by two support members 107. The angle between the generatrix of the frustum and the plane containing the bottom surface is α, where α is less than or equal to 45 degrees. The frustum does not include the top surface. Therefore, the area enclosed by the bottom surface and the side surface of the frustum is a hollow area.

[0050] In this embodiment, by setting at least one first flow guide to a frustum shape, the vapor deposition gas can be adsorbed or reflected by the bottom surface of the frustum. On the other hand, the vapor deposition gas passing through the side of the flow guide can be further adsorbed and reflected by the side of the frustum. In this way, the effect of the flow guide in adsorbing and reflecting impurity particles is improved, thereby further improving the performance and yield of the display panel.

[0051] In one possible implementation, the sum of the cross-sectional areas of the N guide holes 106 is greater than or equal to two percent of the cross-sectional area of ​​the guide plate 104.

[0052] In this embodiment of the application, by setting the sum of the cross-sectional areas of the N guide holes 106 to be greater than or equal to two percent of the cross-sectional area of ​​the guide plate 104, the evaporation time can be shortened and the evaporation efficiency of the evaporation device can be improved.

[0053] In one possible implementation, if the cross-section of the N guide holes 106 is circular, the length of at least two support members 107 is less than or equal to the radius of the circle; or if the cross-section of the N guide holes 106 is polygonal, the length of at least two support members 107 is less than or equal to half the length of the diagonal of the polygon.

[0054] In this embodiment, the length of the support member 107 is set based on the shape of the guide hole 106, which can ensure that the support member 107 has good structural strength and stability, and prevent problems such as bending, deformation or vibration caused by excessive length of the support member 107, thereby improving the performance of the entire vapor deposition apparatus.

[0055] In one possible implementation, the vapor deposition apparatus is a line source vapor deposition apparatus, and the cross-section of the crucible cover 102 and the guide plate 104 is rectangular; M crucible nozzles 103 are arranged along the length direction of the crucible cover 102, and N guide holes 106 are arranged along the length direction of the guide plate 104.

[0056] For example, the structures of the line source evaporation device and the flow guiding device can be respectively as follows: Figure 4 and Figure 5 As shown, in this case, M = N = 10.

[0057] In one possible implementation, the vapor deposition apparatus is a point source vapor deposition apparatus, and the cross-section of the guide plate 104 is circular.

[0058] For example, the structures of the point source evaporation device and the flow guiding device can be respectively as follows: Figure 6 and Figure 7 As shown, in this case, M=1 and N=6.

[0059] In one possible implementation, the vapor deposition apparatus further includes a blocking structure disposed above the M crucible nozzles 103. The blocking structure includes Q through holes and is used to block impurity particles in the vapor deposition gas, where Q is a positive integer.

[0060] Optionally, the blocking structure includes a plate and a bracket, the plate including Q through holes, and the plate being fixed above M crucible nozzles 103 by the bracket.

[0061] Optionally, the diameter of the Q vias is greater than or equal to 45 micrometers and less than or equal to 1000 micrometers. For example, as... Figure 8 As shown, an Inver36 substrate with a thickness of 20 micrometers can be etched to make the diameter of Q vias reach 45 micrometers.

[0062] In this embodiment, by providing a blocking structure above the M crucible nozzles 103, the blocking structure can further block impurity particles in the vapor deposition gas, further reducing the probability of impurity particles being deposited on the substrate along with the effective vapor deposition material, thereby improving the stability and uniformity of the vapor deposition film layer and improving the performance and yield of the display panel.

[0063] This application also provides a vapor deposition method, which includes: evaporating or vaporizing a material using a vapor deposition apparatus in any of the above embodiments, the material including organic materials and / or metallic materials.

[0064] Optionally, the vapor deposition apparatus can be Figure 4 or Figure 6 The vapor deposition apparatus shown.

[0065] This is a specific embodiment of the present application, but the scope of protection of the present application is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the scope of the technology disclosed in this application should be included within the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application should be determined by the scope of protection of the stated claims.

Claims

1. A vapor deposition apparatus, characterized in that, The device includes: a crucible, a crucible lid, M crucible nozzles, and a flow guiding device. The crucible is used to generate vapor deposition gas, the crucible lid is used to cover the top of the crucible, and the M crucible nozzles are disposed on the crucible lid to allow the vapor deposition gas to be ejected from the crucible. M is a positive integer. The flow guiding device is disposed in the crucible and includes: a flow guiding plate and N flow guiding elements. The flow guiding plate has N flow guiding holes. The N flow guiding elements are disposed on the flow guiding plate by at least two support members. The N flow guiding elements are used to adsorb impurity particles in the vapor deposition gas passing through the N flow guiding holes. N is a positive integer less than or equal to M. The N flow guides include at least one first flow guide, which is in the shape of a frustum. The frustum includes a bottom surface, a side surface, and a top surface, and the area of ​​the bottom surface is smaller than the area of ​​the top surface. The bottom surface is mounted on the guide plate by the at least two support members, and the angle between the generatrix of the frustum and the plane containing the bottom surface is less than or equal to 45 degrees.

2. The vapor deposition apparatus as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The cross-sectional area of ​​the N flow guides is greater than or equal to the cross-sectional area of ​​the N flow guide holes.

3. The vapor deposition apparatus as described in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The sum of the cross-sectional areas of the N guide holes is greater than or equal to two percent of the cross-sectional area of ​​the guide plate.

4. The vapor deposition apparatus as described in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, When the cross-section of the N guide holes is circular, the length of at least two support members is less than or equal to the radius of the circle, or When the cross-section of the N guide holes is a polygon, the length of the at least two support members is less than or equal to half the length of the diagonal of the polygon.

5. The vapor deposition apparatus as described in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The vapor deposition apparatus is a line source vapor deposition apparatus, and the cross-sections of the crucible cover and the guide plate are rectangular; The M crucible nozzles are arranged along the length of the crucible cover, and the N guide holes are arranged along the length of the guide plate.

6. The vapor deposition apparatus as described in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The vapor deposition device is a point source vapor deposition device, and the cross-section of the guide plate is circular.

7. The vapor deposition apparatus as described in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that, The device also includes a blocking structure; The blocking structure is disposed above the M crucible nozzles. The blocking structure includes Q through holes and is used to block impurity particles in the vapor deposition gas, where Q is a positive integer.

8. The vapor deposition apparatus as described in claim 7, characterized in that, The diameter of the Q through holes is greater than or equal to 45 micrometers and less than or equal to 1000 micrometers.

9. A vapor deposition method, characterized in that, The method includes: evaporating or vaporizing a material using a vapor deposition apparatus as described in any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the material includes organic materials and / or metallic materials.

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