Optothermally cooperatively driven electronic paper and driving method thereof

Abstract

The application discloses a kind of photo-thermal synergic driving electronic paper and its driving method.Electronic paper includes the upper substrate and lower substrate of opposite arrangement, the electrophoretic layer being arranged between upper substrate and lower substrate, the upper electrode and lower electrode being arranged in the opposite two sides of electrophoretic layer, the photo-thermal conversion layer being arranged between electrophoretic layer and lower electrode, infrared array being arranged in the side of lower substrate away from electrophoretic layer and driving module.Electrophoretic layer includes dispersion medium and charged particle suspended in dispersion medium.Infrared array includes multiple independently controlled light source units, for emitting pulsed near-infrared light to photo-thermal conversion layer.Driving module is electrically connected with upper electrode, lower electrode and infrared array respectively.The application realizes millisecond level response speed by photo-thermal synergic driving, and single refresh power consumption is controlled within 25% of traditional scheme, and still can maintain good response performance under low temperature environment, while supporting local refresh and continuous gray scale display.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of electrophoretic electronic paper technology, and more specifically, to a photothermal co-driven electronic paper and its driving method. Background Technology

[0002] Electrophoretic electronic paper is a novel reflective "paper-like" display technology based on the electrophoretic phenomenon. It achieves image display by controlling the migration of charged particles in an electrophoretic dispersion medium through an electric field. Electrophoretic electronic paper has bistable characteristics, meaning that once an image is formed, it can be maintained for a long time without continuous power supply, consuming power only when refreshing the screen. Therefore, its power consumption is extremely low, and it has been widely used in e-readers, smart labels, electronic shelf labels, and other fields.

[0003] However, the refresh rate of traditional electrophoretic electronic paper is limited by the viscosity of the electrophoretic dispersion medium. At room temperature, the viscosity of the dispersion medium is high, which limits the migration speed of charged particles, and the response time is typically in the range of 100 to 500 milliseconds, making it difficult to meet the high refresh rate requirements of applications such as video playback and dynamic interaction. At low temperatures, the viscosity of the dispersion medium increases further, making the migration of charged particles even more difficult, extending the response time to more than 1 second, and even resulting in incomplete refresh or failure to refresh.

[0004] Currently, the industry is attempting to improve response speed by increasing the driving voltage, optimizing the electrophoretic solution formulation, adopting multilayer electrode structures, or developing novel electrophoretic particle materials. However, increasing the driving voltage leads to an exponential increase in power consumption and accelerates electrode aging; optimizing the electrophoretic solution formulation or adopting complex electrode structures faces the problems of high cost or complex processes; while developing novel electrophoretic particle materials can improve performance to some extent, the cost increases significantly. None of the above solutions can simultaneously achieve millisecond-level response and low power consumption characteristics.

[0005] Therefore, there is an urgent need to develop an electrophoretic electronic paper display device that can simultaneously achieve fast response and low power consumption. Summary of the Invention

[0006] Therefore, it is necessary to address the above-mentioned technical problems by providing an electronic paper driven by photothermal synergy and its driving method.

[0007] To address the aforementioned technical problems, this invention provides a photothermal co-driven electronic paper, comprising: The upper and lower substrates are positioned opposite each other; An electrophoretic layer disposed between an upper substrate and a lower substrate, the electrophoretic layer comprising a dispersion medium and charged particles suspended in the dispersion medium; The upper and lower electrodes are located on opposite sides of the electrophoretic layer; A photothermal conversion layer disposed between the electrophoretic layer and the lower electrode; An infrared array is disposed on the side of the lower substrate facing away from the electrophoretic layer. The infrared array includes multiple independently controlled light source units for emitting pulsed near-infrared light to the photothermal conversion layer. The driving module is electrically connected to the upper electrode, the lower electrode, and the infrared array, respectively, and is used to control the infrared array to emit light.

[0008] Furthermore, the thickness of the photothermal conversion layer is 100~900nm.

