CN108828869B

CN108828869B - Electrochromic structure, manufacturing method thereof and electronic device

Info

Publication number: CN108828869B
Application number: CN201810738673.5A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 袁石林
Original assignee: Guangdong Oppo Mobile Telecommunications Corp Ltd
Current assignee: Guangdong Oppo Mobile Telecommunications Corp Ltd
Priority date: 2018-07-06
Filing date: 2018-07-06
Publication date: 2021-10-15
Anticipated expiration: 2038-07-06
Also published as: CN108828869A

Abstract

The invention discloses an electrochromic structure, a manufacturing method thereof and electronic equipment. The manufacturing method comprises the following steps: forming a first conductive layer on one side of a first substrate; forming a first electrochromic functional layer, wherein the first electrochromic functional layer is formed on one side, far away from the first substrate, of the first conductive layer; providing a delimiting structure on a side of the first electrochromic functional layer remote from the first electrically conductive layer, the delimiting structure delimiting a predetermined area on the first electrochromic functional layer, the electrolyte layer being formed in the predetermined area; forming a second conductive layer on one side of a second substrate; forming a second electrochromic functional layer, wherein the second electrochromic functional layer is formed on one side, far away from the second substrate, of the second conductive layer; and attaching the first substrate and the second substrate, wherein the electrolyte layer is in contact with the second electrochromic functional layer so as to form an electrochromic structure. Therefore, the method has the advantages of simple process, low production cost and high production efficiency.

Description

Electrochromic structure, manufacturing method thereof and electronic device

Technical Field

The invention relates to an electronic device, in particular to an electrochromic structure, a manufacturing method thereof and an electronic device.

Background

In the design strategy of electronic device products, the appearance innovation of the product housing is very important. With the development of material processing technology, the existing shell can better realize the basic functions of protecting electronic equipment and the like, so people do not pay attention to the protection function of the shell singly any more, but pay more attention to the appearance and color matching of the shell. The excellent appearance can bring good visual experience to users, and is the most intuitive embodiment that electronic equipment with specific models is different from other brands. Therefore, the excellent appearance design can make the product be favored by more users, and meet the individual pursuit of consumers.

However, at present, there is still a need for improvement of electrochromic structures, methods for fabricating the same, and electronic devices.

Disclosure of Invention

The present invention is based on the discovery and recognition by the inventors of the following facts and problems:

the inventor finds that the existing electronic equipment shell (for example, a mobile terminal shell) generally has the problems of single appearance, incapability of meeting the personalized requirements of users and the like. The inventors have found that this is mainly due to the fact that current mobile terminal housings are all fixed in color and also not personalized in appearance. Moreover, a user can only obtain a certain fixed appearance effect on the same shell, and in order to realize diversified appearance selection, the user can only physically replace a plurality of shells with different appearances, so that the process is complicated, the instant selection of the appearance diversity cannot be realized, and the use cost of the user is also increased. The inventors have found that when no voltage is applied, the electrochromic material is in a fixed state (e.g., transparent or a certain color), and when a voltage is applied between the two conductive layers, the electrochromic material between the two conductive layers undergoes chemical polymerization, so that the electrochromic material changes color, i.e., the color of the electrochromic material undergoes a reversible and persistent change under the action of the voltage. However, at present, the color change of the electrochromic shell is still single, and only the color of the whole shell can be changed uniformly, and the color of a certain specific area cannot be selected and controlled independently. Therefore, if a manufacturing method of an electrochromic structure with simple process, low production cost and high production efficiency can be provided, the manufactured electrochromic structure can independently realize color change in a specific area, and area color change can be simply and quickly realized, so that when the electrochromic structure is used for forming an electronic equipment shell, the selection requirements of more appearances of users and pursuit of individuation can be met, and the market competitiveness of products is also improved to a certain extent.

The present invention aims to alleviate or solve at least to some extent at least one of the above mentioned problems.

In one aspect of the invention, a method of fabricating an electrochromic structure is provided. The method comprises the following steps: forming a first conductive layer on one side of a first substrate; forming a first electrochromic functional layer, wherein the first electrochromic functional layer is formed on one side, far away from the first substrate, of the first conductive layer; providing a delimiting structure on a side of the first electrochromic functional layer remote from the first electrically conductive layer, the delimiting structure defining a predetermined area on the first electrochromic functional layer in which an electrolyte layer is formed; forming a second conductive layer on one side of a second substrate; forming a second electrochromic functional layer, wherein the second electrochromic functional layer is formed on one side, far away from the second substrate, of the second conductive layer; and attaching the first substrate and the second substrate, wherein the electrolyte layer is in contact with the second electrochromic functional layer so as to form an electrochromic structure. Therefore, the method has the advantages of simple process, low production cost and high production efficiency; the electrochromic structure manufactured by the method has an electrochromic function, the color of the electrochromic structure is varied, the color variation of a specific area can be independently realized, and the regional color variation can be simply and quickly realized; when the electrochromic structure manufactured by the method is used for forming the shell of the electronic equipment, various appearance effects can be obtained without replacing the shell, the requirements of users for more appearance choices and the pursuit of individuation can be met, and the market competitiveness of products is greatly improved.

