CN111512461A

CN111512461A - Deposition mask

Info

Publication number: CN111512461A
Application number: CN201880076181.2A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 曹守铉; 孙晓源
Original assignee: LG Innotek Co Ltd
Current assignee: LG Innotek Co Ltd
Priority date: 2017-11-23
Filing date: 2018-10-22
Publication date: 2020-08-07
Also published as: KR20230163964A; WO2019103320A1; KR20190059742A

Abstract

Embodiments relate to a deposition mask for depositing a metal material for O L ED pixel deposition, the deposition mask including a plurality of usable portions for deposition, and unusable portions other than the usable portions, the usable portions being arranged to be spaced apart from each other in a longitudinal direction, each of the usable portions including a plurality of usable areas arranged at a center thereof, and outer areas respectively surrounding the plurality of usable areas, each of the usable areas including a plurality of first small holes formed on one surface thereof, a plurality of first large holes formed on the other surface thereof opposite to the one surface, a plurality of first through holes communicating with the first small holes and the first large holes, and a first island formed between the first through holes, each of the outer areas including a plurality of second small holes formed on one surface thereof, a plurality of second large holes formed on the other surface thereof opposite to the one surface, a plurality of second through holes communicating with the second small holes and the second large holes, and a second island formed between the second through holes.

Description

Deposition mask

Technical Field

Embodiments relate to a deposition mask and a method of manufacturing the same.

Background

Display devices have been applied to various devices. For example, the display device has been applied to a small device such as a smart phone or a desktop PC and a large device such as a television, a monitor, or a Public Display (PD). In particular, recently, demand for Ultra High Definition (UHD) of 500PPI (Pixel Per Inch Per inc) or more has increased, and high definition display devices have been applied to small and large devices. Therefore, attention is increasingly paid to technologies for realizing low power and high definition.

Generally used display devices may be roughly classified into a liquid crystal display (L CD) and an organic light emitting diode (O L ED) according to a driving method.

L CD refers to a display device driven using liquid crystal, and has a structure in which a light source including a Cold Cathode Fluorescent lamp (CCF L: Cold Cathode Fluorescent L amp) or a light Emitting Diode (L ED: L light Emitting Diode) is disposed under the liquid crystal L CD is a display device driven by controlling the amount of light emitted from the light source using liquid crystal disposed on the light source.

In addition, O L ED attracts attention as a display device capable of exhibiting infinite contrast, having a fast response speed 1000 times as fast as that of L CD, having an excellent viewing angle, and capable of replacing L CD.

In particular, in O L ED, organic materials included in a light emitting layer may be deposited on a substrate through a deposition Mask called a Fine Metal Mask (FMM), and the deposited organic materials may be formed in a pattern corresponding to the pattern formed in the deposition Mask to serve as pixels.

The deposition mask may include a usable portion of the deposition area and a unusable portion other than the usable portion. In addition, the usable portion may include a usable area disposed at the center and an outer area surrounding the usable area. The unusable portion is a peripheral area of the outer area of the usable portion.

At this time, the via hole is not formed in the unusable portion of the deposition mask, and the via hole is formed only in the usable area and the outer area.

On the other hand, the through-holes of the deposition mask are formed by etching the solution. At this time, in the etching process using the etching solution, a phenomenon occurs in which radicals are concentrated in an outer region disposed adjacent to an unusable portion where a through hole is not formed.

In addition, the size of the through-hole formed in the outer region is larger than a target size due to a phenomenon of radical concentration. As the size of the through-hole formed in the outer region becomes larger than a target size, the size of the island formed on the outer region decreases, and the thickness of the central portion of the rib connecting the through-hole and the through-hole decreases.

Therefore, when the via holes formed in the deposition mask are patterned in the same size, the diameter of the via holes is not uniform due to over-etching in the outer region, thereby reducing pattern deposition efficiency and causing deposition failure.

Accordingly, during the manufacture of an O L ED panel, the usable area of the usable portion separates from the outer area when the deposition mask is stretched and welded to the mask frame.

Therefore, a novel deposition mask and a method of manufacturing the same for solving the above-mentioned problems are required.

Disclosure of Invention

Technical problem

An object of the present disclosure, which is directed to solving the technical problems, is to provide a deposition mask and a method of manufacturing the same, which can prevent over-etching from occurring in an outer region of the deposition mask.

It is another object of an embodiment to provide a deposition mask capable of preventing an over-etching from occurring between an unavailable portion where an etching is not performed and an available portion where an etching is performed, and a method of fabricating the same.

It is still another object of an embodiment to provide a deposition mask capable of improving strength of a rib connecting a through hole of an outer area and a through hole of a usable area in the deposition mask, and a method of manufacturing the same.

It is a further object of an embodiment to provide a deposition mask that does not include an unetched region in a usable portion including a usable region and an outer region, and a method of fabricating the same.

Technical problems solved by the present disclosure are not limited to the above technical problems, and other technical problems not described herein will become apparent to those skilled in the art from the following description.

Technical scheme

According to an embodiment, there is provided a deposition mask formed of a metal material for organic light emitting diode (O L ED) pixel deposition, the deposition mask including a plurality of usable portions for deposition and unusable portions other than the usable portions, wherein the usable portions include a plurality of usable areas spaced apart from each other in a longitudinal direction and disposed at a center of the usable portions, and outer areas respectively surrounding the plurality of usable areas, wherein the usable areas include a plurality of first small holes formed in one surface, a plurality of first large holes formed in another surface opposite to the one surface, a plurality of first through holes communicating with the first small holes and the first large holes, and first islands formed between the first through holes, wherein the outer areas include a plurality of second small holes formed in the one surface, a plurality of second large holes formed on another surface opposite to the one surface, a plurality of second through holes communicating with the second small holes and the second large holes, and second through holes formed between the second through holes, wherein the second through holes are disposed to surround the usable areas and have a smaller size than the first through holes.

In addition, the spacing between the centers of the second through holes may be greater than the spacing between the centers of the first through holes.

In addition, a first aperture ratio of the first via in the usable area may be greater than a second aperture ratio of the second via in the outer area.

In addition, the area of the first island portion may be smaller than the area of the second island portion.

In addition, the usable area may include a first rib formed by bringing the first large holes of the first through holes into contact with each other, the outer area may include a second rib formed by bringing the second large holes of the second through holes into contact with each other, and a thickness of a central portion of the second rib may be smaller than a thickness of the non-deposition portion and may be larger than a thickness of the central portion of the first rib.

The deposition mask may further include a third rib formed by contacting the first large hole of the first through hole and the second large hole of the second through hole at a boundary between the usable area and the outer area, and a thickness of a central portion of the third rib may be less than a thickness of the non-deposition area.

The thickness of the central portion of the third rib may be greater than the thickness of the central portion of the first rib and may be less than the thickness of the central portion of the second rib.

The deposition mask may further include a third island portion between the first via hole and the second via hole in a boundary between the usable area and the outer area, and an area of an upper surface of the third island portion may be larger than an area of an upper surface of the first island portion and may be smaller than an area of an upper surface of the second island portion.

In addition, the third island portion may include a first sub third island portion located in the usable area and a second sub third island portion located in the outer area, and an area of an upper surface of the first sub third island portion may be smaller than an area of an upper surface of the second sub third island portion.

In addition, the outer area may include a first outer area disposed adjacent to and surrounding the usable area, and a second outer area disposed adjacent to and surrounding the unusable area, the second through-hole may be located in the first outer area, the second outer area may include a plurality of third small holes formed in one surface, a plurality of third large holes formed in another surface opposite to the one surface, a plurality of third through-holes communicating with the plurality of third small holes and the third large holes, and a fourth island portion formed between the third through-holes, and the second through-hole may have a smaller size than the first through-hole and a larger size than the third through-hole.

In addition, the second outer region may include a plurality of half-etched portions located outermost of the second outer region and including a plurality of fourth macro holes formed in the other surface.

In addition, the through-hole is not located in the unusable portion.

According to an embodiment, there is provided a method of manufacturing a deposition mask for organic light emitting diode (O L ED) pixel deposition, the method including preparing a metal plate including a usable portion for forming a deposition pattern and an unusable portion other than the usable portion, the usable portion including a plurality of usable areas and an outer area surrounding the usable areas, providing and patterning a first photoresist layer on one surface of the metal plate, half-etching a first opening portion of the patterned first photoresist layer to form a first groove on one surface of the deposition area of the metal plate, providing and patterning a second photoresist layer on the other surface opposite to the one surface of the metal plate to have a second opening portion having a first width in the usable area and a third opening portion having a second width smaller than the first width in the outer area, half-etching the second opening portion and the third opening portion of the patterned second photoresist layer to form a second groove and a third groove, and forming the second opening portion and the third groove in the outer area and communicating the first groove and the first opening portion, and the usable portion of the usable area and the usable area are disposed to be smaller than the size of the usable area, and the second opening portion and the usable portion of the second opening portion and the usable area are disposed to be smaller than the size of the usable area.

In addition, the via holes are not located in the unusable areas of the deposition mask.

In addition, the forming of the deposition mask includes forming a rib in contact with the second groove of the first through-hole and the third groove of the second through-hole in a boundary between the usable area and the outer area, and the rib has a thickness smaller than that of the non-deposition area.

Advantageous effects

According to an embodiment, a mask pattern having uniform apertures may be formed in a deposition mask.

According to the embodiment, it is possible to solve a phenomenon that the usable portion is separated from the unusable portion and is peeled off from the deposition mask during the stretching and welding before the deposition in the manufacturing process of the O L ED panel, when the size of the through hole of the outer area is reduced compared to the size of the through hole of the usable area located at the center of the usable portion of the deposition mask.

According to an embodiment, the via is not located in an unusable portion that does not participate in the deposition. Therefore, a volume capable of increasing the rigidity of the deposition mask in the unusable portion can be ensured.

According to an embodiment, an outer region of a usable portion is disposed to surround not only left and right sides of the usable region located at a center of the usable portion, but also upper and lower sides of the usable region, and thus, a via hole of the outer region is located in a periphery including the left, right, upper and lower sides of the usable region.

Drawings

Fig. 1 to 3 are diagrams illustrating a concept of a process of depositing an organic material on a substrate using a deposition mask according to an embodiment.

FIG. 4 is a top view of a deposition mask according to one embodiment.

Fig. 5 is a top view of the usable area and the outer area of the usable portion of the deposition mask according to the first embodiment.

Fig. 6 is a view showing a microscopic image of a usable area of a usable portion of the deposition mask of fig. 5 from a plane.

FIG. 7 is another top view of a deposition mask according to one embodiment.

FIG. 8 is another top view of a deposition mask according to one embodiment.

Fig. 9 is a view showing an overlap between a sectional view taken in a direction a-a 'of fig. 5 and a sectional view taken in a direction B-B' of fig. 5.

Fig. 10 is a sectional view taken along the direction B-B' of fig. 5.

Fig. 11 is a top view of the usable area and the outer area of a deposition mask according to a second embodiment.

Fig. 12 is a top view of the usable area and the outer area of a deposition mask according to a third embodiment.

Fig. 13 and 14 are views illustrating a method of manufacturing a deposition mask according to an embodiment.

Fig. 15 and 16 are views illustrating a deposition pattern formed by a deposition mask according to an embodiment.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, the structure and action according to the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In the description with reference to the drawings, the same components are given the same reference numerals, and a repetitive description thereof will be omitted. Terms such as first and second may be used to describe various components, but these components should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another.

In the description of the embodiments, it will be understood that, when an element such as a layer (film), a region, a pattern, or a structure is referred to as being formed "on" or "under" another element of a substrate, a layer (film), a region, a pad, or a pattern, it can be directly formed "on" or "under" the other element or indirectly formed with an intermediate element therebetween. It will also be understood that elements "above" and "below" are described with respect to the figures.

It will be understood that when a portion is referred to as being "connected" to another portion, the portion may be directly connected to the other portion or may be indirectly connected to the other portion with another member interposed therebetween. In addition, when a part "includes" a certain component, it means that another component may be further provided, and unless otherwise specified, the other component is not excluded.

Hereinafter, a deposition mask according to an embodiment will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1 to 3 are views illustrating a concept of a process of depositing an organic material on a substrate 300 using a deposition mask 100 according to an embodiment.

Fig. 1 is a view illustrating an organic material deposition apparatus including a deposition mask 100 according to an embodiment, and fig. 2 is a view illustrating a state in which the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment is stretched to be mounted on a mask frame 200. Fig. 3 is a view illustrating a state where a plurality of deposition patterns are formed on the substrate 300 through a plurality of through holes of the deposition mask 100.

Referring to fig. 1 to 3, the organic material deposition apparatus may include a deposition mask 100, a mask frame 200, a substrate 300, an organic material deposition container 400, and a vacuum chamber 500.

The deposition mask 100 may include a metal. For example, the deposition mask may include iron (Fe) and nickel (Ni).