[0009] Furthermore, the photothermal conversion layer is a composite film of carbon nanotubes and indium tin oxide, with a mass ratio of carbon nanotubes to indium tin oxide of 1:10~50.

[0010] Furthermore, the infrared array emits wavelengths of 700~1500nm.

[0011] Furthermore, the size of the light source unit is 20~100μm, and the spacing between adjacent light source units is 50~200μm.

[0012] Furthermore, both the lower electrode and the lower substrate are made of transparent or semi-transparent materials.

[0013] Furthermore, the electrophoretic layer adopts a microcup structure, including multiple microcup walls and multiple pixel units separated by the microcup walls, with the microcup walls disposed between the upper electrode and the photothermal conversion layer.

[0014] Furthermore, the driving module includes an electric field driving submodule and a photothermal co-control submodule.

[0015] The present invention also provides a driving method for electronic paper based on the above-mentioned photothermal synergistic driving, comprising the following steps: The infrared array is controlled to emit pulsed near-infrared light, which is then directed to the photothermal conversion layer. The photothermal conversion layer converts light energy into heat energy, which reduces the viscosity of the dispersion medium in the corresponding region of the electrophoretic layer; Apply a driving voltage to the upper and lower electrodes to drive the migration of charged particles and complete the refresh. After the refresh is complete, stop outputting the drive voltage and infrared light pulses.

[0016] Furthermore, the driving voltage is started synchronously with the infrared light pulse, or the driving voltage is started with a delay of 0ms to 5ms after the infrared light pulse is started.

[0017] Beneficial effects of the invention This invention discloses a photothermal co-driven electronic paper and its driving method. The photothermal conversion layer absorbs near-infrared light energy emitted by an infrared array and converts it into localized heat energy, reducing the viscosity of the dispersion medium in the corresponding region of the electrophoretic layer, thereby increasing the migration speed of charged particles. The room temperature response time of this embodiment is within 50 milliseconds, which is an improvement over traditional electrophoretic electronic paper. Simultaneously, the light pulse and driving voltage are applied only during the refresh period, consuming virtually no power during the static holding period. Furthermore, due to the reduced medium viscosity, the driving voltage amplitude can be correspondingly reduced, and the single refresh power consumption of this embodiment is approximately 25% of that of the conventional solution. At 0°C, the response time of traditional electrophoretic electronic paper is significantly prolonged, while this embodiment still maintains a relatively short response time. Through an independently addressable light source unit array, only the pixel areas requiring updating can be locally heated and driven, helping to reduce energy consumption in ineffective areas. In addition, this embodiment still supports 16 to 256 levels of continuous grayscale display with smooth grayscale transitions, indicating that the introduction of the photothermal conversion layer and infrared array has minimal impact on grayscale display capabilities. Attached Figure Description

[0018] Figure 1 These are schematic diagrams of the electrophoretic electronic paper provided in Embodiments 1 to 4 and Comparative Examples 2 and 3 of the present invention. Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a conventional electrophoretic electronic paper provided in Comparative Example 1 of the present invention.

[0019] Figure label: The components include a lower substrate 10, an upper substrate 20, an electrophoretic layer 30, a microcup wall 31, a photothermal conversion layer 40, an upper electrode 51, a lower electrode 52, an infrared array 60, a light source unit 61, and a sealing adhesive 70. Detailed Implementation

[0020] To enable those skilled in the art to better understand the present invention, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort should fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0021] To enable those skilled in the art to better understand the present application, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below.

[0022] Example 1

[0023] This embodiment provides an electronic paper driven by photothermal synergy. Please refer to... Figure 1The electronic paper provided in this embodiment includes, from top to bottom, an upper substrate 20, an upper electrode 51, an electrophoretic layer 30, a photothermal conversion layer 40, a lower electrode 52, a lower substrate 10, and an infrared array 60.