In another aspect of the invention, an electrochromic structure is provided. The electrochromic structure includes: a first substrate; a first conductive layer disposed on one side of the first substrate; the first electrochromic functional layer is arranged on one side, far away from the first substrate, of the first conducting layer; the electrolyte layer is arranged on one side, far away from the first conductive layer, of the first electrochromic functional layer and covers a predetermined area, limited by a defined structure, of the first electrochromic functional layer; the second electrochromic functional layer is arranged on one side, far away from the first electrochromic functional layer, of the electrolyte layer; the second conductive layer is arranged on one side, far away from the electrolyte layer, of the second electrochromic functional layer; the second substrate is arranged on one side, far away from the second electrochromic functional layer, of the second conductive layer; wherein a non-predetermined area of the first electrochromic functional layer is covered by the delimiting structure or by the delimiting structure and the second electrochromic functional layer. The electrochromic structure may be fabricated using the methods described previously. Thus, the electrochromic structure may have all the features and advantages of the previously described method, which are not described in detail herein. Generally, the electrochromic structure has an electrochromic function, the color of the electrochromic structure is diversified, the color change can be independently realized in a specific area of the electrochromic structure, and the regional color change can be simply and quickly realized; when the electrochromic structure is used for forming the shell of the electronic equipment, various appearance effects can be obtained without replacing the shell, the selection requirements of more appearances of users and the pursuit of individuation can be met, and the market competitiveness of products is greatly improved.

In yet another aspect of the invention, an electronic device is presented. The electronic device includes: an electrochromic structure made by the method described above or an electrochromic structure described above. Thus, the electronic device may have all the features and advantages of the method or electrochromic structure described above, which are not described in detail herein. Generally, the electrochromic structure in the electronic equipment has an electrochromic function, the color of the electrochromic structure is diversified, the color can be independently changed in a specific area, and the area color can be simply and quickly changed; when the electrochromic structure is used for forming the shell of the electronic equipment, various appearance effects can be obtained without replacing the shell, the selection requirements of more appearances of users and the pursuit of individuation can be met, and the market competitiveness of products is greatly improved.

Drawings

The above and/or additional aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent and readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of which:

FIG. 1 shows a schematic flow diagram for fabricating an electrochromic structure according to one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 shows a schematic partial structural view of an electrochromic structure according to one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3 shows a schematic partial structural view of an electrochromic structure according to another embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 4 shows a schematic partial structural view of an electrochromic structure according to a further embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 5 shows a schematic partial structural view of an electrochromic structure according to a further embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 6 shows a schematic partial structural view of an electrochromic structure according to a further embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 7 shows a schematic partial structural view of an electrochromic structure according to a further embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 8 shows a schematic structural diagram of an electrochromic structure according to one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 9 shows a schematic structural diagram of an electrochromic structure according to another embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 10 shows a schematic flow chart for fabricating an electrochromic structure according to one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 11 shows a partial schematic flow diagram for fabricating an electrochromic structure according to one embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 12 shows a schematic structural diagram of an electrochromic structure according to one embodiment of the invention; and

fig. 13 shows a schematic structural diagram of an electronic device according to an embodiment of the invention.

Description of reference numerals:

100: a first substrate; 200: a first conductive layer; 300: a first electrochromic functional layer; 400: an electrolyte layer; 10: defining a structure; 20: a predetermined area; 30: a non-predetermined area; 40: a protrusion; 500: a second substrate; 600: a second conductive layer; 700: a second electrochromic functional layer; 800: a third substrate; 900: a pattern layer; 5000: an electronic device; 1000: an electrochromic structure.

Detailed Description

Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments of the present invention, examples of which are illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like or similar reference numerals refer to the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar function throughout. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are illustrative only for the purpose of explaining the present invention, and are not to be construed as limiting the present invention.

In one aspect of the invention, a method of fabricating an electrochromic structure is provided. The method has simple process, low production cost and high production efficiency; the electrochromic structure manufactured by the method has an electrochromic function, the color of the electrochromic structure is varied, the color variation of a specific area can be independently realized, and the regional color variation can be simply and quickly realized; when the electrochromic structure manufactured by the method is used for forming the shell of the electronic equipment, various appearance effects can be obtained without replacing the shell, the requirements of users for more appearance choices and the pursuit of individuation can be met, and the market competitiveness of products is greatly improved.

For the sake of understanding, the following is a detailed description of the principle of the electrochromic structure manufactured by the method to achieve the above technical effect:

the electrochromic structure manufactured by the method of the embodiment of the invention can realize the regional color changing function. Specifically, when the electrolyte layer is formed, firstly, a region requiring color change is designed, for example, a defining structure is arranged on the first electrochromic functional layer (such as an electrochromic layer or an ion storage layer), and the electrolyte layer is arranged in a predetermined region defined by the defining structure, that is, the color change region and the non-color change region are separated by the defining structure, and the electrolyte layer is only formed in the color change region, so that the non-color change region does not exist, and the non-color change region cannot form a complete electrochromic device, and therefore, the color change function cannot be realized. That is, when a voltage is applied, only the discolored region where the electrolyte layer is formed is discolored, thereby achieving regional discoloration simply and quickly. In other words, in order to highlight the color change of a specific area of the electrochromic structure, the electrolyte layer is only formed on the specific area, so that the independent color change of the specific area is realized, and further, when the electrochromic structure is used for forming the shell of the electronic device, various appearance effects can be obtained without replacing the shell, the requirements of more appearance choices of users and the pursuit of individuation can be met, and the market competitiveness of products is greatly improved. In addition, the method has the advantages of simple process, low production cost and high production efficiency.