The deposition mask 100 may include a plurality of Through Holes (TH) in a usable portion for deposition. The deposition mask 100 may be a substrate for a deposition mask including a plurality of through holes TH. At this time, the through-holes may be formed to correspond to a pattern to be formed on the substrate. The through-hole is formed not only in the usable area located at the center of the usable portion but also in an outer area located outside the usable portion to surround the usable area. The deposition mask 100 may include unusable portions other than usable portions including the deposition area. The through-hole is not located in the unusable portion.

The mask frame 200 may include an opening. The plurality of through holes of the deposition mask 100 may be disposed in regions corresponding to the openings. Accordingly, the organic material supplied to the organic material deposition container 400 may be deposited on the substrate 300. The deposition mask 100 may be disposed on the mask frame 200 and fixed to the mask frame 200. For example, the deposition mask 100 may be stretched with a constant tensile force, and the deposition mask 100 may be fixed to the mask frame 200 by welding.

The outermost edges of the deposition mask 100 may be stretched in opposite directions at the outermost edges of the deposition mask 100. In the deposition mask, one end of the deposition mask 100 and the other end opposite thereto may be stretched in opposite directions in the longitudinal direction of the deposition mask 100. One end and the other end of the deposition mask 100 may be opposite and parallel to each other. One end of the deposition mask 100 may be any one of the ends forming four side surfaces disposed at the outermost side of the deposition mask 100. For example, the deposition mask 100 may be stretched with a tensile force of about 0.1kgf to about 2 kgf. Specifically, the deposition mask may be stretched with a tensile force of about 0.4kgf to about 1.5kgf and fixed to the mask frame 200. Accordingly, the stress of the deposition mask 100 may be reduced. However, the embodiment is not limited thereto, and the deposition mask may be stretched and fixed to the mask frame 200 with various tensile forces capable of reducing the stress of the deposition mask 100.

Subsequently, when the unusable portion of the deposition mask 100 is welded, the deposition mask 100 may be fixed to the mask frame 200. Next, a portion of the deposition mask 100 disposed outside the mask frame 200 may be removed using a method such as cutting.

The substrate 300 may be used to manufacture a display device, for example, the substrate 300 may be a substrate 300 for depositing an organic material for an O L ED pixel pattern, red, green, and blue organic material patterns may be formed on the substrate 300 to form pixels having three primary color lights, that is, RGB patterns may be formed on the substrate 300.

The organic material deposition container 400 may be a crucible. The organic material may be disposed inside the crucible.

When a heat source and/or current is supplied to the crucible within the vacuum chamber 500, the organic material may be disposed on the substrate 100.

Referring to fig. 3, the deposition mask 100 may include one surface 101 and another surface 102 opposite thereto.

One surface 101 of the deposition mask 100 includes small apertures V1 and the other surface may include large apertures V2. For example, one surface 101 and the other surface 102 of the deposition mask 100 may include a plurality of small holes V1 and a plurality of large holes V2, respectively.

In addition, the deposition mask 100 may include through holes TH. The through holes TH may communicate through a communication portion connected to a boundary between the small hole V1 and the large hole V2.

In addition, the deposition mask 100 may include a first etching surface ES1 in the aperture V1. Deposition mask 100 may include a second etch surface ES2 in macro-aperture V2. The through-hole TH may be formed by communication between the first etching surface ES1 in the small hole V1 and the second etching surface ES2 in the large hole V2. For example, the first etching surface ES1 in one small hole V1 may communicate with the second etching surface ES2 in one large hole V2, thereby forming one through hole. Thus, the number of through holes may correspond to the number of small holes V1 and the number of large holes V2.

The width of large aperture V2 may be greater than the width of small aperture V1. At this time, the width of the small hole V1 may be measured in one surface of the deposition mask 100, and the width of the large hole V2 may be measured in the other surface 102 of the deposition mask 100.

The aperture V1 may be disposed toward the base plate 300. The aperture V1 may be located proximate the base plate 300. Accordingly, the small hole V1 may have a shape corresponding to the deposition material, i.e., the deposition pattern DP.

Large aperture V2 may be disposed toward organic material deposition vessel 400. Accordingly, the large hole V2 can accommodate the organic material supplied from the organic material deposition container 400 with a large width, and a fine pattern can be quickly formed on the substrate 300 through the small hole V1 having a smaller width than the large hole V2.

Fig. 4 is a top view of a deposition mask 100 according to an embodiment. Referring to fig. 4, the deposition mask 100 will be described in more detail.

Referring to fig. 4, the deposition mask 100 according to an embodiment may include a deposition area DA and a non-deposition area DNA.

The deposition area DA may be an area where a deposition pattern is formed. Accordingly, the deposition area DA may include a usable portion for forming a deposition pattern. The deposition area DA may include a pattern area and a non-pattern area. The pattern region may include small holes V1, large holes V2, through holes TH, and islands IS, and the non-pattern region may not include small holes V1, large holes V2, through holes TH, and islands IS. Here, the deposition area may include: a usable portion including a usable region and an outer region; and unusable portions where no deposition is performed. In addition, the usable portion may be referred to as a pattern region, and the unusable portion may be referred to as a non-pattern region.

In addition, one deposition mask 100 may include a plurality of deposition areas DA. For example, the deposition area DA of an embodiment may include a plurality of available portions in which a plurality of deposition patterns may be formed. In addition, each of the plurality of available portions may include: a plurality of available areas AA1, AA2, and AA3 corresponding to a central area of the available portion; and a plurality of outer areas OA1, OA2 and OA3 disposed to surround the periphery of the plurality of available areas AA1, AA2 and AA3 and disposed outside the available portions.

The plurality of available areas AA1, AA2, and AA3 may include a first available area AA1, a second available area AA2, and a third available area AA 3. Here, one deposition area DA may be a first usable portion including a first usable area AA1 and a first outer area OA1 surrounding the first usable area AA. In addition, one deposition area DA may be a second usable portion including a second usable area AA2 and a second outer area OA2 surrounding a second usable area AA 2. In addition, one deposition area DA may be a third usable portion including a third usable area AA3 and a third outer area OA3 surrounding the third usable area AA 3.

In the case of a small display device such as a smart phone, a usable portion of any one of a plurality of deposition areas included in the deposition mask 100 may be used to form one display device. Accordingly, one deposition mask 100 may include a plurality of usable portions, and thus a plurality of display devices may be simultaneously formed. Accordingly, the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment can improve process efficiency.

In contrast, in the case of a large display device such as a television, a plurality of usable portions included in one deposition mask 100 may be used to form one display device. At this time, the plurality of usable portions may prevent deformation due to the load of the mask.

The deposition area DA may include a plurality of partition areas IA1 and IA3 included in one deposition mask 100. Separation regions IA1 and IA2 may be provided between adjacent usable portions. Separation regions IA1 and IA2 may be separation regions between multiple available fractions. For example, first partition area IA1 may be disposed between first outer area OA1 of first usable area AA1 and second outer area OA2 of second usable area AA 2. In addition, the second partition area IA2 may be disposed between the second outer area OA2 of the second usable area AA2 and the third outer area OA3 of the third usable area AA 3. That is, adjacent usable portions may be distinguished from each other by partition regions IA1 and IA2, and one deposition mask 100 may support a plurality of usable portions.

The deposition mask 100 may include non-deposition areas at both sides in the longitudinal direction of the deposition area DA. The deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment may include non-deposition areas NDA at both sides of the deposition area DA in the horizontal direction.

The non-deposition area NDA of the deposition mask 100 may be an area where deposition is not performed. The non-deposition area NDA may include frame fixing areas FA1 and FA2 for fixing the deposition mask 100 to the mask frame 200. In addition, the non-deposition region NDA may include half-etched portions HF1 and HF2 and an opening portion.

As described above, the deposition area DA may be an area where a deposition pattern is formed, and the non-deposition area NDA may be an area where deposition is not performed. At this time, a surface treatment layer having a material different from that of the metal plate 10 may be formed in the deposition area DA of the deposition mask 100, and the surface treatment layer may not be formed in the non-deposition area NDA. Alternatively, a surface treatment layer having a material different from that of the metal plate 10 may be formed on only one of the one surface 101 or the other surface 102 of the deposition mask 100. Alternatively, a surface treatment layer having a material different from that of the metal plate 10 may be formed only in a portion of one surface 101 of the deposition mask 100. For example, one surface 101 and/or the other surface 102 of the deposition mask 100, as well as the entire deposition mask 100 or a portion of the deposition mask 100, may include a surface treatment layer having a slower etching rate than a material of the metal plate, thereby increasing an etching factor. Therefore, in the deposition mask 100 of the embodiment, the through-hole having a fine size can be efficiently formed. For example, the deposition mask 100 of an embodiment may have a definition of 400PPI or more. In particular, in the deposition mask 100, a deposition pattern having a definition of 500PPI or more may be efficiently formed. Here, the surface treatment layer may include an element different from the material of the metal plate 10, or may include a metal material having a different composition of the same element. This will be described in more detail in the manufacturing process of the deposition mask.

The non-deposition region NDA may include half-etched portions HF1 and HF 2. For example, the non-deposition area NDA of the deposition mask 100 may include a first half-etched portion HF1 at one side of the deposition area DA and a second half-etched portion HF2 at the other side opposite to the one side of the deposition area DA. The first half etching part HF1 and the second half etching part HF2 may be regions where grooves are formed in the depth direction of the deposition mask 100. The first half-etched portion HF1 and the second half-etched portion HF2 may have a groove with a thickness of about 1/2 a of the thickness of the deposition mask, thereby dispersing stress when the deposition mask 100 is stretched. In addition, the half-etched portions HF1 and HF2 may be formed to be symmetrical in the X-axis direction or the Y-axis direction with respect to the center of the deposition mask 100. Therefore, the pulling force in both directions can be uniformly controlled.

The half-etched portions HF1 and HF2 may be formed in various shapes. The half-etched portions HF1 and HF2 may include semicircular grooves. A groove may be formed in at least one of one surface 101 and the other surface 102 opposite to the surface 101 of the deposition mask 100. Preferably, half-etched portions HF1 and HF2 may be formed in the surface corresponding to the pinhole V1. Therefore, half-etched portions HF1 and HF2 can be formed simultaneously with the pinhole V1, thereby improving process efficiency. In addition, the half-etched portions HF1 and HF2 can disperse stress that may be generated due to the difference between the sizes of the large holes V2. However, the embodiment is not limited thereto, and the half-etched portions HF1 and HF2 may have a rectangular shape. For example, the first half etching part HF1 and the second half etching part HF2 may have a rectangular shape or a square shape. Therefore, the deposition mask 100 can efficiently disperse the stress.

In addition, the half-etched portions HF1 and HF2 may include curved surfaces and flat surfaces. A plane of the first half-etched portion HF1 may be disposed adjacent to the first usable area AA1, and the plane may be disposed horizontally to one end in the longitudinal direction of the deposition mask 100. The curved surface of the first half-etched portion HF1 may have a convex shape toward one end in the longitudinal direction of the deposition mask 100. For example, the curved surface of the first half-etched portion HF1 may be formed such that a point half the vertical length of the deposition mask 100 corresponds to the radius of a semicircle.

In addition, a plane of the second half-etched portion HF2 may be disposed adjacent to the third usable area AA3, and the plane may be disposed horizontally to an end in the longitudinal direction of the deposition mask 100. The curved surface of the second half-etched portion HF2 may have a convex shape toward the other end in the longitudinal direction of the deposition mask 100. For example, the curved surface of the second half-etched portion HF2 may be formed such that a point half the vertical length of the deposition mask 100 corresponds to the radius of a semicircle.

The half-etched portions HF1 and HF2 may be formed simultaneously when the small hole V1 or the large hole V2 is formed. Therefore, process efficiency can be improved. In addition, the grooves formed in the one surface 101 and the other surface 102 of the deposition mask 100 may be formed to be staggered from each other. Thus, the half-etched portions HF1 and HF2 may not intersect.

In addition, the deposition mask 100 according to an embodiment may include four half-etched portions. For example, half-etched portions HF1 and HF2 may include an even number of half-etched portions HF1 and HF2 to more efficiently distribute stress.

In addition, half-etched portions HF1 and HF2 may be further formed in the unusable portion UA of the deposition area DA. For example, the plurality of half-etched portions HF1 and HF2 may be disposed to be distributed in all or a part of the unusable area UA in order to disperse the stress when the deposition mask 100 is stretched.

In addition, half-etched portions HF1 and HF2 may be formed in peripheral regions of the frame fixing areas FA1 and FA2 and/or the frame fixing areas FA1 and FA 2. Accordingly, when the deposition mask 100 is fixed to the mask frame 200 and/or after the deposition mask 100 is fixed to the mask frame 200, stress of the deposition mask 100 generated when the deposition material is deposited may be uniformly dispersed. Accordingly, the deposition mask 100 may have uniform through holes.

That is, the deposition mask 100 according to an embodiment may include a plurality of half-etched portions. Specifically, although the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment is shown to have the half-etched portions HF1 and HF2 only in the non-deposition area NDA, the embodiment is not limited thereto, and at least one of the deposition area DA or the non-deposition area NDA may further include a plurality of half-etched portions. Therefore, the stress of the deposition mask 100 can be uniformly dispersed.