[0024] The upper substrate 20 is a transparent substrate located at the top of the electronic paper, i.e., on the display side. The material of the upper substrate 20 is selected from glass or a flexible transparent polymer material, used to support the upper structure and allow display light to pass through. Further, the thickness of the upper substrate 20 is 0.2~0.5mm, selected from transparent glass or polyimide film. In this embodiment, the thickness of the upper substrate 20 is 0.3mm, and transparent glass is used.

[0025] The upper electrode 51 is disposed on the lower surface of the upper substrate 20. The upper electrode 51 is a transparent common electrode made of a transparent conductive material. Further, the transparent conductive material is selected from one or more of indium tin oxide, aluminum-doped zinc oxide, graphene, or silver nanowires. The upper electrode 51 is used to cooperate with the lower electrode 52 to generate a driving electric field. Even further, the thickness of the upper electrode 51 is 50~200 nm, and the sheet resistance is less than 100 ohms per square. In this embodiment, the upper electrode 51 uses an indium tin oxide material with a thickness of 100 nm.

[0026] The electrophoretic layer 30 is disposed below the upper electrode 51. Sealing adhesive 70 is disposed on the left and right sides of the electrophoretic layer 30 to bond the upper substrate 20 and the lower substrate 10 together and to seal the electrophoretic layer 30 between the upper electrode 51 and the photothermal conversion layer 40, preventing leakage of the dispersion medium in the electrophoretic layer 30.

[0027] The electrophoretic layer 30 adopts a microcup structure, including multiple microcup walls 31 and multiple pixel units separated by the microcup walls 31. The microcup walls 31 are disposed between the upper electrode 51 and the photothermal conversion layer 40, and are used to support the upper substrate 20 and the lower substrate 10 to maintain the uniform thickness of the electrophoretic layer 30 and prevent charged particles from migrating laterally between different pixel units. Each pixel unit is filled with a dispersion medium and charged particles, and each pixel unit corresponds to one display pixel.

[0028] The electrophoretic layer 30 includes a dispersion medium and charged particles suspended in the dispersion medium. Specifically, the dispersion medium is an isoparaffin solvent, and the charged particles include positively charged white titanium dioxide particles and negatively charged black carbon particles. By controlling the driving voltage amplitude or driving time between the upper electrode 51 and the lower electrode 52, the distribution ratio of white and black particles on the upper side of the electrophoretic layer 30 can be adjusted, thereby achieving a continuous grayscale display from pure white, different shades of gray, to pure black. The electrophoretic layer 30 is encapsulated between the upper electrode 51 and the photothermal conversion layer 40. Further, the thickness of the electrophoretic layer 30 is 10~50μm. In this embodiment, the thickness of the electrophoretic layer 30 is 25μm.

[0029] The photothermal conversion layer 40 is disposed below the electrophoretic layer 30. The photothermal conversion layer 40 is made of a material with high absorption rate for near-infrared light, used to absorb infrared light energy and convert it into heat energy. Further, the thickness of the photothermal conversion layer 40 is 100-900 nm. The photothermal conversion layer 40 is a composite film of carbon nanotubes and indium tin oxide, with a mass ratio of carbon nanotubes to indium tin oxide of 1:10-50. Specifically, in this embodiment, the mass ratio of carbon nanotubes to indium tin oxide is 1:30, and the thickness of the photothermal conversion layer 40 is 500 nm.

[0030] The lower electrode 52 is disposed below the photothermal conversion layer 40. The lower electrode 52 is a pixel electrode array, comprising multiple pixel electrodes arranged in a matrix, each corresponding to a display pixel. The lower electrode 52 is made of a transparent conductive material, allowing near-infrared light to penetrate and irradiate the photothermal conversion layer 40. The lower electrode 52, in conjunction with the upper electrode 51, generates an electric field that drives the migration of charged particles. Further, the thickness of the lower electrode 52 is 50-200 nm, and its sheet resistance is less than 100 ohms per square block. In this embodiment, the lower electrode 52 uses indium tin oxide transparent conductive material with a thickness of 100 nm.