According to an embodiment of the invention, with reference to fig. 1, the method comprises:

s100: forming a first conductive layer

In this step, a first conductive layer is formed on one side of a first substrate.

According to the embodiment of the present invention, the specific material of the first substrate is not particularly limited, and it suffices that the first substrate is formed of a transparent material when the first substrate is the side facing the user. Thus, the color generated by the electrochromic layer formed in the subsequent step can be displayed through the first substrate. For example, a transparent material such as glass or plastic may be used. The glass material has good light transmission, is beneficial to the color in the electrochromic layer to be displayed through the substrate, and has excellent corrosion resistance and heat resistance, easy processing, simple and convenient material taking and low cost. The substrate formed by the plastic can enhance the toughness of the electrochromic structure, so that the electrochromic structure has the drop-resistant performance and is low in cost. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first substrate may be formed of glass. Thereby, the performance of the electrochromic structure can be further improved.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a specific material of the first conductive layer is not particularly limited, and may be selected by a person skilled in the art according to practical circumstances. It should be noted that, in order to better represent the color generated by the electrochromic layer formed in the subsequent step, when the first substrate is the side facing the user and the first substrate is formed of a transparent material, the first conductive layer disposed on the first substrate may be transparent. According to an embodiment of the present invention, when the first conductive layer is transparent, a specific material forming the first conductive layer may be Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) or nano silver. Therefore, the conductive layer has good conductivity and high transparency, and the electrochromic structure can further have good color generated by the electrochromic layer.

S200: forming a first electrochromic functional layer

In this step, referring to (a) of fig. 2, the first electrochromic functional layer 300 is formed. The first electrochromic functional layer 300 is formed on the side of the first conductive layer 200 away from the first substrate 100.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first electrochromic functional layer 300 may be an electrochromic layer, and the second electrochromic functional layer formed in the subsequent step may be an ion storage layer. Alternatively, the first electrochromic functional layer 300 may be an ion storage layer, and the subsequently formed second electrochromic functional layer may be an electrochromic layer. Therefore, the first electrochromic functional layer and the second electrochromic functional layer can form a complete electrochromic device together with the conducting layer and the electrolyte layer, so that the electrochromic structure has an electrochromic function.

S300: forming an electrolyte layer in a predetermined region

In this step, a delimiting structure is provided on the side of the first electrochromic functional layer 300 remote from the first electrically conductive layer 200, which delimiting structure delimits a predetermined area on the first electrochromic functional layer 300, in which predetermined area the electrolyte layer is formed. Therefore, the predetermined area and the non-predetermined area can be simply and conveniently separated through the defining structure, the electrolyte layer is only formed in the predetermined area, the non-predetermined area has no electrolyte layer, and when voltage is applied, the partial area cannot form a complete electrochromic device, so that only the predetermined area with the electrolyte layer is discolored, and regional discoloration is simply and quickly realized.

The specific number of the predetermined regions defined by the delimiting structures according to embodiments of the present invention is not particularly limited, and may be selected by those skilled in the art according to actual needs. For example, the predetermined area defined by the delimiting structure may be one or more. The specific structure of the predetermined area defined by the delimiting structure according to an embodiment of the present invention is not particularly limited and may be selected by those skilled in the art according to practical needs. For example, the predetermined area may be shaped by providing a delimiting structure to define a specific pattern. Therefore, the electrochromic structure can be provided with one or more color-changing areas, and the shapes of the color-changing areas can be designed according to needs, so that the requirements of more appearance choices and the pursuit of individuation of users are further met.

In some embodiments of the present invention, referring to fig. 2 (a) is a longitudinal sectional view of the first substrate 100 provided with the defining structure 10, and fig. 2 (b) is a top view of the first electrochromic functional layer 300 on the side provided with the defining structure 10), the defining structure 10 covers a portion of the first electrochromic functional layer 300 except for the predetermined area 20. That is, the first electrochromic functional layer 300 is provided thereon with the delimiting structure 10, the delimiting structure 10 defines the predetermined area 20, the area other than the predetermined area 20 is the non-predetermined area 30 (30A and 30B as shown in fig. 2), and the delimiting structure 10 covers the non-predetermined area 30. Further, referring to fig. 3, the electrolyte layer 400 covers only the predetermined region 20 defined by the delimiting structure 10, and thus, the electrolyte layer 400 is formed only in the predetermined region 20, and the non-predetermined region 30, in which the electrolyte layer 400 is not present, cannot constitute a complete electrochromic device, and only the predetermined region 20 in which the electrolyte layer 400 is formed changes color when a voltage is applied, thereby simply and rapidly achieving regional color change.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the defining structure 10 may have a uniform height. In order to ensure a uniform overall thickness of the entire electrochromic structure, the height of the non-intended area 30 and the height of the intended area 20 may be kept flush with each other at the non-intended area 30 by using the material forming the delimiting structure 10. According to an embodiment of the present invention, forming the electrolyte layer 400 further comprises: the height of the electrolyte layer 400 is controlled to conform to the height of the defined structure 10. Therefore, the height of the defined structure 10 is the same as that of the electrolyte layer 400, and the performance of the electrochromic structure manufactured by the method is further improved. It should be noted that "height match" is to be understood in the present invention in a broad sense, and refers to the fact that the heights are close to each other, and no obvious height difference can be observed by naked eyes, and the number of the heights is not required to be strictly controlled to be equal.