The non-deposition area NDA may include frame fixing areas FA1 and FA2 for fixing the deposition mask 100 to the mask frame 200. For example, the first frame fixing area FA1 may be included at one side of the deposition area DA, and the second frame fixing area FA2 may be included at the other side opposite to the one side of the deposition area DA. The first and second frame fixing areas FA1 and FA2 may be areas fixed to the mask frame 200 by welding.

The frame fixing areas FA1 and FA2 may be disposed between the half-etched portions HF1 and HF2 of the non-deposition area NDA and the available portions of the deposition area DA adjacent to the half-etched portions HF1 and HF 2. For example, the first frame fixing area FA1 may be disposed between the first half-etched portion HF1 of the non-deposition area NDA and a first usable portion including the first usable area AA1 and the first outer area OA1 adjacent to the first half-etched portion HF1 of the deposition area DA. For example, the second frame fixing area FA2 may be disposed between the second half-etched portion HF2 of the non-deposition area NDA and a third available portion including the third available area AA3 and the third outer area OA3 adjacent to the second half-etched portion HF2 of the deposition area DA. Therefore, a plurality of deposition patterns can be fixed at the same time.

In addition, the deposition mask 100 may include semicircular opening portions at both ends in the horizontal direction X. For example, the non-deposition area NDA may include an opening portion. Specifically, the non-deposition area NDA may include semicircular opening portions at both ends in a horizontal direction. For example, the non-deposition area NDA of the deposition mask 100 may include an opening portion in which a center in the vertical direction Y is opened at one side in the horizontal direction. For example, the non-deposition area NDA of the deposition mask 100 may include an opening portion in which a center in a vertical direction is opened, on the other side opposite to one side in a horizontal direction. That is, both ends of the deposition mask 100 may include an opening portion at a point of half of its vertical length. For example, both ends of the deposition mask 100 may have a horseshoe shape.

At this time, the curved surface of the opening portion may face the half-etched portions HF1 and HF 2. Therefore, in the opening portions located at both ends of the deposition mask 100, the distance between the first half etching portions HF1 and HF2 or the second half etching portions HF1 and HF2 and the half portion of the vertical length of the deposition mask 100 may be the shortest.

In addition, the vertical length h2 of the opening portion may correspond to the vertical length h1 of the first half-etched portion HF1 or the second half-etched portion HF 2. Accordingly, when the deposition mask 100 is stretched, stress may be uniformly dispersed, thereby reducing the wave deformation of the deposition mask. Accordingly, the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment may have uniform through holes, thereby improving the deposition efficiency of the pattern. Preferably, the vertical length h1 of the first half etching portion HF1 or the second half etching portion HF2 may be about 80% to about 200% of the vertical length h2 of the opening portion (h1: h2 ═ 0.8-2: 1). The vertical length h1 of the first half-etched portion HF1 or the second half-etched portion HF2 may be about 90% to about 150% of the vertical length h2 of the opening portion (h1: h2 ═ 0.9 to 1.5: 1). The vertical length h1 of the first half-etched portion HF1 or the second half-etched portion HF2 may be about 95% to about 110% of the vertical length h2 of the opening portion (h1: h2 ═ 0.95 to 1.1: 1).

In addition, although not shown, a half-etched portion may be further formed in the unusable portion UA of the deposition area DA. The plurality of half-etched portions may be disposed to be distributed in the entire or a portion of the unusable portion UA in order to disperse stress when the deposition mask 100 is stretched.

In addition, half-etched portions HF1 and HF2 may be formed in peripheral regions of the frame fixing areas FA1 and FA2 and/or the frame fixing areas FA1 and FA 2. Accordingly, when the deposition mask 100 is fixed to the mask frame 200 and/or after the deposition mask 100 is fixed to the frame, stress of the deposition mask 100 generated when the deposition material is deposited may be uniformly dispersed. Accordingly, the deposition mask 100 may have uniform through holes.

The deposition mask 100 may include a plurality of usable portions and unusable portions UA other than the usable portions, which are spaced apart in a longitudinal direction. Specifically, the deposition area DA may include a plurality of usable portions and unusable portions UA other than the usable portions. In addition, the plurality of usable portions may include a first usable portion, a second usable portion, and a third usable portion. In addition, the first usable portion may include a first usable area AA1 and a first outer area OA1 surrounding first usable area AA 1. The second usable portion may include a second usable area AA2 and a second outer area OA2 surrounding second usable area AA 2. The third usable portion may include a third usable area AA33 and a third outer area OA3 surrounding third usable area AA 3. The available regions AA1, AA2, and AA3 of the plurality of available portions may include a plurality of small holes V1-1 formed in one surface of the deposition mask 100, a plurality of first large holes V1-2 formed in the other surface opposite to the one surface, and a plurality of first through holes TH1 formed by the communicating portion CA connected to a boundary between the first small holes V1-1 and the large holes V1-2.

In addition, the usable areas AA1, AA2, and AA3 may include a plurality of first islands IS1 supporting spaces between the plurality of first through holes TH 1.

The first island IS1 may be located between adjacent first through holes TH1 of the plurality of first through holes TH 1. That IS, among the available areas AA1, AA2, and AA3 of the deposition mask 100, an area other than the first through hole TH1 may be the first island IS 1.

The first island IS1 may represent an unetched portion in one surface 101 or the other surface 102 of the usable portion of the deposition mask. Specifically, the first island IS1 may be an unetched region between the first through holes TH1 and the first through holes TH1 in the other surface 102 of the first large hole V1-2 where the usable portion of the deposition mask 100 IS formed. Accordingly, the first island portion IS1 may be disposed parallel to one surface 101 of the deposition mask 100. Specifically, the upper surface of the first island portion IS1 may be disposed parallel to the one surface 101.

The first island portion IS1 may be disposed on the same plane as the other surface 102 of the deposition mask 100. Accordingly, the first island portion IS1 may have the same thickness as at least a portion of the unusable portion in the other surface 102 of the deposition mask 100. Specifically, the first island portion IS1 may have the same thickness as an unetched portion of an unusable portion in the other surface 102 of the deposition mask 100. Accordingly, the deposition uniformity of the sub-pixels may be improved by the deposition mask 100.

Alternatively, the first island portion IS may be disposed in a plane parallel to the other surface 102 of the deposition mask 100. Here, the parallel plane means that a height difference between the other surface of the deposition mask 100, on which the first island portion IS1 IS provided by the etching process of the periphery of the first island portion IS1, and the other surface of the deposition mask 100, on which the unusable portion IS not etched, IS ± 1 μm or less.

The deposition mask 100 may include outer regions OA1, OA2, and OA3 surrounding the available regions AA1, AA2, and AA3 and located outside the available portions. The available area AA may be an inner area when outer portions of the outermost first through holes for depositing the organic material among the plurality of first through holes are connected. The outer areas OA1, OA2 and OA3 may be outer areas of the plurality of first via holes when outer portions of the outermost first via holes for depositing the organic material are connected. In addition, the unusable portion UA may be an outer region of the second through holes of the outer regions OA1, OA2, and OA3 when an outer portion of the second through hole located at the outermost side for depositing the organic material is connected.

The unusable portion UA may include regions other than the usable regions AA1, AA2, and AA3 and the outer regions OA1, OA2, and OA3 of the deposition area DA and the non-deposition area NDA.

The number of outer areas OA1, OA2 and OA3 may correspond to the number of available areas AA1, AA2 and AA 3. That is, one usable portion may include one outer area spaced apart from the end of the usable area in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction by a certain distance.

First usable area AA1 may be located in first outer area OA 1. The first usable area AA1 may include a plurality of second through holes TH2 for forming a deposition material. The first outer area OA1 surrounding the first available area AA1 may include a plurality of second through holes TH 2.

For example, the plurality of second through holes TH2 included in the first outer area OA1 serve to reduce etching defects of the first through holes TH1 located at the outermost side of the first available area AA 1. Accordingly, in the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment, it is possible to improve uniformity of the plurality of first through holes located in the usable areas AA1, AA2, and AA3 and to improve quality of a deposition pattern manufactured.

In addition, the second through holes TH2 formed in the first outer area OA1 may be formed to surround the first available area AA 1. Preferably, the second through holes TH2 may include a second through hole formed at a left side of the first usable area AA1, a second through hole formed at a right side of the first usable area AA1, a second through hole formed at an upper side of the first usable area AA1, and a second through hole formed at a lower side of the first usable area AA 1. At this time, the second via hole may be formed to minimize a difference in diameter between the via hole in the available area to be etched and the unavailable area to be unetched. At this time, the unetched regions around the first available portion in the deposition mask 100 include left, right, upper and lower regions of the first outer area OA1 surrounding the first available area AA 1. Accordingly, the second through holes formed in the first outer area OA1 may be formed in the left, right, upper and lower areas of the first available area AA 1.

In addition, the shape of the first through holes TH1 of the first usable area AA1 may correspond to the shape of the second through holes TH2 of the first outer area OA 1. Accordingly, uniformity of the first through holes TH1 included in the first usable area AA1 may be improved. For example, the shape of the first through holes TH1 of the first available region AA1 and the shape of the second through holes TH2 of the first outer region OA1 may both be circular. However, the embodiment is not limited thereto, and the first and second through holes TH1 and TH2 may have various shapes such as a diamond pattern or an oval pattern.

In addition, the shape of the first through holes TH1 of the first usable area AA1 may be different from the shape of the second through holes TH2 of the first outer area OA 1. For example, the shape of the first through holes TH1 of the first usable area AA1 may be circular, and the shape of the second through holes TH2 of the first outer area OA1 may be rectangular. However, the embodiment is not limited thereto, and the first and second through holes TH1 and TH2 may have different shapes among various shapes, for example, a diamond pattern or an oval pattern.

On the other hand, the second through holes TH2 formed in the first outer area OA1 may be formed in two or more rows. In addition, the second through holes TH2 may be formed in seven or less rows, and preferably, in five or less rows. Specifically, two or more second through holes TH2 are arranged in a line in an outward direction of the usable area AA, or seven or less, preferably five or less second through holes TH2 may be provided. That is, as the area in which the second through holes TH2 are provided increases, the area of the usable area decreases, and thus the second through holes TH2 are provided in seven rows or less, preferably five rows or less.

In addition, the second through holes TH2 formed in the first outer area OA1 may be formed in at least two rows. The second through holes TH2 are formed to improve the quality of a deposition pattern while improving the uniformity of the plurality of first through holes TH1 located in the first usable area AA 1. At this time, the second through holes TH2 are formed to solve the over-etching problem occurring between the etched area such as the first usable area AA1 and the unetched area such as the unusable portion UA. At this time, when the second through holes TH2 are formed in one row, it is difficult to prevent the radicals of the etching solution causing the over-etching problem from being concentrated using only the second through holes TH2 in one row. Accordingly, the second through holes TH2 are formed in at least two rows.

Preferably, the first through holes TH1 of the first available area AA1 occupy at least 80% to 90% in the deposition area including the first available area AA1 and the first outer area OA 1. At this time, when the first through holes TH1 are formed to be less than 80%, the etching amount varies according to the size difference between the first through holes TH1 and the second through holes TH2, and thus the first through holes may not be formed to a desired target size. In addition, when the first through holes TH1 are formed to be 90% or more, over-etching occurs in the second through holes TH2 formed in the first outer area OA 1. Accordingly, in the deposition area including the first available area AA1 and the first outer area OA1, the first through holes TH1 of the first available area AA1 occupy at least 80% to 90%.

In addition, the diameter of the second through holes TH2 in the horizontal direction may be smaller than the diameter of the first through holes TH1 in the horizontal direction. In addition, the diameter of the second through holes TH2 in the vertical direction may be smaller than the diameter of the first through holes TH1 in the vertical direction. Preferably, the size of the second through holes TH2 may be smaller than the size of the first through holes TH 1.

Specifically, the usable area AA may have a first opening ratio through the first plurality of through holes TH1, and the outer area OA may have a second opening ratio through the second plurality of through holes TH 2. The first aperture ratio may be greater than the second aperture ratio. In other words, the area of the first through holes TH1 in the a × B cm region in the first usable area AA1 may be greater than the area of the second through holes TH2 in the a × B cm region in the first outer area OA 1. In other words, in the region having the same area, the first through holes TH1 may occupy an area greater than that occupied by the second through holes TH 2. Preferably, the diameter of the first through holes TH1 in the horizontal direction may be 25 μm. In addition, the diameter of the second through holes TH2 in the horizontal direction may be 23.5 μm.

Second usable area AA2 may be located in second outer area OA 2. The shape of the second usable area AA2 may correspond to the shape of the first usable area AA 1. The shape of the second outer area OA2 may correspond to the shape of the first outer area OA 1.