[0031] The lower substrate 10 is disposed below the lower electrode 52. The lower substrate 10 is a TFT backplane, made of a transparent or semi-transparent material, allowing near-infrared light to pass through it. Furthermore, the thickness of the lower substrate 10 is 0.2~0.5mm. Specifically, in this embodiment, the lower substrate 10 is a transparent glass substrate with a thickness of 0.3mm.

[0032] The infrared array 60 is disposed below the lower substrate 10. The infrared array 60 is a near-infrared light-emitting diode microarray, comprising multiple independently controlled light source units 61. Further, the size of a single light source unit 61 is 20-100 μm x 20-100 μm, and the spacing between adjacent light source units 61 is 50-200 μm. The emission wavelength of the infrared array 60 is 700-1500 nm. The emission power of a single light source unit 61 is 0.5-20 mW, and the light pulse width is 0.5-5 ms. In this embodiment, the emission wavelength of the infrared array 60 is 980 nm, the size of a single light source unit 61 is 50 μm x 50 μm, the spacing between adjacent light source units 61 is 100 μm, the emission power of a single light source unit 61 is 5 mW, and the light pulse width is 1 ms.

[0033] The driving module (not shown in the figure) is electrically connected to the upper electrode 51, the lower electrode 52, and the infrared array 60, respectively. The driving module includes an electric field driving submodule and a photothermal co-control submodule, which are used to independently control the electric field driving signal and infrared light pulse emission of each pixel region.

[0034] The optical path and working process of the photothermal co-driven electronic paper provided in this embodiment are as follows: Near-infrared light pulses emitted by the infrared array 60 propagate upwards, sequentially penetrating the lower substrate 10 and the lower electrode 52, and irradiating the lower surface of the photothermal conversion layer 40. Since both the lower substrate 10 and the lower electrode 52 are made of transparent or semi-transparent materials, the energy loss of near-infrared light is relatively small.

[0035] The photothermal conversion layer 40 absorbs near-infrared light energy and rapidly converts it into heat energy, causing the local temperature of the photothermal conversion layer 40 to rise instantaneously. This heat is then conducted upwards to the pixel unit in the electrophoretic layer 30 corresponding to the light source unit 61, causing the temperature of the dispersion medium in the pixel unit to rise and the viscosity to decrease significantly.

[0036] After a 0.5ms delay following the light pulse activation, the driving module applies a driving voltage to the upper electrode 51 and the lower electrode 52. The driving module selects the appropriate driving waveform based on the grayscale value to be displayed. For a full white display, a positive driving voltage is applied, causing white particles to migrate upwards and black particles to migrate downwards; for a full black display, a reverse driving voltage is applied, causing black particles to migrate upwards and white particles to migrate downwards; for an intermediate grayscale display, a shorter driving pulse or a lower amplitude driving voltage is applied, causing some white particles and some black particles to remain in the display area simultaneously, and the mixture of the two results in gray. Because the viscosity of the dispersion medium has been reduced, the migration resistance of charged particles is reduced, and the response time is significantly shortened for switching between full white, full black, and intermediate grayscale.

[0037] After the refresh is complete, the drive module simultaneously stops outputting the drive voltage and infrared light pulses. After heating stops, the dispersion medium of the electrophoretic layer 30 quickly returns to its high viscosity state at ambient temperature, thereby locking the charged particles at their current display positions and achieving zero power consumption maintenance in a static state. Since grayscale information is determined by the spatial distribution of particles, and the particles are frozen by the high-viscosity medium, the grayscale display remains stable during the static maintenance period.

[0038] Example 2

[0039] This embodiment provides a photothermal co-driven electronic paper, which differs from Embodiment 1 in that: In this embodiment, the thickness of the upper substrate 20 is 0.2 mm, and ultra-thin flexible glass is selected.

[0040] In this embodiment, the upper electrode 51 is a graphene film with a thickness of 50 nm.

[0041] In this embodiment, the thickness of the electrophoretic layer 30 is 12 μm to shorten the particle migration distance.