In further embodiments of the present invention, referring to fig. 4 (a) is a longitudinal sectional view of the first substrate 100 provided with the delimiting structure 10, and fig. 4 (B) is a top view of the first electrochromic functional layer 300 on the side provided with the delimiting structure 10), the delimiting structure 10 covers only a part of the non-predetermined area 30 (30A and 30B as shown in fig. 4) on the first electrochromic functional layer 300. That is, the first electrochromic functional layer 300 is provided with the defining structure 10, the defining structure 10 defines the predetermined area 20, the area outside the predetermined area 20 is the non-predetermined area 30 (30A and 30B as shown in fig. 4), and the defining structure 10 covers a part of the non-predetermined area 30, that is, a part of the non-predetermined area 30 which is not covered by the defining structure 10 and is exposed to the outside. Further, referring to fig. 5, the electrolyte layer 400 covers only the predetermined region 20 defined by the delimiting structure 10, and thus, the electrolyte layer 400 is formed only in the predetermined region 20, and the non-predetermined region 30, in which the electrolyte layer 400 is not present, cannot constitute a complete electrochromic device, and only the predetermined region 20 in which the electrolyte layer 400 is formed changes color when a voltage is applied, thereby simply and rapidly achieving regional color change. According to the embodiment of the present invention, in the embodiment, the defining structure 10 has a uniform height, and the height of the defining structure 10 may also be consistent with the height of the electrolyte layer 400, such as the same height. Therefore, the performance of the electrochromic structure manufactured by the method can be further improved.

In still other embodiments of the present invention, when the defining structure 10 covers only a portion of the non-predetermined area 30 on the first electrochromic functional layer 300, the forming the electrolyte layer 400 further includes: before the electrolyte layer 400 is provided, a mask is provided on the first electrochromic functional layer 300 to cover the exposed portion of the non-intended region 30. Specifically, referring to fig. 4, a mask is disposed on an area not covered by the defining structure 10 among the non-predetermined area 30 (e.g., 30A and 30B shown in fig. 4) and exposed, and then the electrolyte layer 400 is formed on the predetermined area 20. Therefore, the electrolyte layer 400 can be more simply and conveniently formed on the predetermined region 20 by arranging the mask, the non-predetermined region 30 which is exposed outside and not covered by the defined structure 10 is prevented from being polluted by the electrolyte layer 400, and the performance of the manufactured electrochromic structure is improved.

According to the embodiment of the present invention, the forming material of the above-mentioned defining structure 10 is not particularly limited, and it is only required that the defining structure 10 can define a predetermined area without affecting the color changing function of the electrochromic structure. For example, the defining structure 10 may be formed of an insulating paste. According to an embodiment of the present invention, when the defining structure 10 is formed of an insulating glue, the defining structure 10 may be formed by coating a glue on a surface of the first electrochromic functional layer 300 on a side away from the first conductive layer 200 and drying.

S400: forming a second conductive layer

In this step, referring to fig. 6, a second conductive layer 600 is formed on one side of the second substrate 500.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a specific material of the second substrate 500 is not particularly limited, and it suffices that the second substrate 500 is formed of a transparent material when the second substrate 500 is the side facing the user. Thus, the color generated by the electrochromic layer formed in the subsequent step may be expressed through the second substrate 500. For example, a transparent material such as glass or plastic may be used. The glass material has good light transmission, is beneficial to the color in the electrochromic layer to be displayed through the substrate, and has excellent corrosion resistance and heat resistance, easy processing, simple and convenient material taking and low cost. The substrate formed by the plastic can enhance the toughness of the electrochromic structure, so that the electrochromic structure has the drop-resistant performance and is low in cost. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the second substrate 500 may be formed of glass. Thereby, the performance of the electrochromic structure can be further improved.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a specific material of the second conductive layer 600 is not particularly limited, and may be selected by a person skilled in the art according to practical circumstances. It should be noted that, in order to better represent the color generated by the electrochromic layer formed in the subsequent step, when the second substrate 500 is the side facing the user and the second substrate 500 is formed of a transparent material, the second conductive layer 600 disposed on the second substrate 500 may be transparent. According to an embodiment of the present invention, when the second conductive layer 600 is transparent, a specific material forming the second conductive layer 600 may be Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) or nano silver. Therefore, the conductive layer has good conductivity and high transparency, and the electrochromic structure can further have good color generated by the electrochromic layer.

S500: forming a second electrochromic functional layer

In this step, a second electrochromic functional layer is formed, and referring to fig. 7, a second electrochromic functional layer 700 is formed on a side of the second conductive layer 600 away from the second substrate 500.

As previously described, the first electrochromic functional layer 300 may be an electrochromic layer, and the second electrochromic functional layer 700 may be an ion storage layer. Alternatively, the first electrochromic functional layer 300 may be an ion storage layer, and the second electrochromic functional layer 700 may be an electrochromic layer. Therefore, the first electrochromic functional layer 300 and the second electrochromic functional layer 700, the first conductive layer 200, the second conductive layer 600 and the electrolyte layer 400 can form a complete electrochromic device, so that the electrochromic structure has an electrochromic function.