The second outer area OA2 may include a plurality of through holes TH2 in horizontal and vertical directions from the first through holes located at the outermost side of the second usable area AA 2. For example, in the second outer area OA2, the plurality of second through holes TH2 may be arranged in a row in the horizontal direction at an upper position and a lower position of the first through holes located at the outermost side of the second usable area AA 2. For example, in the second outer area OA2, the plurality of second through holes TH2 may be arranged in a row in the vertical direction at right and left sides of the first through holes located at the outermost side of the second usable area AA 2. The plurality of second through holes TH2 included in the second outer area OA2 is used to reduce etching defects of the first through holes located at the outermost side of the second available area AA 2. Accordingly, in the deposition mask according to the embodiment, uniformity of the plurality of first through holes located in the second available area AA2 may be improved, and quality of a deposition pattern manufactured may be improved. On the other hand, the second through holes TH2 formed in the second outer area OA2 may be formed under the same conditions as the first through holes TH2 formed in the first outer area OA 1.

Third available area AA3 may be included in third outer area OA 3. The third usable area AA3 may include a plurality of through holes TH2 for forming a deposition material. The third outer area OA3 surrounding the third available area AA3 may include a plurality of second through holes.

The shape of the third usable area AA3 may correspond to the shape of the first usable area AA 1. The shape of the third outer area OA3 may correspond to the shape of the first outer area OA 1.

In addition, the first through holes TH1 included in the available areas AA1, AA2, and AA3 may have a shape partially corresponding to the shape of the second through holes TH2 included in the outer areas OA1, OA2, and OA 3. For example, the first through holes included in the available regions AA1, AA2, and AA3 may have a shape different from the shape of the second through holes TH2 located in the outer regions OA1, OA2, and OA 3. Accordingly, the stress difference may be controlled according to the position of the deposition mask 100.

Fig. 5 is a top view of the usable area and the outer area of the usable portion of the deposition mask according to the first embodiment. Fig. 6 is a view showing a microscopic image of a usable area of a usable portion of the deposition mask of fig. 5 from a plane. FIG. 7 is another top view of a deposition mask according to one embodiment. FIG. 8 is another top view of a deposition mask according to one embodiment.

Fig. 5 through 8 may be top views of any one of a first usable portion including first usable area AA1 and first outer area OA1, a second usable portion including second usable area AA2 and second outer area OA2, and a third usable portion including third usable area AA3 and third outer area OA3 of deposition mask 100 according to an embodiment.

In addition, fig. 5 to 8 are used to describe the shape and arrangement of the first through holes TH1 and the second through holes TH2, and the number of the first through holes TH1 of the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment is not limited thereto.

In addition, although the first to third outer areas included in the first to third usable portions are disposed to surround the left, right, upper, and lower sides of the first to third usable areas, for convenience of description, only the outer area disposed on the left side of the usable area of the outer area is described. In addition, the plurality of second through holes TH2 are shown to be arranged in two columns in the vertical direction in the outer area disposed at the left side of the usable area, but the embodiment is not limited thereto. In some embodiments, the number of the second through holes TH2 may be further increased or decreased.

Referring to fig. 5 to 8, the deposition mask 100 may include a plurality of first through holes TH1 in the available area AA. At this time, the first through holes TH1 may be arranged in a row or staggered from each other according to the direction. For example, the first through holes TH1 may be arranged in a row on a vertical axis and a horizontal axis, or may be arranged in a row on a vertical axis or a horizontal axis.

First, referring to fig. 5 and 6, the deposition mask 100 may include a plurality of through holes TH1 in the usable area AA. At this time, the plurality of through holes TH1 may have a circular shape. Specifically, the first through hole TH1 may have a horizontal diameter Cx1 and a vertical diameter Cy1, and the horizontal diameter Cx1 and the vertical diameter Cy1 of the first through hole TH1 may correspond to each other.

The first through holes TH1 may be arranged in a row according to a direction. For example, the first through holes TH1 may be arranged in a row on the vertical and horizontal axes.

Specifically, the (1-1) TH through holes TH1-1 and the (1-2) TH through holes TH1-2 in the usable area AA may be arranged in a row on a horizontal axis, and the (1-3) TH through holes TH1-3 and the (1-4) TH through holes TH1-4 may be arranged in a row on a horizontal axis.

In addition, the (1-1) TH through holes TH1-1 and the (1-3) TH through holes TH1-3 in the usable area AA may be arranged in a row on a vertical axis, and the (1-2) TH through holes TH1-2 and the (1-4) TH through holes TH1-4 may be arranged in a column on a vertical axis.

That IS, when the first through holes TH1 are arranged in a row on the vertical and horizontal axes, the first island IS1 may be located between two through holes TH1 adjacent in a diagonal direction intersecting both the vertical and horizontal axes. That IS, the first island IS1 may be located between two adjacent through holes TH1 in a diagonal direction.

For example, the first island IS1 may be disposed between the (1-1) TH through hole TH1-1 and the (1-4) TH through hole TH 1-4. In addition, the first island IS1 may be disposed between the (1-2) TH through hole TH1-2 and the (1-3) TH through hole TH 1-3. The first island IS1 may be located in an inclination angle direction of about +45 degrees and an inclination angle direction of about-45 degrees with respect to a horizontal axis crossing two adjacent first through holes. Here, the tilt angle direction of about ± 45 degrees may refer to a diagonal direction between the horizontal axis and the vertical axis, and the tilt angle in the diagonal direction may be measured on the same plane of the horizontal axis and the vertical axis.

In addition, referring to fig. 7, another deposition mask 100 according to an embodiment may include a plurality of through holes in the available area AA. At this time, the plurality of through holes may have an elliptical shape. Specifically, the horizontal diameter Cx1 and the vertical diameter Cy1 of the first through hole TH1 may be different from each other. For example, the horizontal diameter Cx1 of the first via can be greater than the vertical diameter Cy1 of the first via. However, the embodiment is not limited thereto, and the first through hole may have a rectangular shape, an octagonal shape, or a circular octagonal shape.

The first through holes TH1 may be arranged in a row on either of a vertical axis or a horizontal axis, or may be arranged to be staggered from each other on the other axis.

Specifically, the (1-1) TH through holes TH1-1 and the (1-2) TH through holes TH1-2 may be arranged in a row on a horizontal axis, and the (1-3) TH through holes TH1-3 and the (1-4) TH through holes TH1-4 may be arranged to be staggered with the (1-1) TH through holes TH1-1 and the (1-2) TH through holes TH1-2 on a vertical axis, respectively.

When the first through holes TH1 are arranged in a row on either of the vertical or horizontal axes and are arranged to be staggered from each other on the other axis, the first island IS1 may be located between two adjacent through holes TH1-1 and TH1-2 on the other of the vertical or horizontal axes. Alternatively, the first island IS1 may be located between three adjacent first through holes TH1-1, TH1-2, TH 1-3. Two first through holes TH1-1 and TH1-2 of the three adjacent first through holes TH1-1, TH1-2, and TH1-3 may be arranged in a row, and another through hole TH1-3 may be disposed in a region between the two through holes TH1-1 and TH1-2 at adjacent positions in a direction corresponding to the direction of the row. The first island IS1 may be disposed between the (1-1) TH through hole TH1-1, the (1-2) TH through hole TH1-2, and the (1-3) TH through hole TH 1-3. Alternatively, the first island IS1 may be disposed between the (1-2) TH through hole TH1-2, the (1-3) TH through hole TH1-3, and the (1-4) TH through hole TH 1-4.

In addition, in the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment, when the horizontal diameter Cx1 and the vertical diameter Cy1 of the reference hole as an arbitrary through hole are measured, the deviation between the horizontal diameter Cx1 and the vertical diameter Cy1 of the first through hole TH1 adjacent to the reference hole may be about 2% to about 10%, that is, when the deviation in size between adjacent first through holes of one reference hole is about 2% to about 10%, deposition uniformity may be ensured, for example, the deviation in size between the reference hole and the adjacent first through holes may be about 4% to about 9%, for example, the deviation in size between the reference hole and the adjacent first through holes may be about 5% to about 7%, for example, the deviation in size between the reference hole and the adjacent first through holes may be about 2% to about 5%, when the deviation in size between the reference hole and the adjacent first through holes is less than about 2%, the deviation in occurrence rate of moir é in the O L panel after deposition may be increased by about 3% from the average deviation in size between the adjacent first through holes, for example, when the deviation in occurrence rate of the reference hole TH 35% from the reference hole and the adjacent first through holes may be about 3 μm, the average through hole deviation in the first through hole, the average through hole deviation in the deposition efficiency may be increased, and the average through hole deviation in the first through hole deviation L.

In addition, referring to fig. 8, the deposition mask 100 may include a plurality of through holes TH1 in the usable area AA. At this time, the plurality of through holes TH1 may have a rectangular shape. For example, the first through holes TH1 have a diamond shape. The first through hole TH1 may have a horizontal length Cx1 and a vertical length Cy1, and the horizontal length Cx1 and the vertical length Cy1 of the first through hole TH1 may correspond to each other.

The first through holes TH1 may be arranged in a row according to a direction. For example, the first through holes TH1 may be arranged in a row on either of a vertical axis or a horizontal axis, or may be arranged to be staggered from each other on the other axis.

Specifically, the (1-1) TH through hole TH1-1, the (1-2) TH through hole TH1-2, and the (1-3) TH through hole TH1-3 may be arranged in a row on a horizontal axis, the (1-4) TH through hole TH1-4 and the (1-5) TH through hole TH1-5 may be arranged in a row on a horizontal axis, and the (1-4) TH through hole TH1-4 and the (1-5) TH through hole TH1-5 may be arranged to be staggered from the (1-1) TH through hole TH1-1, the (1-2) TH through hole TH1-2, and the (1-3) TH through hole TH1-3 on a vertical axis. For example, the (1-4) TH through hole TH1-4 may be disposed between the (1-1) TH through hole TH1-1 and the (1-2) TH through hole TH1-2, and the (1-5) TH through hole TH1-5 may be disposed between the (1-2) TH through hole TH1-2 and the (1-3) TH through hole TH 1-3.

When the first through holes TH1 are arranged in a row on either of the vertical or horizontal axes and are arranged to be staggered from each other on the other axis, the first island IS1 may be located at a point where the vertical and horizontal axes intersect. Alternatively, the first island IS1 may be located between four adjacent first through holes TH1-1, TH1-2, TH1-4 and TH 1-6.

Two first through holes TH1-1 and TH1-2 of four adjacent first through holes TH1-1, TH1-2, TH1-4, and TH1-6 may refer to first through holes arranged in a row on either of a vertical axis or a horizontal axis, and the remaining two first through holes TH1-4 and TH1-6 may refer to first through holes arranged in a row on the other of the vertical axis or the horizontal axis.

The first island portion IS1, on the other hand, may refer to an unetched surface between the first through holes TH1 in the other surface of the deposition mask 100 in which the macro-holes V2 of the available area AA are formed, specifically, the first island portion IS may be an unetched other surface of the deposition mask 100 except for the first through holes TH1 and the second etched surface ES1-2 located in the macro-holes in the available area AA of the deposition mask.

For example, the deposition mask 100 of the embodiment may be used to deposit a deposition pattern having a full High Definition (HD) of 400PPI or more, for example, the deposition mask 100 of the embodiment may be used to deposit O L ED pixels having 400PPI or more with a number of pixels of 1920 × 1080 or more in the horizontal and vertical directions, i.e., one usable portion included in the deposition mask 100 of the embodiment may be used to achieve a number of pixels having a definition of 1920 × 1080 or more.

For example, the deposition mask 100 of the embodiment may be used to form a deposition pattern having a quad high Definition (quad high Definition) of 500PPI or more for example, the deposition mask 100 of the embodiment may be used to deposit O L ED pixels having 530PPI or more, in which the number of pixels in the horizontal and vertical directions is 2560 × 1440 or more, with the deposition mask 100 of the embodiment, the number of pixels per inch may be 530PPI or more based on a 5.5 inch O L ED panel, that is, one usable portion included in the deposition mask 100 of the embodiment may be used to realize the number of pixels having a Definition of 2560 × 1440 or more.

For example, the deposition mask 100 of an embodiment may be used to deposit a deposition pattern having an Ultra High Definition (Ultra High Definition) of 700PPI or more to deposit an O L ED pixel having 794PPI or more with a number of pixels 3840 × 2160 or more in horizontal and vertical directions.

The diameter of the first through hole TH1 may be the width of the communication portion CA. Specifically, the diameter of the first through hole TH1 may be measured at a point where an end of an etched surface in the small hole V1 intersects an end of an etched surface in the large hole V2. The measurement direction of the diameter of the first through holes TH1 may be any one of a horizontal direction, a vertical direction, or a diagonal direction. The diameter of the first through holes TH1 measured in the horizontal direction may be equal to or less than 33 μm. Alternatively, the diameter of the first through holes TH1 measured in the vertical direction may be equal to or less than 33 μm. Alternatively, the diameter of the first through holes TH1 may be an average of values measured in the horizontal direction, the vertical direction, and the diagonal direction.