[0042] In this embodiment, the photothermal conversion layer 40 is a composite film of carbon nanotubes and indium tin oxide, with a mass ratio of carbon nanotubes to indium tin oxide of 1:50, and the thickness of the photothermal conversion layer 40 is 300 nm.

[0043] In this embodiment, the lower electrode 52 is made of aluminum-doped zinc oxide transparent conductive material with a thickness of 60 nm.

[0044] In this embodiment, the lower substrate 10 is a transparent glass substrate with a thickness of 0.2 mm.

[0045] In the infrared array 60, the size of a single light source unit 61 is 30μm by 30μm, and the spacing between adjacent light source units 61 is 60μm. In this embodiment, the emission wavelength of the infrared array 60 is 808nm, the emission power of a single light source unit 61 is 2mW, and the light pulse width is 0.5ms.

[0046] In the driving method of this embodiment, the driving module controls the electric field driving signal and the light pulse signal to start completely synchronously, with a delay of 0ms.

[0047] Example 3

[0048] This embodiment provides a photothermal co-driven electronic paper, which differs from Embodiment 1 in that: In this embodiment, the thickness of the upper substrate 20 is 0.4 mm, and it is made of polyimide film.

[0049] In this embodiment, the upper electrode 51 is made of indium tin oxide with a thickness of 120 nm.

[0050] In this embodiment, the thickness of the electrophoretic layer 30 is 50 μm.

[0051] In this embodiment, the photothermal conversion layer 40 is a single carbon nanotube film without indium tin oxide, and the thickness of the photothermal conversion layer 40 is 800 nm.

[0052] In this embodiment, the lower electrode 52 is made of indium tin oxide transparent conductive material with a thickness of 100 nm.

[0053] In this embodiment, the lower substrate 10 is a transparent glass substrate with a thickness of 0.5 mm.

[0054] In the infrared array 60, the size of a single light source unit 61 is 80μm by 80μm, and the spacing between adjacent light source units 61 is 150μm. In this embodiment, the emission wavelength of the infrared array 60 is 1064nm, the emission power of a single light source unit 61 is 12mW, and the light pulse width is 3ms.

[0055] In the driving method of this embodiment, the optical pulse width is 3ms and the driving delay is 2ms.

[0056] Example 4

[0057] This embodiment provides a photothermal co-driven electronic paper, which differs from Embodiment 1 in that: In this embodiment, the thickness of the upper substrate 20 is 0.15 mm, and it is made of colorless polyimide film.

[0058] In this embodiment, the upper electrode 51 is a silver nanowire thin film with a thickness of 80 nm.

[0059] In this embodiment, the thickness of the electrophoretic layer 30 is 18 μm.

[0060] In this embodiment, the photothermal conversion layer 40 is a graphene film with a thickness of 150 nm.

[0061] In this embodiment, the lower electrode 52 is made of indium tin oxide transparent conductive material with a thickness of 80 nm.

[0062] In this embodiment, the lower substrate 10 is a flexible transparent substrate with a thickness of 0.2 mm.

[0063] In the infrared array 60, the size of a single light source unit 61 is 50μm by 50μm, and the spacing between adjacent light source units 61 is 100μm. In this embodiment, the emission wavelength of the infrared array 60 is 980nm, the emission power of a single light source unit 61 is 4mW, and the light pulse width is 0.8ms.

[0064] In the driving method of this embodiment, the optical pulse width is 0.8ms and the driving delay is 0.3ms.

[0065] Comparative Example 1 This comparative example provides a traditional electrophoretic electronic paper; please refer to it. Figure 2 Its structure is basically the same as that of Example 1, except that: this comparative example does not have a photothermal conversion layer 40 and an infrared array 60, that is, it does not include a photothermal synergistic structure.

[0066] Specifically, the electronic paper in this comparative example comprises, from top to bottom, an upper substrate 20, an upper electrode 51, an electrophoretic layer 30, a lower electrode 52, and a lower substrate 10. Unless otherwise specified below, the structure, materials, and parameters of each layer are the same as those in the corresponding parts of Example 1.