The following description will be made in detail by taking the first electrochromic functional layer 300 as an electrochromic layer and the second electrochromic functional layer 700 as an ion storage layer as an example:

according to the embodiment of the present invention, an electrochromic layer is formed on the side of the first conductive layer 200 away from the first substrate 100, the specific type of an electrochromic material forming the electrochromic layer is not particularly limited, and the electrochromic layer may be an inorganic substance or an organic substance, and the electrochromic material may present different states (an oxidized state, a reduced state, and a neutral state) under different voltage magnitudes and directions, so that the electrochromic layer may display different colors, obtain multiple appearance effects, and further improve the performance of the electrochromic structure. According to the embodiment of the present invention, the organic electrochromic material may be a conductive polymer, for example, polythiophene, polyaniline, polypyrrole, polycarbazole, polyfuran, polyindole, and derivatives thereof, and the like, and thus, the electrochromic layer formed of the conductive polymer exhibits various colors, has a short color change time, and is improved in terms of time efficiency.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, a specific manner of forming the electrochromic layer is not particularly limited, and the electrochromic layer may be formed by printing, coating, electropolymerization, or thermal polymerization. Therefore, the electrochromic layer can be formed simply and conveniently, the process is further simplified, and the production efficiency is improved.

According to the embodiment of the present invention, an ion storage layer is formed on the second conductive layer 600 on the side away from the second substrate 500. Therefore, the ion storage layer can store electric charges, and the performance of the electrochromic structure is further improved.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the thickness of the ion storage layer may be in the nanometer order. Thereby, the electrochromic layer can be caused to undergo a color change. According to the embodiment of the invention, the ions in the ion storage layer present a certain color, when the thickness of the ion storage layer is thicker, the color of the ion storage layer is darker, and when no voltage is applied to the electrochromic structure, the color of the ion storage layer can penetrate through the electrochromic layer, the conductive layer, the substrate and the electrolyte layer formed in the subsequent steps, so that the electrochromic structure presents a certain degree of color, and the color change effect of the electrochromic structure is affected. Therefore, the thickness of the ion storage layer can be reasonably designed according to the two conditions, and the specific thickness value of the ion storage layer is not particularly limited as long as the electrochromic layer can be subjected to color change and the color change effect of the electrochromic structure is not influenced.

S600: bonding the first substrate and the second substrate

In this step, the first substrate 100 and the second substrate 500 are bonded, and the side of the electrolyte layer 400 away from the first electrochromic functional layer 300 is in contact with the side of the second electrochromic functional layer 700 away from the second conductive layer 600, so that an electrochromic structure is formed.

In some embodiments of the present invention, referring to fig. 8, when the defining structure 10 covers a portion of the first electrochromic functional layer 300 except for the predetermined area 20, as described above, the defining structure 10 may have a uniform height, and the height of the defining structure 10 is the same as that of the electrolyte layer 400, so that the second electrochromic functional layer 700 to be subsequently formed has a uniform height and the structural flatness of the electrochromic structure as a whole is good.

In further embodiments of the present invention, referring to fig. 9, when the delimiting structure 10 covers only a portion of the non-predetermined area 30 (30A and 30B as shown in fig. 9) on the first electrochromic functional layer 300, forming the second electrochromic functional layer 700 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes: projections are formed on the surface of the second electrochromic functional layer 700 on the side in contact with the electrolyte layer 400 at positions corresponding to the portions exposed outside in the non-predetermined regions 30, the height of the projections corresponding to the height of the delimiting structure 10. That is, on the surface of the first electrochromic functional layer 300 on the side away from the first conductive layer 200, at a position corresponding to a non-predetermined area not covered by the defining structure 10, the second electrochromic functional layer 700 at the position has the protrusions 40 (such as the portions of 40A and 40B shown in fig. 9), and the height of the protrusions 40 in the second electrochromic functional layer 700 is the same as the height of the defining structure 10, so that the height of the protrusions 40 is the same as the height of the electrolyte layer 400 while the defining structure 10 has a uniform height, and thus, after the first substrate and the second substrate are attached, the structural flatness of the entire electrochromic structure can be ensured.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, in order to further improve the performance of the electrochromic structure manufactured by the method, after the first substrate and the second substrate are attached to each other, and before the electrochromic structure is formed, referring to fig. 10, the method further includes:

s10: forming a patterned passivation layer

According to an embodiment of the present invention, referring to fig. 11, forming the patterned protection layer may be achieved by:

s1: forming a patterned layer

In this step, a pattern layer is formed on one side of the third substrate.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, the third substrate is formed of a transparent material. According to the embodiment of the invention, the third substrate is attached to the side of the first substrate far away from the first conductive layer or the side of the second substrate far away from the second conductive layer in the subsequent step, so that the third substrate can be the side close to a user, and therefore, when the third substrate is formed by a transparent material, the color generated by the electrochromic layer can be displayed through the third substrate. For example, the third substrate may be made of a transparent material such as glass or plastic. The glass material has good light transmission, is beneficial to the color in the electrochromic layer to be displayed through the substrate, and has excellent corrosion resistance and heat resistance, easy processing, simple and convenient material taking and low cost. The substrate formed by the plastic can enhance the toughness of the electrochromic structure, so that the electrochromic structure has the drop-resistant performance and is low in cost.