Accordingly, the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment may implement QHD. For example, the diameter of the first through holes TH1 may be about 15 μm to about 33 μm. For example, the diameter of the first through holes TH1 may be about 19 μm to about 33 μm. For example, the first through holes TH1 may have a diameter of about 20 μm to about 27 μm. When the diameter of the first through holes TH1 exceeds about 33 μm, it may be difficult to achieve definition of 500PPI or more. On the other hand, when the diameter of the through hole TH1 is less than about 15 μm, deposition failure may occur. Here, the diameter of the first through hole TH1 is within the above range, and the diameter of the first through hole TH1 may be substantially larger than the diameter of the second through hole TH 2. For example, the diameter of the second through hole may be smaller than the diameter of the first through hole, and may be 0.9 times or more, preferably 0.95 times or more, the diameter of the first through hole. For example, when the diameter of the first through hole TH1 is 25 μm in the above range, the diameter of the second through hole TH2 may be 23.5 μm smaller than the diameter of the first through hole TH 1. When the diameter of the second through hole is excessively smaller than that of the first through hole, for example, when the diameter of the second through hole is 0.5 times or less of that of the first through hole, the volume may be reduced and deformation may occur during the drawing.

Referring to fig. 5 and 6, a pitch between two adjacent first through holes TH1 of the plurality of first through holes in a horizontal direction may be about 48 μm or less. For example, a pitch between two adjacent first through holes TH1 among the plurality of first through holes TH1 in the horizontal direction may be about 20 μm to about 48 μm. For example, a pitch between two adjacent first through holes TH1 among the plurality of first through holes TH1 in the horizontal direction may be about 30 μm to about 35 μm. Here, the pitch may refer to a pitch P1 between the centers of the (1-1) TH through holes TH1-1 and the (1-2) TH through holes TH1-2, which are adjacent in the horizontal direction. In contrast, the pitch may refer to a pitch P2 between the centers of the (1-1) th and (1-2) th island portions adjacent in the horizontal direction. Here, the center of the first island IS1 may be the center of the other surface between the four adjacent through holes TH1 in the horizontal and vertical directions that IS not etched. For example, the center of the first island portion IS1 may refer to a point: based on two adjacent through holes in the horizontal direction, that IS, the (1-1) TH through hole TH1-1 and the (1-2) TH through hole TH1-2, the horizontal axis connecting the edge of one first island IS1 in the region between the (1-3) TH through hole TH1-3 adjacent to the (1-1) TH through hole TH1-1 in the vertical direction and the (1-4) TH through hole TH1-4 adjacent to the (1-2) TH through hole TH1-2 in the vertical direction intersects with the vertical axis connecting the edges at this point.

In addition, referring to fig. 7, a pitch between two adjacent first through holes TH1 among the plurality of first through holes in the horizontal direction may be about 48 μm or less. For example, a pitch between two adjacent through holes TH1 of the plurality of first through holes TH1 in the horizontal direction may be about 20 μm to about 48 μm. For example, a pitch between two adjacent through holes TH1 of the plurality of first through holes TH1 in the horizontal direction may be about 30 μm to about 35 μm. Here, the pitch may refer to a pitch P1 between the centers of two adjacent through holes in the horizontal direction, i.e., the center of the (1-1) TH through hole TH1-1 and the center of the (1-2) TH through hole TH 1-2. In addition, the pitch may refer to a pitch P2 between the centers of two adjacent islands in the horizontal direction, i.e., the center of the (1-1) th island and the center of the (1-2) th island. Here, the center of the first island portion IS1 may be the center of the other surface not etched between two adjacent through holes adjacent to one through hole in the vertical direction. Alternatively, here, the center of the first island IS1 may be the center of the other surface not etched in the two vias in the vertical direction and one via adjacent to the two vias. That IS, the center of the first island IS1 may be the center of the unetched other surfaces of the three adjacent through holes, and the three adjacent through holes may mean that a triangle IS formed by connecting the centers of the three through holes.

In addition, referring to fig. 8, a pitch between two adjacent through holes TH1 among the plurality of first through holes in the horizontal direction may be about 48 μm or less. For example, a pitch between two adjacent through holes TH1 of the plurality of first through holes TH1 in the horizontal direction may be about 20 μm to about 48 μm. For example, a pitch between two adjacent through holes TH1 of the plurality of first through holes TH1 in the horizontal direction may be about 30 μm to about 35 μm. Here, the pitch may refer to a pitch P1 between the centers of the (1-1) TH through holes TH1-1 and the (1-2) TH through holes TH1-2, which are adjacent in the horizontal direction. Alternatively, the pitch may refer to a pitch P2 between centers of two adjacent first islands in the horizontal direction. Here, the center of the first island IS1 may refer to the center of the other surface not etched in the four adjacent through holes TH1 in the horizontal and vertical directions. For example, the center of the first island portion IS1 may refer to a point: based on two adjacent through holes in the horizontal direction, that IS, the (1-1) TH through hole TH1-1 and the (1-2) TH through hole TH1-2, the horizontal axis connecting the edge of one first island IS1 in the region between the (1-3) TH through hole TH1-3 adjacent to the (1-1) TH through hole TH1-1 in the vertical direction and the (1-4) TH through hole TH1-4 adjacent to the (1-2) TH through hole TH1-2 in the vertical direction intersects with the vertical axis connecting the edges at this point. For example, the center of the first island IS1 may refer to the center of the unetched other surfaces located in the two first through holes adjacent in the horizontal direction, i.e., the (1-1) TH through hole TH1-1 and the (1-2) TH through hole TH1-2, and in the two adjacent through holes adjacent in the vertical direction from the center of the region between the (1-1) TH through hole TH1-1 and the (1-2) TH through hole TH1-2, i.e., the region between the (1-4) TH through hole TH4 and the (1-6) TH through hole TH 1-6. That IS, the center of the first island portion IS may be the center of the unetched surface located in the four first via holes.

The measurement direction of the diameter of the first through holes TH1 and the measurement direction of the pitch between two adjacent first through holes TH1 may be the same. The pitch between the first through holes TH1 may be obtained by measuring the pitch between two first through holes TH1 that are adjacent in the horizontal direction or the vertical direction.

That is, in the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment, the O L ED pixel having a definition of 400PPI or more may be deposited, in particular, in the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment, the O L ED pixel having a definition of 500PPI or more may be deposited when the diameter of the first through holes TH1 in the usable area AA is about 33 μm or less and the pitch between the first through holes TH1 is about 48 μm or less, that is, the QHD may be implemented using the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment.

The diameter of the first through holes TH1 and the pitch between the first through holes TH1 may be sizes for forming green sub-pixels, for example, the diameter of the first through holes TH1 may be measured based on a green (G) pattern, since the green (G) pattern is low in visual recognition, a greater number of green (G) patterns may be required compared to red (R) and blue (B) patterns, and the pitch between the first through holes TH1 in the green (G) pattern may be smaller than the pitch in the red (R) and blue (B) patterns, the deposition mask 100 may be an O L ED deposition mask for implementing QHD display pixels.

For example, the deposition mask 100 may be used to deposit at least one of a red (R), a first green (G1), a blue (B), or a second green (G2) sub-pixel. In particular, the deposition mask 100 may be used to deposit a red (R) sub-pixel. Alternatively, the deposition mask 100 may deposit a blue (B) sub-pixel. Alternatively, the deposition mask 100 may be used to simultaneously form the first green (G1) sub-pixel and the second green (G2) sub-pixel.

The pixels of the organic light emitting diode display device may be arranged in the order of "red (R), first green (G1), blue (B), and second green (G2)" (RGBG). In this case, red (R) and a first green (G1) may form one pixel (RG), and blue (B) and a second green (G2) may form another pixel (BG). In the organic light emitting diode display device having such an arrangement, since the deposition pitch of the green light emitting organic material is narrower than the deposition pitches of the red and blue light emitting organic materials, it may be necessary to have the same type of deposition mask 100 as the embodiment.

In addition, in the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment, the diameter of the first through holes TH1 in the usable area AA may be about 20 μm or less in a horizontal direction, and thus, in the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment, UHD may be achieved, for example, in the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment, O L ED pixels having a definition of 800PPI may be deposited when the diameter of the first through holes TH1 is about 20 μm or less and the pitch between the first through holes is about 32 μm or less, that is, UHD may be achieved using the deposition mask according to the embodiment.

The diameter of the first vias and the spacing between the first vias may be dimensions for forming the green sub-pixels the deposition mask may be an O L ED deposition mask for implementing UHD display pixels.

On the other hand, the deposition mask 100 may include a plurality of through holes TH2 in the outer area OA. At this time, the second through holes TH2 may be arranged in a row according to the direction or may be arranged to be staggered from each other. For example, the second through holes TH2 may be arranged in rows on a vertical axis and a horizontal axis, and may be arranged in rows on a vertical axis or a horizontal axis.

The deposition mask 100 may include a plurality of through holes TH2 in the outer area OA. At this time, the plurality of through holes TH2 may have a circular shape. Specifically, the second through hole TH2 may have a horizontal diameter Cx2 and a vertical diameter Cy2, and the horizontal diameter Cx2 and the vertical diameter Cy2 of the second through hole TH1 may correspond to each other. At this time, at least one of the horizontal diameter Cx2 or the vertical diameter Cy2 of the second through hole TH2 may be smaller than at least one of the horizontal diameter Cx1 or the vertical diameter Cy1 of the first through hole TH 1.

The second through holes TH2 may be arranged in a row according to a direction. For example, the second through holes TH2 may be arranged in a row on the vertical and horizontal axes.

Specifically, the (2-1) TH through holes TH2-1 and the (2-2) TH through holes TH2-2 in the outer area OA may be arranged in a row on a horizontal axis, and the (2-3) TH through holes TH2-3 and the (2-4) TH through holes TH2-4 may be arranged in a row on a horizontal axis.

In addition, the (2-1) TH through holes TH2-1 and the (2-3) TH through holes TH2-3 in the outer area OA may be arranged in a row on a vertical axis, and the (2-2) TH through holes TH2-2 and the (2-4) TH through holes TH2-4 may be arranged in a row on a vertical axis.

That IS, when the second through holes TH2 are arranged in a row on the vertical and horizontal axes, the second island IS2 may be located between two second through holes TH2 adjacent in a diagonal direction where the vertical and horizontal axes intersect. That IS, the second island portion IS2 may be located between two adjacent second through holes in the diagonal direction.

For example, the second island IS2 may be disposed between the (2-1) TH through hole TH2-1 and the (2-4) TH through hole TH 2-4. In addition, the second island IS2 may be disposed between the (2-2) TH through hole TH2-2 and the (2-3) TH through hole TH 2-3. The second island may be located in an inclination angle direction of about +45 degrees and an inclination angle direction of about-45 degrees with respect to a horizontal axis crossing two adjacent second via holes. Here, the tilt angle direction of about ± 45 degrees may refer to a diagonal direction between the horizontal axis and the vertical axis, and the tilt angle in the diagonal direction may be measured on the same plane of the horizontal axis and the vertical axis.

At this time, the second island IS2 includes a (2-1) TH island IS2-1 disposed between the plurality of second through holes TH2 and a (2-2) TH island IS2-2 disposed between the second through holes TH2 and the first through holes TH 1.

On the other hand, the first island portion IS1 and the second island portion IS2 may have different sizes. The pitch between the first through holes TH1 and the pitch between the second through holes TH2 may be the same. At this time, the size of each second through hole TH2 may be smaller than the size of each first through hole TH 1. Here, the dimension may be a diameter in a vertical direction or a horizontal direction of the through hole, or may be a width of the communicating portion.

Therefore, the second island portion IS2 IS larger than the first island portion IS 1. Preferably, an area of one first island portion IS1 IS smaller than an area of one second island portion IS2 on the deposition mask. Preferably, the width in the horizontal direction of the second island portion IS2 IS larger than the width in the horizontal direction of the first island portion IS 1. Preferably, the width in the vertical direction of the second island portion IS2 IS larger than the width in the vertical direction of the first island portion IS 1.

On the other hand, even in the second island portion IS2, the (2-2) TH island portion IS2-2 and the other (2-1) TH island portion IS2-1 disposed between the first through hole TH1 and the second through hole TH2 may have different sizes. That IS, a portion of the (2-2) TH island IS2-2 IS influenced by the second through hole TH2, and another portion of the (2-2) TH island IS2-2 IS influenced by the first through hole TH 1. Accordingly, the size of the portion of the (2-2) TH island IS2-2 affected by the second through holes TH2 may be larger than the size of the portion of the (2-2) TH island IS2-2 affected by the first through holes TH 1. That IS, the size of the portion of the (2-2) th island IS2-2 disposed in the outer area OA may be greater than the width of the portion of the (2-2) th island IS2-2 disposed in the available area AA. Preferably, the area of the (2-2) th island portion IS2-2 may be larger than that of the first island portion IS1 and may be smaller than that of the (2-1) th island portion IS 2-1.

At this time, in the first island portion IS1 and the (2-1) th island portion IS2-1, the shapes of the left and right island portions of the vertical line passing through the center may be the same. Here, the center of each island portion IS described in the description of the first island portion IS1, and the description will be omitted. That IS, in the first island portion IS1 and the (2-1) th island portion IS2-1, the left and right island portions of the vertical line passing through the center have a symmetrical shape.