[0067] The electrophoretic layer 30 adopts a microcup structure, which is filled with a dispersion medium, positively charged white particles and negatively charged black particles. Continuous grayscale display is achieved by adjusting the exposure ratio of the two types of particles on the upper side.

[0068] The driving module (not shown in the figure) is electrically connected to the upper electrode 51 and the lower electrode 52, and is only used to output electric field driving signals. It does not include a photothermal co-control module.

[0069] Working process: The drive module applies the corresponding drive voltage waveform to the upper electrode 51 and the lower electrode 52 according to the grayscale value to be displayed. After the refresh is completed, the drive voltage is stopped and static maintenance is achieved by relying on the viscosity of the dispersion medium of the electrophoretic layer 30 itself.

[0070] Comparative Example 2 This comparative example provides a photothermal synergistic electronic paper, which differs from Example 1 only in that the thickness of the photothermal conversion layer 40 in this comparative example is 1200 nm.

[0071] Working process: The infrared array 60 emits near-infrared light pulses, which penetrate the lower substrate 10 and the lower electrode 52 to irradiate the photothermal conversion layer 40. Due to the excessive thickness of the photothermal conversion layer 40, its large heat capacity, slow heating, and long heat conduction path, when the driving voltage is applied 0.5ms after the light pulse is activated, the electrophoretic layer 30 has not yet reached a sufficient temperature rise, and the viscosity has not been effectively reduced, resulting in a significant reduction in the photothermal synergistic effect.

[0072] Comparative Example 3 This comparative example provides a photothermal synergistic electronic paper, which differs from Example 1 in that: in this comparative example, the thickness of the photothermal conversion layer 40 is 50nm, the emission wavelength of the infrared array 60 is 1550nm, and the driving delay is 10ms.

[0073] Working process: The infrared array 60 emits near-infrared light pulses, which penetrate the lower substrate 10 and the lower electrode 52 to irradiate the photothermal conversion layer 40. Because the photothermal conversion layer 40 is too thin, its light absorption capacity is insufficient, and the emission wavelength deviates from the absorption peak, resulting in low photothermal conversion efficiency and limited heat generation. When the driving voltage is applied 10ms after the light pulse is activated, some of the heat has already dissipated, the viscosity of the electrophoretic layer 30 has not been effectively reduced, and the photothermal synergy is essentially ineffective.

[0074] Verification Example Performance tests were conducted on Examples 1-4 and Comparative Examples 1-3 under ambient temperature (25℃±2℃) and low temperature (0℃±2℃) conditions, respectively. Response time was defined as the time from the application of the drive signal to the display brightness reaching 90% of its stable value. Power consumption was 100% of the single refresh power consumption of Comparative Example 1. The test results are shown in Table 1, where the data are the average values ​​obtained from five repeated tests of each example and comparative example sample under the same conditions.

[0075] Table 1. Performance Comparison of Various Examples and Comparative Examples As shown in Table 1, the room temperature response time of Examples 1 to 4 is all within 50ms, with Example 2 at 18ms, approximately 19 times faster than Comparative Example 1's 350ms. While Comparative Example 1's response time exceeds 1 second at low temperatures, all examples maintain a response time within 50ms. Regarding power consumption, the relative power consumption of all examples is controlled within 25%, while Comparative Example 2, due to its excessively thick photothermal conversion layer, consumes 35% of its power, and Comparative Example 3, due to parameter deviation, consumes as much as 180%. All examples and Comparative Examples 2 and 3 support partial refresh. Comparative Example 1, due to its global electric field drive and lack of independently addressed light source units, cannot achieve partial refresh. In terms of grayscale display, although Examples 1 to 4 added a photothermal conversion layer and an infrared array, they still support 16-256 levels of grayscale display with smooth grayscale transitions, indicating that the present invention does not significantly affect grayscale display capabilities.