According to the embodiment of the invention, the pattern layer formed on the third substrate, in the subsequent step, the side of the pattern layer far away from the third substrate is attached to the first substrate or the second substrate, so that the pattern layer has certain light transmittance and color, and forms a superimposed visual effect with the color of the electrochromic layer. According to the embodiment of the present invention, the material and the forming manner of the pattern layer are not particularly limited, and for example, the pattern layer may be formed on the third substrate by screen printing. The inventor finds that the non-predetermined area is not provided with the electrochromic layer, so that after the pattern layer is formed, the non-predetermined area can have the color effect of the pattern layer, and the predetermined area can present the color effect of the pattern layer when the electrochromic layer is in a transparent state due to the electrochromic layer, and when the electrochromic layer presents a certain color, not only can regional color change be realized, but also the color of the electrochromic layer can be superposed with the color of the pattern layer, and the color superposition effect of the electrochromic layer and the pattern layer is presented, so that the selection of the appearance of the electrochromic structure can be more diversified, and the pursuit of users for individuation can be met.

S2: gluing the third substrate on the first substrate or the second substrate

In the step, the third substrate with the pattern layer is glued on one side of the first substrate, which is far away from the first conductive layer, and the pattern layer is in contact with the first substrate; or the third substrate with the pattern layer is adhered to one side of the second substrate far away from the second conductive layer, and the pattern layer is in contact with the second substrate. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first substrate or the second substrate in contact with the pattern layer is formed of a transparent material. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first substrate or the second substrate in contact with the pattern layer is formed of a thin sheet of glass or polyimide. Therefore, the performance of the electrochromic structure manufactured by the method can be further improved.

The following description will be made by taking the case that the defining structure covers the non-predetermined area, and the third substrate is adhered to the side of the first substrate away from the first conductive layer:

specifically, referring to fig. 12, the third substrate 800 formed with the pattern layer 900 is adhered to the first substrate 100 at a side away from the first conductive layer 200, and the pattern layer 900 is in contact with the first substrate 100. At this time, a side of the third substrate 800 far from the pattern layer 900 is a side close to a user, and thus, it is not necessary to additionally provide a protective layer to the electrochromic structure. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first substrate 100 in contact with the pattern layer 900 is formed of a transparent material, whereby the electrochromic layer 300 can be presented through the first substrate 100 as well as the third substrate 800. According to a specific embodiment of the present invention, the first substrate 100 in contact with the pattern layer 900 may be formed of a thin sheet of glass or polyimide. Therefore, the first substrate 100 is thin, and the performance of the electrochromic structure is further improved. According to the embodiment of the present invention, when the third substrate 800 and the first substrate 100 are bonded, the first substrate 100 may be removed, so that the pattern layer 900 directly contacts with the first conductive layer 200, thereby further reducing the thickness of the electrochromic structure and improving the performance of the electrochromic structure.

In general, the method has simple process, low production cost and high production efficiency; the electrochromic structure manufactured by the method has an electrochromic function, the color of the electrochromic structure is varied, the color variation of a specific area can be independently realized, and the regional color variation can be simply and quickly realized; when the electrochromic structure manufactured by the method is used for forming the shell of the electronic equipment, various appearance effects can be obtained without replacing the shell, the requirements of users for more appearance choices and the pursuit of individuation can be met, and the market competitiveness of products is greatly improved.

In another aspect of the invention, an electrochromic structure is provided. According to an embodiment of the present invention, referring to fig. 8, the electrochromic structure includes: a first substrate 100, a first conductive layer 200, a first electrochromic functional layer 300, an electrolyte layer 400, a second electrochromic functional layer 700, a second conductive layer 600, and a second substrate 500. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the first conductive layer 200 is disposed on a side of the first substrate 100, and the first electrochromic functional layer 300 is disposed on a side of the first conductive layer 200 away from the first substrate 100. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the electrolyte layer 400 is arranged on the side of the first electrochromic functional layer 300 remote from the first electrically conductive layer 200 and covers the predetermined area 20 of the first electrochromic functional layer 300 defined by the delimiting structure 10. According to an embodiment of the present invention, the second electrochromic functional layer 700 is disposed on a side of the electrolyte layer 400 remote from the first electrochromic functional layer 300, the second conductive layer 600 is disposed on a side of the second electrochromic functional layer 700 remote from the electrolyte layer 400, and the second substrate 500 is disposed on a side of the second conductive layer 600 remote from the second electrochromic functional layer 700. According to an embodiment of the present invention, with reference to fig. 8, the non-predetermined areas (30A, 30B as shown in fig. 8) of the first electrochromic functional layer 300 are covered by the delimiting structure 10; alternatively, with reference to fig. 9, non-predetermined areas (30A, 30B as shown in fig. 9) of the first electrochromic functional layer 300 are covered by the delimiting structure 10 as well as by the second electrochromic functional layer 700. The electrochromic structure may be made by the method described previously. Thus, the electrochromic structure may have all the features and advantages of the previously described method, which are not described in detail herein.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, referring to fig. 8 and 9, the height of the electrolyte layer 400 coincides with the height of the defining structure 10. Thus, the second electrochromic functional layer 700 has a uniform height, and the structural flatness of the entire electrochromic structure is good.

