Nested Support Columns in OLED Display Panels
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing OLED display panel manufacturing process faces issues with debris generation due to friction between support columns and masks, leading to defects and water/oxygen intrusion, which invalidates the display panel.
Innovation Solution
A display panel design featuring a light emitting layer with a pixel defining layer, light emitting structures, and supporting structures comprising a hollow first support column and a second support column, where the second support column is taller and located inside the first, ensuring debris from mask friction falls within the supporting structure, and an encapsulation structure with inorganic and organic films seals this debris.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If the distance between the substrate and the mask is increased, then the shadow of the film formation area is reduced, but the substrate may be scratched due to insufficient support
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs nested support columns where an inner support column is positioned within an outer support column. This nested structure provides enhanced mechanical support to the substrate at increased distances from the mask, preventing substrate scratches while maintaining adequate film formation area by allowing larger substrate-mask separation distances.
2Reliability
If support columns are used to maintain distance between mask and substrate, then substrate scratching is prevented, but friction between mask and support columns generates debris
Solution Approach 1:
The patent converts the harmful debris generated by friction between the mask and support columns into a beneficial containment system. The nested support column structure with enclosed cavities captures and contains the debris within the inner support column, preventing it from contaminating the film formation area. The debris generation is acknowledged but its harmful effects are neutralized by the containment mechanism.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the harmful function (debris generation) from the support column's primary function (substrate support). By designing the support columns with enclosed cavities and positioning the inner column within the outer column, the debris is separated and contained within the support structure itself, removing its harmful impact from the film formation process.
3Device complexity
If a single support column is used, then the structure is simple, but debris from friction cannot be contained
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses nested support columns where an inner support column is positioned within an outer support column. This nested configuration creates enclosed cavities that serve as containment chambers for debris generated during mask-friction processes. The nested structure provides both mechanical support and debris containment functions without requiring completely separate systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The support column structure is designed to perform multiple functions simultaneously: providing mechanical support to maintain substrate-mask distance, reducing shadow effects on film formation, and containing debris within its enclosed cavities. This multi-functional design eliminates the need for separate debris containment systems, maintaining structural simplicity while addressing multiple problems.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This design prevents film formation abnormalities by containing debris within the supporting structure, enhancing the display panel's integrity and preventing water and oxygen intrusion.
Implementation Method 1
In the evaporation process, a substrate and a mask are combined by magnetic force.
Data Source
AI summary
A display panel includes a light emitting layer, and the light emitting layer includes a pixel defining layer, a plurality of light emitting structures, and a plurality of supporting structures located on the pixel defining layer. Each of the supporting structures includes a first support column and a second support column, the first support column is a hollow cylinder, the second support column is located inside the first support column, a height of the second support column is greater than a height of the first support column, and a shortest distance between the first support column and the second support column is greater than or equal to a radius or a side length of the second support column.