In contrast, in the (2-2) th second island portion IS2-2, the left and right island portions of the vertical line passing through the center are different in shape. Preferably, in the (2-2) th second island portion IS2-2, the shapes of the left and right island portions of the vertical line passing through the center have an asymmetrical shape. At this time, a portion of the (2-2) th second island IS2-2 on the right side may be disposed in the available area AA, and a portion of the (2-2) th second island IS2-2 on the left side may be disposed in the external area OA.

In addition, in the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment, when the horizontal diameter Cx2 and the vertical diameter Cy2 of the reference hole as any second via hole are measured, the deviation between the horizontal diameter Cx2 and the vertical diameter Cy2 of the second via hole TH2 adjacent to the reference hole may be about 2% to about 10%, that is, when the deviation in size between adjacent second via holes of one reference hole is about 2% to about 10%, deposition uniformity may be ensured, for example, the deviation in size between the reference hole and the adjacent second via hole may be about 4% to about 9%, for example, the deviation in size between the reference hole and the adjacent second via hole may be about 5% to about 7%, for example, the deviation in size between the reference hole and the adjacent second via hole may be about 2% to about 5%, for example, when the deviation in size between the reference hole and the adjacent second via hole is less than about 2%, the occurrence of moire may be increased in the O L after deposition, when the deviation in size between the reference hole and the adjacent second via hole is about 3 μm, the deviation in average of the through-via hole deviation from the reference hole, the average through-hole deviation in the through-to-via hole diameter, which the average efficiency may be increased, for example, when the deviation in the second via hole is about 3 μm, the deviation between the average of the reference hole, and the deviation between the average via hole, may be about 3 μm, and the deviation of the average of the second via hole, and the deposition efficiency may be increased, and the average of the deposition efficiency may be increased.

The second island portion IS2, on the other hand, may represent an unetched surface between the second through holes TH2 in the other surface of the deposition mask 100 where the macro holes V2 of the usable area AA are formed, specifically, the second island portion IS2 may be an unetched other surface of the deposition mask 100 except for the first through holes TH2 and the second etched surface located in the macro holes in the outer area OA of the deposition mask.

For example, the deposition mask 100 of the embodiment may be used to deposit a deposition pattern having a full High Definition (HD) of 400PPI or more for example, the deposition mask 100 of the embodiment may be used to deposit O L ED pixels having 400PPI or more with a number of pixels in horizontal and vertical directions of 1920 × 1080 or more, i.e., one usable portion included in the deposition mask 100 of the embodiment may be used to achieve a number of pixels having a definition of 1920 × 1080 or more.

For example, the deposition mask 100 of the embodiment may be used to deposit an O L ED pixel having a pixel count of 2560 × 1440 or more in horizontal and vertical directions with a pixel count of 530PPI or more, for example, the deposition mask 100 of the embodiment may be used to deposit an O L ED pixel having a pixel count of 530PPI or more, with the deposition mask 100 of the embodiment, the pixel count per inch may be 530PPI or more based on a 5.5 inch O L ED panel, that is, one usable portion included in the deposition mask 100 of the embodiment may be used to achieve a pixel count of 2560 PPI 2560 × 1440 or more.

For example, the deposition mask 100 of an embodiment may be used to deposit a deposition pattern having an Ultra High Definition (UHD) of 700PPI or more to deposit an O L ED pixel having 794PPI or more with a number of pixels 3840 × 2160 or more in the horizontal and vertical directions.

The diameter of the second through hole TH1 may be the width of the communication portion CA. Specifically, the diameter of the second through hole TH1 may be measured at a point where an end of the etched surface in the small hole V1 intersects an end of the etched surface in the large hole V2. The measurement direction of the diameter of the second through holes TH2 may be any one of a horizontal direction, a vertical direction, or a diagonal direction. The diameter of the second through holes TH2 measured in the horizontal direction may be equal to or less than 32 μm. Alternatively, the diameter of the second through holes TH2 may be an average of values measured in the horizontal direction, the vertical direction, and the diagonal direction. At this time, the diameter of the second through holes TH2 is smaller than the diameter of the first through holes TH1, while the diameter of the second through holes TH2 satisfies the above range.

Accordingly, the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment may implement QHD. For example, the diameter of the second through holes TH2 may be about 15 μm to about 33 μm. For example, the diameter of the second through holes TH2 may be about 19 μm to about 33 μm. For example, the diameter of the second through holes TH2 may be about 20 μm to about 27 μm. When the diameter of the second through holes TH2 exceeds about 33 μm, it is difficult to achieve definition of 500PPI or more. On the other hand, when the diameter of the second through holes TH2 is less than about 15 μm, deposition failure may occur. Here, the diameter of the second through holes TH2 is within the above range, and the diameter of the second through holes TH2 is substantially smaller than the diameter of the first through holes TH 1. In other words, when the diameter of the first through holes TH1 is 25 μm, the diameter of the second through holes TH2 may be 23.5 μm, and the diameter of the second through holes TH2 is smaller than the diameter of the first through holes TH 1.

On the other hand, a pitch between two second through holes TH2 adjacent in the horizontal direction among the plurality of second through holes may be about 48 μm or less. For example, a pitch between two adjacent second through holes TH2 of the plurality of second through holes in the horizontal direction may be about 20 μm to about 48 μm. For example, a pitch between two adjacent second through holes TH2 of the plurality of second through holes in the horizontal direction may be about 30 μm to about 35 μm. Here, the pitch may refer to a pitch between centers of two adjacent through holes in the horizontal direction, i.e., the center of the (2-1) TH through hole TH2-1 and the center of the (2-2) TH through hole TH 2-2. In contrast, the pitch may refer to a pitch between centers of two adjacent islands in the horizontal direction, i.e., a center of the (2-1) th island and a center of the (2-2) th island.

In other words, a pitch between two adjacent second through holes TH2 of the plurality of through holes TH2 may correspond to a pitch P1 between two adjacent first through holes TH1 of the plurality of through holes TH 1.

The measurement direction of the diameter of the second through holes TH2 and the measurement direction of the pitch between two adjacent second through holes TH2 may be the same. The pitch between the second through holes TH2 may be obtained by measuring the pitch between two second through holes TH2 adjacent in the horizontal direction or the vertical direction.

That is, in the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment, the O L ED pixel having a definition of 400PPI or more may be deposited, in particular, in the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment, the O L ED pixel having a definition of 500PPI or more may be deposited when the diameter of the second through holes TH2 in the usable area AA is about 32 μm or less and the pitch between the second through holes TH2 is about 48 μm or less, that is, the QHD may be implemented using the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment.

Fig. 9 is a view showing an overlap between a sectional view taken along the direction a-a 'and a sectional view taken along the direction B-B' of fig. 5 to describe a height difference and a size between end faces in the usable area AA and the outer area OA.

First, a sectional view taken along the direction a-a' will be described. The direction a-a' is a cross section across a central region between two adjacent first and second through holes TH1 and TH2 in the vertical direction. That is, the direction A-A' is a cross section across a central region between two adjacent (1-1) TH and (1-2) TH through holes TH1-1 and TH1-2 in the vertical direction. That is, the direction A-A' is a cross section across a central region between two adjacent (2-1) TH and (2-2) TH through holes TH2-1 and TH2-2 in the vertical direction. That is, the cross section taken along the direction a-a' may not include the first through holes TH1 and the second through holes TH 2.

In a cross section taken along the direction a-a', the first and second islands IS1 and IS2, which are the other surfaces of the deposition mask that are not etched, may be located between the etched surface ES2 in the large hole and the etched surface ES2 in the large hole of the first and second through holes TH1 and TH 2. Accordingly, the first and second island portions IS1 and IS2 may include a surface parallel to one unetched surface of the deposition mask. Alternatively, the first and second island portions IS1 and IS2 may include surfaces that are the same as or parallel to other surfaces of the deposition mask 100 that are not etched. The second island IS2 may include a (2-1) th island IS2-1 and a (2-2) th island IS 2-2.

The deposition mask 100 may have a thickness of about 30 μm or less. For example, the thickness may be about 20 μm to about 30 μm. For example, the thickness may be about 15 μm to about 20 μm. The thickness of the deposition mask 100 may be the thickness of one surface 101 and the other surface 102 of the deposition mask 100, and may be the thickness of an unetched portion. That is, in the method of manufacturing the deposition mask, the thickness of the deposition mask 100 may correspond to the thickness of the metal plate 10 used to manufacture the deposition mask 100. That IS, the islands IS1, IS2-1 and IS2-2 may have the same thickness as the deposition mask 100.

Next, a cross section along the direction B-B' will be described. The direction B-B' is a cross section across two adjacent first and second through holes TH1 and TH2 in the horizontal direction. That is, the direction B-B' is a cross section across the centers of two adjacent (1-1) TH and second through holes TH1-1 and TH1-2 in the horizontal direction. That is, the direction B-B' is a cross section across the centers of two adjacent (2-1) TH and (2-2) TH through holes TH2-1 and TH2-2 in the horizontal direction. That is, a section along the direction B-B' may include a plurality of first through holes TH1 and second through holes TH 2.

One rib RB1, RB2, or RB3 may be located between adjacent through holes in the direction B-B'. That is, one first rib RB1 may be located between the (1-3) TH through hole TH1-3 and the (1-4) TH through hole TH1-4 adjacent to the (1-3) TH through hole TH1-3 in the horizontal direction. In addition, another first rib RB1 may be located between the (1-3) TH through hole TH1-3 and a through hole adjacent to the (1-3) TH through hole TH1-3 in the horizontal direction and located in an opposite direction of the (1-3) TH through hole TH 1-3. In addition, one first through hole TH1 may be located among the plurality of first ribs RB 1. That is, one first through hole TH1 may be located between two adjacent first ribs RB1 in the horizontal direction.

In addition, the second rib RB2 may be located between the (2-3) TH through hole TH2-3 and a (2-4) TH through hole TH2-4 adjacent to the (2-3) TH through hole TH2-3 in a horizontal direction and located in an opposite direction of the (2-3) TH through hole TH 2-3. In addition, one second through hole TH1 may be located between the plurality of second ribs RB 2. That is, one second through hole TH2 may be located between two adjacent second ribs RB2 in the horizontal direction.

In addition, the third rib RB3 may be located between the (2-4) TH through hole TH2-4 and the (1-3) TH through hole TH1-3 in the usable area AA adjacent to the (2-4) TH through hole TH2-3 in the horizontal direction. The third rib RB3 may be located on a boundary between the available area AA and the outer area OA in the deposition mask 100.

That is, in a cross section taken along the direction B-B', there may be provided a first rib RB1 connecting the etched surfaces in the large holes of the adjacent first through holes TH1, a second rib RB2 connecting the etched surfaces in the large holes of the adjacent second through holes TH2, and a third rib connecting the etched surfaces of the large holes of the first through holes TH1 and the etched surfaces of the large holes of the adjacent second through holes TH 2. Here, the ribs RB1, RB2, and RB3 may be regions that connect the boundaries of two adjacent large holes. Since the ribs RB1, RB2, and RB3 are etched surfaces, the thickness of the central portions of the ribs RB1, RB2, and RB3 may be less than the thickness of the islands IS1, IS2-1, and IS 2-2. For example, the width of the first island portion IS1 may be about 2 μm or more.

That is, the first rib RB1 may be located at a position where large holes of the plurality of adjacent first through holes TH1 contact. In addition, the second rib RB2 may be located at a position where large holes of a plurality of adjacent second through holes TH2 contact. In addition, the third rib RB3 may be located at a position where the large hole of the first through hole TH1 and the large hole of the second through hole TH2 adjacent to each other are in contact. The third rib RB3 may be located on a boundary between the usable area AA and the outer area OA. On the other hand, the thickness of the central portion of each of the first, second, and third ribs RB1, RB2, and RB3 may be less than the thickness of the central portion of the unusable portion UA in which etching is not performed. In other words, in the usable region and the outer region, the first through-hole or the second through-hole or the larger-area holes of the first through-hole and the second through-hole continuously contact each other, and thus the thickness of the central portion of the first rib RB1, the second rib RB2, and the third rib RB3 may be smaller than the thickness of the central portion of the unusable portion UA. That is, on a line B-B' crossing the usable portion including the usable area and the outer area in the horizontal direction, there is no area having the same thickness as the unusable portion UA. In other words, there is no unetched region in the usable portion.

That is, the width W1 in the direction parallel to the other surface of the unetched portion of the other surface may be about 2 μm or more. When the width W1 of one end and the other end of one first island IS1 IS about 2 μm or more, the total volume of the deposition mask 100 may increase. The deposition mask 100 having such a structure may ensure sufficient rigidity against a tensile force during the deposition of the organic material, and may be advantageous to maintain uniformity of the through-holes.

In addition, the width W2 of one (2-1) th island IS2-1 may be greater than the width W1 of the first island IS 1. That IS, the through holes disposed at both sides of the (2-1) TH island IS2-1 may be the second through holes TH2 having a diameter smaller than that of the first through holes TH1, and the width W2 of the island may increase as the diameter of the through holes decreases. Therefore, the width W2 of the (2-1) th island IS2-1 IS greater than the width W1 of the first island IS 1.