According to an embodiment of the present invention, referring to fig. 9, the second electrochromic functional layer 700 is formed with protrusions 40 (40A, 40B as shown in fig. 9) at positions corresponding to the portions exposed outside in the non-predetermined region 30 on the surface on the side contacting the electrolyte layer 400, the height of the protrusions 40 corresponding to the height of the delimiting structure 10. Accordingly, the height of the protrusions 40 is the same as the height of the defining structure when the defining structure 10 has a uniform height and is the same as the height of the electrolyte layer 400, and thus, the structural flatness of the entire electrochromic structure can be improved.

According to the embodiments of the present invention, the characteristics of the first substrate 100, the first conductive layer 200, the first electrochromic functional layer 300, the electrolyte layer 400, the second electrochromic functional layer 700, the second conductive layer 600, the second substrate 500, the forming materials and the forming modes of the defining structure 10 are described in detail above, and will not be described again. It should be noted that the first electrochromic functional layer 300 may be an electrochromic layer, and the second electrochromic functional layer 700 may be an ion storage layer. Alternatively, the first electrochromic functional layer 300 may be an ion storage layer, and the second electrochromic functional layer 700 may be an electrochromic layer. Therefore, the first electrochromic functional layer 300 and the second electrochromic functional layer 700, the first conductive layer 200, the second conductive layer 600 and the electrolyte layer 400 can form a complete electrochromic device, so that the electrochromic structure has an electrochromic function.

According to an embodiment of the invention, the electrochromic structure further comprises: a third substrate and a pattern layer. According to the embodiment of the invention, the third substrate is arranged on the side of the second substrate far away from the second conductive layer, and the pattern layer is arranged between the third substrate and the second substrate and is in contact with the third substrate and the second substrate. Alternatively, referring to fig. 12, the third substrate 800 is disposed on a side of the first substrate 100 away from the first conductive layer 200, and the pattern layer 900 is disposed between the third substrate 800 and the first substrate 100 and is in contact with the third substrate 800 and the first substrate 100. The materials for forming the third substrate 800 and the patterning layer 900 and other features according to the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, and will not be described in detail herein.

In general, the electrochromic structure has an electrochromic function, the color of the electrochromic structure is variable, and the color can be independently changed in a specific area; when the electrochromic structure is used for forming the shell of the electronic equipment, various appearance effects can be obtained without replacing the shell, the selection requirements of more appearances of users and the pursuit of individuation can be met, and the market competitiveness of products is greatly improved.

In yet another aspect of the invention, an electronic device is presented. Referring to fig. 13, the electronic device 5000 includes: the electrochromic structure 1000 described above. Thus, the electronic device may have all the features and advantages of the electrochromic structure described above, which are not described in detail herein. Generally, the electrochromic structure in the electronic device has an electrochromic function, the color of the electrochromic structure is diversified, and the color can be independently changed in a specific area of the electrochromic structure; when the electrochromic structure is used for forming the shell of the electronic equipment, various appearance effects can be obtained without replacing the shell, the selection requirements of more appearances of users and the pursuit of individuation are further met, and the market competitiveness of products is greatly improved.

According to an embodiment of the present application, the electronic device described above may be any of various types of computer system devices that are mobile or portable and perform wireless communication. In particular, the electronic device may be a mobile or smart phone (e.g., an iPhone (TM) based phone), a Portable gaming device (e.g., Nintendo DS (TM), PlayStation Portable (TM), Gameboy Advance (TM), iPhone (TM)), a laptop, a PDA, a Portable internet device, a music player, and a data storage device, other handheld devices, and a head-mounted device such as a watch, an in-ear headphone, a pendant, a headset, etc., and other wearable devices (e.g., a head-mounted device (HMD) such as an electronic necklace, an electronic garment, an electronic bracelet, an electronic tattoo, or a smart watch).

According to embodiments of the present application, the electronic device may also be any one of a number of electronic devices including, but not limited to, cellular phones, smart phones, other wireless communication devices, personal digital assistants, audio players, other media players, music recorders, video recorders, cameras, other media recorders, radios, medical devices, vehicle transportation equipment, calculators, programmable remote controllers, pagers, laptop computers, desktop computers, printers, netbooks, Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs), Portable Multimedia Players (PMPs), moving Picture experts group (MPEG-1 or MPEG-2) Audio layer 3(MP3) players, portable medical devices, and digital cameras, and combinations thereof.

According to embodiments of the present application, in some cases, an electronic device may perform a variety of functions (e.g., playing music, displaying videos, storing pictures, and receiving and sending telephone calls). If desired, the electronic device may be a portable device such as a cellular telephone, media player, other handheld device, wristwatch device, pendant device, earpiece device, or other compact portable device.

When the electronic device is a mobile terminal according to an embodiment of the present invention, referring to fig. 13, the electronic device 5000 includes the electrochromic structure 1000 described above. In particular, the electrochromic structure 1000 may be a housing of a mobile terminal. The visual effect of the shell of the mobile terminal is various, the selection of various appearance colors can be simply and quickly realized, various appearance effects can be obtained without replacing the shell, the personalized requirements of users are met, and the market competitiveness of products is greatly improved.

In the description of the present invention, the terms "upper", "lower", and the like indicate orientations or positional relationships based on those shown in the drawings, and are only for convenience of describing the present invention but do not require that the present invention must be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and thus, should not be construed as limiting the present invention.