[0076] The above results demonstrate that the photothermal co-driven electronic paper and its driving method provided by this invention, while maintaining the grayscale display capability and low static power consumption advantages of traditional electrophoretic electronic paper, effectively improves response speed and low-temperature adaptability, and supports partial refresh, achieving a balance between fast response and low power consumption. Compared with Comparative Examples 1 to 3, this invention has significant advantages in response time, power consumption control, and low-temperature performance.

[0077] Obviously, the embodiments described above are merely some embodiments of this application, not all embodiments, and do not limit the patent scope of this application. This application can be implemented in many different forms; on the contrary, the purpose of providing these embodiments is to make the disclosure of this application more thorough and comprehensive. Although this application has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those skilled in the art can still modify the technical solutions described in the foregoing specific embodiments, or make equivalent substitutions for some of the technical features. Any equivalent structures made using the content of this application's specification, directly or indirectly applied to other related technical fields, are similarly within the patent protection scope of this application.

Claims

1. A photothermal co-driven electronic paper, characterized in that, include: The upper substrate (20) and the lower substrate (10) are arranged opposite to each other; An electrophoretic layer (30) is disposed between the upper substrate (20) and the lower substrate (10), the electrophoretic layer (30) comprising a dispersion medium and charged particles suspended in the dispersion medium; The upper electrode (51) and the lower electrode (52) are disposed on opposite sides of the electrophoretic layer (30). A photothermal conversion layer (40) is disposed between the electrophoretic layer (30) and the lower electrode (52). An infrared array (60) is disposed on the side of the lower substrate (10) facing away from the electrophoretic layer (30). The infrared array (60) includes multiple independently controlled light source units (61) for emitting pulsed near-infrared light to the photothermal conversion layer (40). The driving module is electrically connected to the upper electrode (51), the lower electrode (52) and the infrared array (60) respectively, and is used to control the infrared array (60) to emit light.

2. The photothermal co-driven electronic paper according to claim 1, characterized in that, The thickness of the photothermal conversion layer (40) is 100~900nm.

3. The photothermal co-driven electronic paper according to claim 1, characterized in that, The photothermal conversion layer (40) is a composite film of carbon nanotubes and indium tin oxide, and the mass ratio of carbon nanotubes to indium tin oxide is 1:10~50.

4. The photothermal co-driven electronic paper according to claim 1, characterized in that, The infrared array (60) emits wavelengths of 700~1500nm.

5. The photothermal co-driven electronic paper according to claim 1, characterized in that, The size of the light source unit (61) is 20~100μm, and the spacing between adjacent light source units (61) is 50~200μm.

6. The photothermal co-driven electronic paper according to claim 1, characterized in that, Both the lower electrode (52) and the lower substrate (10) are made of transparent or semi-transparent materials.

7. The photothermal co-driven electronic paper according to claim 1, characterized in that, The electrophoretic layer (30) adopts a microcup structure, including multiple microcup walls (31) and multiple pixel units separated by the microcup walls (31). The microcup walls (31) are disposed between the upper electrode (51) and the photothermal conversion layer (40).

8. The photothermal co-driven electronic paper according to claim 1, characterized in that, The driving module includes an electric field driving submodule and a photothermal co-control submodule.

9. A driving method for electronic paper based on the photothermal synergistic driving according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: The infrared array (60) is controlled to emit pulsed near-infrared light, which is then irradiated onto the photothermal conversion layer (40). The photothermal conversion layer (40) converts light energy into heat energy, causing the viscosity of the dispersion medium in the corresponding region of the electrophoretic layer (30) to decrease; A driving voltage is applied to the upper electrode (51) and the lower electrode (52) to drive the charged particles to migrate and complete the refresh; After the refresh is complete, stop outputting the drive voltage and infrared light pulses.

10. The driving method according to claim 9, characterized in that, The driving voltage is started synchronously with the infrared light pulse, or the driving voltage is started after a delay of 0ms to 5ms after the infrared light pulse is started.

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