In addition, the width W3 of one (2-2) th island IS2-2 IS greater than the width W1 of the first island IS1 and less than the width W2 of the (2-1) th island IS 2-1. That IS, the first through hole TH1 IS disposed at one side of the (2-2) TH second island IS2-2, and the second through hole TH2 IS disposed at the other side of the (2-2) TH second island IS 2-2. Accordingly, a portion of the (2-2) TH second island IS2-2 IS influenced by the first through hole TH1, and another portion of the (2-2) TH second island IS2-2 IS influenced by the second through hole TH 2. That IS, a width W3-1 of a portion of the (2-2) th second island IS2-2 may be 1/2 of the width W1 of the first island IS1, and a width W3-2 of the other portion may be 1/2 of the width W2 of the (2-1) th island IS 2-1.

In addition, the maximum thickness T1 of the first rib RB1 located between the first through holes TH1 measured in the central region (in other words, the thickness of the central portion of the first rib RB 1) may be about 15 μm or less, for example, the maximum thickness T1 measured at the center of the first rib RB1 may be about 7 μm to about 10 μm, for example, the maximum thickness T1 measured at the center of the first rib RB1 may be about 6 μm to about 9 μm, when the maximum thickness T1 measured at the center of the first rib RB1 exceeds about 15 μm, it may be difficult to form an O L ED deposition pattern having a high definition of 500PPI or more, and in addition, when the maximum thickness T1 measured at the center of the first rib RB1 is less than about 6 μm, it may be difficult to form the deposition pattern uniformly.

In addition, the maximum thickness T2 of the second rib RB2 located between the second through holes TH2 measured in the central region may be greater than the thickness of the central portion of the first rib RB 1. At this time, the central portion of the second rib RB2 may be greater than the thickness of the central portion of the first rib RB1 while satisfying the thickness range of the central portion of the first rib RB 1.

In addition, the maximum thickness T3 of the third rib RB3 between the first and second through holes TH1 and TH2 measured in the central region may be greater than the thickness of the central portion of the first rib RB1 and the thickness of the central portion of the second rib RB 2. That is, the central portion of the third rib RB3 may have a thickness between that of the central portion of the first rib RB1 and that of the central portion of the second rib RB2 while satisfying the thickness range of the central portion of the first rib RB 1.

On the other hand, an unetched region having a prescribed area may be formed between an outer region where the second through holes TH2 having a relative size are arranged and an available region where the first through holes TH1 are arranged. In addition, the over-etching problem can be solved based on the second via hole provided at the outer region at a position spaced apart from the available region by a prescribed distance. However, when radicals are concentrated between the unetched and etched regions, an over-etching problem occurs. Therefore, as described above, when at least a part of the unetched region remains between the usable region and the outer region, radicals may be concentrated in the usable region adjacent to the unetched region through the remaining unetched region. Therefore, the first via hole disposed outside the usable area has a size larger than the target size because over-etching occurs due to radical concentration. In addition, the thickness of the central portion of the rib connecting the first through-holes is reduced, and thus the strength of the entire usable area is reduced. Therefore, in an embodiment, the unetched regions should not be present in the regions where etching is performed. In other words, there is no unetched region between the usable region and the outer region, and thus a via hole having a relatively small size is disposed in the outer region adjacent to the unusable region, thereby solving the over-etching problem. In addition, in the embodiment, the through hole is not located in the unusable portion. At this time, when the through-hole is also located in the unusable portion, the overall strength of the deposition mask may be reduced, and thus the usable area may be separated upon stretching. Therefore, in the embodiment, the through-hole is not provided in the unusable portion, so that the tensile strength of the deposition mask is ensured.

Fig. 10 is a sectional view taken along the direction B-B' of fig. 5. A cross section in the direction B-B', the ribs RB1, RB2, and RB3 of fig. 9, and the through holes TH1 and TH2 between the ribs RB1, RB2, and RB3 will be described using fig. 10.

Referring to fig. 10, in the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment, the thicknesses of the usable area AA and the outer area OA where the first through hole TH1 and the second through hole TH2 are formed by etching and the thickness of the unusable portion UA where etching is not performed may be different from each other. Specifically, the thickness of the central portion of the ribs RB1, RB2, and RB3 may be smaller than the thickness in the unusable portion UA where etching is not performed.

In the deposition mask 100 of the embodiment, the thickness of the unusable portion UA may be greater than the thicknesses of the usable areas AA1, AA2, and AA3 and the thicknesses of the outer areas OA1, OA2, and OA 3. For example, in the deposition mask 100, the maximum thickness of the unusable portion UA to the non-deposition area NDA may be about 30 μm or less. For example, in the deposition mask 100, the maximum thickness of the unusable portion UA to the non-deposition area NDA may be about 25 μm or less. For example, in the deposition mask of an embodiment, the maximum thickness of the unusable portion UA to the non-deposition area NDA may be about 15 μm to about 25 μm. When the maximum thickness of the unusable portion UA to the non-deposition area NDA of the deposition mask of the embodiment exceeds about 30 μm, it may be difficult to form the through hole TH having a fine size since the thickness of the metal plate 10, which is a raw material of the deposition mask 100, is increased. In addition, when the maximum thickness of the unusable portion UA to the non-deposition area NDA of the deposition mask of the embodiment is less than about 15 μm, it may be difficult to form a through hole having a uniform size because the thickness of the metal plate is small.

The height H1 of the small holes of the first through holes TH1 of the deposition mask 100 may be about 0.2 times to about 0.4 times the maximum thickness T1 measured at the center of the first rib RB 1. For example, the maximum thickness T1 measured at the center of the first rib RB1 may be about 7 μm to about 9 μm, and the height H1 between one surface of the deposition mask 100 and the communicating portion of the first through hole TH1 may be about 1.4 μm to about 3.5 μm. The height H1 of the holes of the first through holes TH1 of the deposition mask 100 may be about 3.5 μm or less. For example, the height of the small hole V1 of the first through hole TH1 may be about 0.1 μm to about 3.4 μm. For example, the height of the small holes V1 of the first through holes TH1 of the deposition mask 100 may be about 0.5 μm to about 3.2 μm. For example, the height of the small holes V1 of the first through holes TH1 of the deposition mask 100 may be about 1 μm to about 3 μm. Here, the height may be measured in a thickness measurement direction, i.e., a depth direction, of the deposition mask 100, and the height of a communication portion from one surface of the deposition mask 100 to the first through hole TH1 may be measured. Specifically, the height may be measured in a z-axis direction forming 90 degrees with the horizontal direction (x direction) and the vertical direction (y direction) in the top views of fig. 4 to 8.

When the height between one surface of the deposition mask 100 and the communicating portion of the first through holes TH1 exceeds about 3.5 μm, deposition failure may occur due to a shadow effect in which a deposition material is diffused to a region larger than that of the through holes during the O L ED deposition.

In addition, the aperture W4 in one surface of the small hole V1 where the first through hole TH1 of the deposition mask 100 is formed and the aperture W5 of the communicating portion, which is a boundary between the small hole V1 of the first through hole TH1 and the large hole V2 of the first through hole TH1, may be the same as or different from each other. An aperture W4 of one surface of the small hole V1 where the first through hole TH1 of the deposition mask 100 is formed may be larger than an aperture W5 of the communication portion. For example, a difference between the aperture W4 of one surface of the first through hole TH1 of the deposition mask 100 and the aperture W5 of the communication part may be about 0.01 μm to about 1.1 μm. For example, the difference between the aperture W4 of one surface of the deposition mask and the aperture W5 of the communicating portion may be about 0.03 μm to about 1.1 μm. For example, the difference between the aperture W4 of one surface of the deposition mask and the aperture W5 of the communicating portion may be about 0.05 μm to about 1.1 μm.

When the difference between the aperture W4 of one surface of the deposition mask and the aperture W5 of the communicating portion is greater than about 1.1 μm, deposition failure may occur due to a shadow effect.

In addition, the inclination angle θ between one end E1 of the large hole V2 of the first through hole TH1 located in the other surface of the deposition mask 100 opposite to the one surface and one end E2 of a communication portion between the small hole V1 and the large hole V2 may be 40 degrees to 55 degrees. Accordingly, a deposition pattern having a high definition of 400PPI or more, particularly 500PPI or more, may be formed, and the first island portion IS1 may be present on the other surface of the deposition mask 100.

In addition, the aperture W4 in one surface of the small hole V1 where the first through hole TH1 of the deposition mask 100 is formed and the aperture W5 of the communicating portion, which is a boundary between the small hole V1 of the first through hole TH1 and the large hole V2 of the first through hole TH1, may be the same as or different from each other. An aperture W4 in one surface of the small hole V1 where the first through hole TH1 of the deposition mask 100 is formed may be larger than an aperture W5 of the communicating portion. For example, the difference between the aperture W4 in one surface of the first through hole TH1 of the deposition mask 100 and the aperture W5 of the communicating portion may be about 0.01 μm to about 1.1 μm. For example, the difference between the aperture W4 in one surface of the deposition mask and the aperture W5 of the communicating portion may be about 0.03 μm to about 1.1 μm. For example, the difference between the aperture W4 in one surface of the deposition mask 100 and the aperture W5 of the communicating portion may be about 0.05 μm to about 1.1 μm.

In addition, the aperture W6 in one surface of the small hole V1 where the second through hole TH2 of the deposition mask 100 is formed and the aperture W7 of the communicating portion, which is a boundary between the small hole V1 of the second through hole TH1 and the large hole V2 of the second through hole TH2, may be the same as or different from each other. An aperture W6 in one surface of the small hole V1 where the second through hole TH1 of the deposition mask 100 is formed may be larger than an aperture W7 of the communicating portion. For example, the difference between the aperture W6 in one surface of the second through hole TH1 of the deposition mask 100 and the aperture W7 of the communicating portion may be about 0.01 μm to about 1.1 μm. For example, the difference between the aperture W6 in one surface of the deposition mask 100 and the aperture W7 of the communicating portion may be about 0.03 μm to about 1.1 μm. For example, the difference between the aperture W6 in one surface of the deposition mask 100 and the aperture W7 of the communicating portion may be about 0.05 μm to about 1.1 μm. On the other hand, the aperture W7 of the communication portion between the small hole and the large hole of the second through hole TH2 may be smaller than the aperture W5 of the communication portion between the small hole and the large hole of the first through hole TH 1.

According to the embodiment, a mask pattern having uniform apertures may be formed in a deposition mask.

In addition, according to the embodiment, it is possible to solve a phenomenon that the usable portion is separated from the unusable portion and is peeled off from the deposition mask during stretching and welding before deposition in a manufacturing process of an O L ED panel when the size of the through hole of the outer area is reduced compared to the size of the through hole of the usable area located at the center of the usable portion of the deposition mask.

In addition, according to an embodiment, the via hole is not located in an unusable portion that does not participate in deposition. Therefore, a volume capable of increasing the rigidity of the deposition mask in the unusable portion can be ensured.

In addition, according to an embodiment, an outer region of a usable portion is disposed to surround not only left and right sides of the usable region located at a center of the usable portion, but also upper and lower sides of the usable region, and thus, a via hole of the outer region is located in a periphery including the left, right, upper and lower sides of the usable region.

The deposition mask of fig. 11 is different from that of fig. 5 in the second through holes TH2 formed in the outer area OA. Therefore, hereinafter, only the second through holes TH2 formed in the outer area OA, which are different between fig. 5 and 11, will be described.

Referring to fig. 11, the outer area OA may include a plurality of through holes TH 2. At this time, the second through holes TH2 may be arranged in a row according to the direction or may be arranged to be staggered from each other. For example, the second through holes TH2 may be arranged in rows on a vertical axis and a horizontal axis, or may be arranged in rows on a vertical axis or a horizontal axis.

The deposition mask 100 may include a plurality of through holes TH2 in the outer area OA. At this time, the plurality of second through holes TH2 may have a circular shape. Specifically, the second through hole TH2 may have a horizontal diameter Cx2 and a vertical diameter Cy2, and the horizontal diameter Cx2 and the vertical diameter Cy2 of the second through hole TH1 may correspond to each other. At this time, the horizontal diameter Cx2 and the vertical diameter Cy2 of the second through hole TH2 may be equal to the horizontal diameter Cx1 and the vertical diameter Cy1 of the first through hole TH 1.

That IS, when the second through holes TH2 are arranged in a row on the vertical and horizontal axes, the second islands IS2-1 and IS2-2 may be located between two adjacent second through holes TH2 on a diagonal line intersecting both the vertical and horizontal axes. That IS, the second islands IS2-1 and IS2-2 may be located between two adjacent second through holes TH2 in a diagonal direction.

At this time, the second island IS2 includes a (2-1) TH island IS2-1 disposed between the plurality of second through holes TH2 and a (2-2) TH island disposed between the second through holes TH2 and the first through holes TH 1.