In the description herein, references to the description of "one embodiment," "another embodiment," etc., mean that a particular feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the invention. In this specification, the schematic representations of the terms used above are not necessarily intended to refer to the same embodiment or example. Furthermore, the particular features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in any one or more embodiments or examples. Furthermore, various embodiments or examples and features of different embodiments or examples described in this specification can be combined and combined by one skilled in the art without contradiction. In addition, it should be noted that the terms "first" and "second" in this specification are used for descriptive purposes only and are not to be construed as indicating or implying relative importance or implying any number of technical features indicated.

Although embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described above, it is understood that the above embodiments are exemplary and should not be construed as limiting the present invention, and that variations, modifications, substitutions and alterations can be made to the above embodiments by those of ordinary skill in the art within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method of fabricating an electrochromic structure, comprising:

forming a first conductive layer on one side of a first substrate;

forming a first electrochromic functional layer, wherein the first electrochromic functional layer is formed on one side, far away from the first substrate, of the first conductive layer;

providing a delimiting structure on a side of the first electrochromic functional layer remote from the first electrically conductive layer, the delimiting structure defining a predetermined area on the first electrochromic functional layer in which an electrolyte layer is formed;

forming a second conductive layer on one side of a second substrate;

forming a second electrochromic functional layer, wherein the second electrochromic functional layer is formed on one side, far away from the second substrate, of the second conductive layer;

bonding the first substrate and the second substrate, wherein the electrolyte layer is in contact with the second electrochromic functional layer so as to form the electrochromic structure,

said delimiting structure covering only a part of the non-predetermined area of said first electrochromic functional layer,

wherein an orthographic projection of the predetermined region on the first substrate is located in a central region of the first substrate, and an orthographic projection of the non-predetermined region on the first substrate is located in an edge region of the first substrate.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first electrochromic functional layer is an electrochromic layer and the second electrochromic functional layer is an ion storage layer; or, the first electrochromic functional layer is an ion storage layer, and the second electrochromic functional layer is an electrochromic layer.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein forming the electrolyte layer further comprises: before disposing the electrolyte layer, disposing a mask on the first electrochromic functional layer to cover the portion exposed outside in the non-predetermined region.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein forming the second electrochromic functional layer comprises:

and forming a bulge on the surface of the second electrochromic functional layer on the side contacting with the electrolyte layer, wherein the bulge corresponds to the exposed part in the non-predetermined area, and the height of the bulge is consistent with that of the defining structure.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the defining structure is formed of an insulating glue.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein after attaching the first substrate and the second substrate, and before forming the electrochromic structure, further comprising: forming a pattern protection layer, wherein the forming of the pattern protection layer is realized by the following steps:

forming a pattern layer on one side of a third substrate;

and adhering the third substrate with the pattern layer to one side of the first substrate far away from the first conductive layer, wherein the pattern layer is in contact with the first substrate, or adhering the third substrate with the pattern layer to one side of the second substrate far away from the second conductive layer, and the pattern layer is in contact with the second substrate.

7. The method of claim 6, wherein the third substrate is formed of a transparent material.

8. The method according to claim 6, wherein the first substrate or the second substrate in contact with the pattern layer is formed of a transparent material.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the first substrate or the second substrate in contact with the pattern layer is formed of a thin sheet of glass or polyimide.

10. An electrochromic structure, comprising:

a first substrate;

a first conductive layer disposed on one side of the first substrate;

the first electrochromic functional layer is arranged on one side, far away from the first substrate, of the first conducting layer;

the electrolyte layer is arranged on one side, far away from the first conductive layer, of the first electrochromic functional layer and covers a predetermined area, limited by a defined structure, of the first electrochromic functional layer;

the second electrochromic functional layer is arranged on one side, far away from the first electrochromic functional layer, of the electrolyte layer;

the second conductive layer is arranged on one side, far away from the electrolyte layer, of the second electrochromic functional layer;

the second substrate is arranged on one side, far away from the second electrochromic functional layer, of the second conductive layer;

wherein the content of the first and second substances,

a non-predetermined area of the first electrochromic functional layer, covered by the delimiting structure and by the second electrochromic functional layer,

the orthographic projection of the predetermined area on the first substrate is positioned in the central area of the first substrate, and the orthographic projection of the non-predetermined area on the first substrate is positioned in the edge area of the first substrate.

11. The electrochromic structure of claim 10, wherein the first electrochromic functional layer is an electrochromic layer and the second electrochromic functional layer is an ion storage layer; or, the first electrochromic functional layer is an ion storage layer, and the second electrochromic functional layer is an electrochromic layer.

12. Electrochromic structure according to claim 10, characterised in that the height of the electrolyte layer coincides with the height of the delimiting structure.

13. The electrochromic structure according to claim 10, wherein a surface of the second electrochromic functional layer on the side contacting the electrolyte layer and a position corresponding to the portion exposed to the outside in the non-predetermined region is formed with a protrusion having a height corresponding to the height of the delimiting structure.

14. The electrochromic structure of claim 10, further comprising:

the third substrate is arranged on one side, far away from the first conducting layer, of the first substrate, or the third substrate is arranged on one side, far away from the second conducting layer, of the second substrate;

and a pattern layer provided between and in contact with the third substrate and the first substrate, or provided between and in contact with the third substrate and the second substrate.

15. An electronic device, comprising:

an electrochromic structure produced by the method of any one of claims 1 to 9, or an electrochromic structure of any one of claims 10 to 14.