Sapphire Composite Base Material for Display Protection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Sapphire, despite its durability and resistance to scratches, is a high-cost material that is difficult to process and has limited application in display protection due to its hardness and tendency to scatter when broken.
Innovation Solution
A sapphire composite base material is created by forming a single crystal sapphire film on an inorganic glass substrate using an intermediate film, such as polyvinyl butyral or silica, with hydrogen ion implantation and bonding techniques, allowing for cost reduction and improved bonding properties.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If single crystal sapphire is used for display protection, then scratch resistance is improved, but cost increases and processing difficulty increases
Solution Approach 1:
The sapphire substrate is divided into a thin sapphire film transferred onto a glass substrate. This segmentation allows the scratch-resistant sapphire surface to be combined with the easier-to-process glass substrate, resolving the contradiction between scratch resistance and processing ease.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention creates a composite structure combining sapphire film, intermediate film, and glass substrate. This composite material approach allows each component to contribute its advantageous properties: sapphire provides scratch resistance, glass provides processability and cost-effectiveness, and the intermediate film provides bonding and fracture control.
2Object-affected harmful factors
If single crystal sapphire is used for display protection, then scratch resistance is improved, but cost increases
Solution Approach 1:
By segmenting the sapphire into a thin film and transferring it to a glass substrate, the patent reduces the quantity of expensive sapphire material needed while maintaining the scratch-resistant surface property, thereby reducing overall material cost.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention replaces expensive bulk sapphire with a thin sapphire film on a cheaper glass substrate. The glass substrate acts as a cost-effective carrier that provides the necessary mechanical support while the thin sapphire film provides the protective function.
3Ease of manufacture
If glass is used instead of sapphire, then cost is reduced and processing is easier, but scratch resistance is worsened
Solution Approach 1:
The composite structure combines glass substrate with a sapphire film surface layer. This allows the bulk material to be glass (easy to process, low cost) while the surface layer is sapphire (high scratch resistance), simultaneously achieving both requirements.
4Object-affected harmful factors
If sapphire is used for display protection, then scratch resistance is improved, but scattering upon breakage increases
Solution Approach 1:
The intermediate film acts as a mediator between the sapphire film and glass substrate. It controls fracture propagation, preventing sharp sapphire fragments from scattering when the structure breaks, while maintaining the scratch-resistant sapphire surface during use.
Solution Approach 2:
The composite structure with intermediate film bonding creates a layered system that manages fracture behavior. When broken, the intermediate film absorbs energy and controls fragment distribution, reducing scattering hazard while the sapphire surface maintains its protective function during service.
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
The composite base material exhibits enhanced bonding strength, reduced scattering upon breakage, and cost-effectiveness, making it suitable for display protection while maintaining sapphire's scratch resistance.
Implementation Method 1
implanting hydrogen ions through a surface of a single crystal sapphire substrate to form an ion implantation layer inside the single crystal sapphire substrate
Implementation Method 2
bonding the surface of the single crystal sapphire substrate to the surface of the inorganic glass substrate via the intermediate film to obtain a bonded body
Data Source
AI summary
A sapphire composite base material including: an inorganic glass substrate, a polyvinyl butyral or silica intermediate film on the inorganic glass substrate, and a single crystal sapphire film on the intermediate film. There is also provided a method for producing a sapphire composite base material, including steps of: forming an ion-implanted layer inside the single crystal sapphire substrate; forming a polyvinyl butyral or silica intermediate film on at least one surface selected from the surface of the single crystal sapphire substrate before or after the ion implantation, and a surface of an inorganic glass substrate; bonding the ion-implanted surface of the single crystal sapphire substrate to the surface of the inorganic glass substrate via the intermediate film to obtain a bonded body; and transferring a single crystal sapphire film to the inorganic glass substrate via the intermediate film.