The diameter of the second through holes TH2 may be the width of the communication part CA connecting the small and large holes of the second through holes TH 2. Specifically, the diameter of the second through hole TH2 may be measured at a point where an end of the etched surface in the small hole V1 intersects an end of the etched surface in the large hole V2. The measurement direction of the diameter of the second through holes TH2 may be any one of a horizontal direction, a vertical direction, or a diagonal direction. The diameter of the second through holes TH2 measured in the horizontal direction may be equal to or less than 33 μm. Alternatively, the diameter of the second through holes TH2 measured in the vertical direction may be equal to or less than 33 μm. Alternatively, the diameter of the second through holes TH2 may be an average of values measured in the horizontal direction, the vertical direction, and the diagonal direction.

Accordingly, the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment may implement QHD. For example, the diameter of the second through holes TH2 may be about 15 μm to about 33 μm. For example, the diameter of the second through holes TH2 may be about 19 μm to about 33 μm. For example, the diameter of the second through holes TH2 may be about 20 μm to about 27 μm. When the diameter of the second through holes TH2 exceeds about 33 μm, it may be difficult to achieve definition of 500PPI or more. On the other hand, when the diameter of the second through holes TH2 is less than about 15 μm, deposition failure may occur.

On the other hand, the first island portion IS1 and the second island portion IS2 may have different sizes. This is because the diameters of the first through holes TH1 and the second through holes TH2 are the same, but the pitches between the plurality of first through holes TH1 and the pitches between the plurality of second through holes TH2 are different from each other.

In other words, a pitch between two adjacent first through holes TH1 among the plurality of first through holes TH1 in the horizontal direction may be about 48 μm or less. For example, a pitch between two adjacent first through holes TH1 among the plurality of first through holes TH1 in the horizontal direction may be about 20 μm to about 48 μm. For example, a pitch between two adjacent first through holes TH1 among the plurality of first through holes TH1 in the horizontal direction may be about 30 μm to about 35 μm. Here, the pitch may refer to a pitch between centers of two adjacent through holes in the horizontal direction, i.e., the center of the (1-1) TH through hole TH1-1 and the center of the (1-2) TH through hole TH 1-2. In contrast, the pitch may refer to a pitch between centers of two adjacent first island portions in the horizontal direction.

Alternatively, a pitch between two adjacent second through holes TH1 of the plurality of second through holes TH2 in the horizontal direction may be about 48 μm or less, and may be greater than a pitch between the plurality of adjacent first through holes TH 1. For example, a pitch between two adjacent second through holes TH2 of the plurality of second through holes TH2 in the horizontal direction may be about 20 μm to about 48 μm, and may be greater than a pitch between the plurality of adjacent first through holes TH 1. For example, a pitch between two adjacent second through holes TH2 of the plurality of second through holes TH2 in the horizontal direction may be about 30 μm to about 35 μm, and may be greater than a pitch between the plurality of adjacent first through holes TH 1.

That is, in the second embodiment, the width of the first through holes TH1 and the width of the second through holes TH2 are the same. However, in order to make the area of the second through holes TH2 smaller than the area of the first through holes TH1 in the same region, the pitch between the second through holes TH2 is greater than the pitch between the first through holes TH 1.

In other words, as the pitch between the second through holes TH2 increases, the width of the island and the width of the rib between the second through holes TH2 also increase. Therefore, even when overetching occurs in the outer area OA, it can be covered by the increased width of the rib and the island portion, and the separation between the available area AA and the outer area OA can be solved.

The deposition mask of fig. 12 is different from that of fig. 5 in the second through holes TH2 formed in the outer area OA. Therefore, hereinafter, only the second through holes TH2 formed in the outer area OA, which are different between fig. 5 and 12, will be described.

The outer areas OA of the third embodiment may include a (1-1) th outer area OA1-1 and a (1-2) th outer area OA 1-2. That is, in the outer area OA, three rows of the second through holes TH2 may be formed. At this time, one of the three rows adjacent to the available area AA may be defined as a (1-1) th outer area OA1-1, and the other outer areas OA except for the (1-1) th outer area OA1-1 may be defined as a (1-2) th outer area OA 1-2. In other words, in the third embodiment, the outer area OA may be divided into an area adjacent to the available area AA and an area surrounding the area adjacent to the available area AA.

In addition, in the third embodiment, the through holes formed in the outer area OA are divided into the second through holes TH2 formed in the (1-1) TH outer area OA1-1 and the third through holes TH3 formed in the (1-2) TH outer area OA 1-2.

The deposition mask 100 may include a plurality of second through holes TH2 in the (1-1) TH outer area OA 1-1. At this time, the second through holes TH2 may be arranged in a row according to the direction, or may be arranged to be offset from each other. For example, the second through holes TH2 may be arranged in rows on a vertical axis and a horizontal axis, or may be arranged in rows on a vertical axis or a horizontal axis.

In addition, the deposition mask 100 may include a plurality of third through holes TH3 in the (1-2) TH outer area OA 1-2. At this time, the third through holes TH3 may be arranged in a row according to the direction or may be arranged to be staggered from each other. For example, the third through holes TH3 may be arranged in a row on a vertical axis and a horizontal axis, or may be arranged in a row on a vertical axis or a horizontal axis.

The deposition mask 100 may include a plurality of second through holes TH2 in the (1-1) TH outer area OA 1-1. At this time, the plurality of second through holes TH2 may have a circular shape. Specifically, the second through hole TH2 may have a horizontal diameter Cx2 and a vertical diameter Cy2, and the horizontal diameter Cx2 and the vertical diameter Cy2 of the second through hole TH1 may correspond to each other. At this time, the horizontal diameter Cx2 and the vertical diameter Cy2 of the second through hole TH2 may be smaller than either one of the horizontal diameter Cx1 or the vertical diameter Cy1 of the first through hole TH 1.

Specifically, the second through holes TH2 in the (1-1) TH outer area OA1-1 may be arranged in a row on a horizontal axis, and the second through holes TH2 may be arranged in a row on a vertical axis. At this time, although the (1-1) TH outer area OA1-1 includes a row of the second through holes TH2 in the drawing, the (1-1) TH outer area OA1-1 is substantially disposed at the lower side and the lower side of the usable area AA, and the second through holes TH2 may be arranged in a row on a horizontal axis. In addition, the number of rows or columns of the second through holes TH2 arranged in the (1-1) TH outer area OA1-1 may be increased.

In addition, the third through holes in the (1-2) TH outer area OA1-2 may be arranged in a row on a horizontal axis, and the third through holes TH3 may be arranged in a row on a vertical axis. In addition, when the third through holes TH3 are arranged in a row on the vertical and horizontal axes, the fourth island IS4 may be located between two adjacent third through holes TH3 on a diagonal line intersecting both the vertical and horizontal axes. That IS, the fourth island IS4 may be located between two adjacent third through holes TH3 in a diagonal direction.

In addition, the second island IS2 may be located between the first through holes TH1 formed in the usable area AA and the second through holes TH2 formed in the (1-1) TH outer area OA 1-1.

In addition, the third island IS3 may be located between the second through holes TH2 formed in the (1-1) TH outer area OA1-1 and the third through holes TH3 formed in the (1-2) TH outer area OA 1-2.

In addition, the first to fourth island portions IS1, IS2, IS3 and IS4 have different sizes. At this time, a pitch between the adjacent first through holes TH1, a pitch between the adjacent second through holes TH2, a pitch between the adjacent third through holes TH3, a pitch between the adjacent first through holes TH1 and second through holes TH2, and a pitch between the adjacent second through holes TH2 and third through holes TH3 may be the same.

At this time, the size of the second through holes TH2 is smaller than the size of the first through holes TH 1. That is, the width of the communication portion of the second through holes TH2 is smaller than the width of the communication portion of the first through holes TH 1. That is, the width Cx2 of the second through hole TH2 in the horizontal direction is smaller than the width Cx1 of the first through hole TH1 in the horizontal direction. That is, the width Cy2 in the vertical direction of the second through hole TH2 is smaller than the width Cy1 in the vertical direction of the first through hole TH 1.

In addition, the size of the third through holes TH3 is smaller than that of the second through holes TH 2. That is, the width of the communication portion of the third through holes TH3 is smaller than the width of the communication portion of the second through holes TH 2. That is, the width Cx3 of the third through hole TH3 in the horizontal direction is smaller than the width Cx2 of the second through hole TH2 in the horizontal direction. That is, the width Cy3 in the vertical direction of the third through hole TH3 is smaller than the width Cy2 in the vertical direction of the second through hole TH 2.

That is, the size of the second through holes TH2 is smaller than the size of the first through holes TH1 and larger than the size of the third through holes TH 3. That is, the width of the communication portion of the second through holes TH2 is smaller than the width of the communication portion of the first through holes TH1 and is greater than the width of the communication portion of the third through holes TH 3. That is, the width Cx2 of the second through hole TH2 in the horizontal direction is smaller than the width Cx1 of the first through hole TH1 in the horizontal direction and is larger than the width Cx3 of the third through hole TH3 in the horizontal direction. The width Cy2 in the vertical direction of the second through hole TH2 is smaller than the width Cy1 in the vertical direction of the first through hole TH1 and is larger than the width Cy3 in the vertical direction of the third through hole TH 3.

In other words, the width of the via hole formed in the outer area OA based on the usable area AA may be gradually decreased as the distance from the outermost area of the usable area AA increases. Therefore, the width of the via hole located at the outermost side of the outer area OA, i.e., the via hole located in the area closest to the unetched area, may be minimized.

As described above, in the third embodiment, the outer area OA is divided into a plurality of areas, and the width of the via hole formed in the outer area OA may be gradually decreased as the distance from the available area AA increases.

On the other hand, in fig. 12, at least one of the second through holes TH2 or the third through holes TH3 formed in the (1-1) TH outer area OA1-1 and the (1-2) TH outer area OA1-2 may be formed as half-etched portions.

Preferably, the second and third through holes TH2 and TH3 formed in the (1-1) TH and (1-2) TH outer areas OA1-1 and OA1-2 may be formed as half-etched portions having only large holes and not including small holes.

In addition, the second through holes TH2 may be formed in the (1-1) TH outer area OA1-1 as described above, and the half-etched portions having only large holes but not small holes may be formed in only the (1-2) TH outer area OA1-2 instead of the third through holes TH 3.

In addition, a phenomenon in which radicals are concentrated due to the etching solution occurs in the etched region closest to the unetched region. Therefore, as described above, the second through-hole is formed in the (1-1) th outer area OA 1-1. In addition, a half-etched portion having only macro pores was formed in the outermost region of the (1-2) th outer region OA 1-2. In addition, the third through holes TH3 may be formed in the remaining region except the outermost region of the (1-2) TH outer region OA 1-2.

Referring to fig. 13, a method of manufacturing a deposition mask 100 according to an embodiment may include: a step of preparing a metal plate 10; a step of forming a first through hole TH1 and a second through hole TH2 by providing a photoresist layer on the metal plate 10; and a step of forming a deposition mask 100 including the first through holes TH1 and the second through holes by removing the photoresist layer.

First, a metal plate 10 is prepared (S410), the metal plate 10 being a base material for manufacturing the deposition mask 100.

The metal plate 10 may include a metal material. For example, the metal plate 10 may include nickel (Ni). Specifically, the metal plate 10 may include iron (Fe) and nickel (Ni). More specifically, the metal plate 10 may include iron (Fe), nickel (Ni), oxygen (O), and chromium (Cr). In addition, the metal plate 10 may further include a small amount of at least one of carbon (C), silicon (Si), sulfur (S), phosphorus (P), manganese (Mn), titanium (Ti), cobalt (Co), copper (Cu), silver (Ag), vanadium (V), niobium (Nb), indium (In), or antimony (Sb). Invar steel (Invar) is an alloy comprising iron and nickel, and is a low thermal expansion alloy with a coefficient of thermal expansion close to 0. That is, invar has a very small coefficient of thermal expansion, and thus is used for precision parts such as masks or precision equipment. Therefore, the deposition mask manufactured using the metal plate 10 has improved reliability, thereby preventing deformation and increasing lifetime.

The metal plate 10 may include about 60 wt% to about 65 wt% iron and about 35 wt% to about 40 wt% nickel. Specifically, the metal plate 10 may include about 63.5 wt% to about 64.5 wt% iron and about 35.5 wt% to about 36.5 wt% nickel. In addition, the metal plate 10 may further include about 1 wt% or less of at least one of carbon (C), silicon (Si), sulfur (S), phosphorus (P), manganese (Mn), titanium (Ti), cobalt (Co), copper (Cu), silver (Ag), vanadium (V), niobium (Nb), indium (In), or antimony (Sb). The metal plate 10 may be checked for elements, contents, and weight percentages by selecting a specific region a _ b of the plane of the metal plate 10, sampling a sample a _ b _ t corresponding to the thickness t of the metal plate, and dissolving the sample in a strong acid to check the weight percentage (wt%) of each element. However, the embodiment is not limited thereto, and the weight percentage of the components may be checked using various methods of checking the components of the metal plate.

The metal plate 10 may be manufactured by a cold rolling method. For example, the metal plate 10 may be formed by melting, forging, hot rolling, normalizing, primary cold rolling, primary annealing, secondary cold rolling, and secondary annealing processes, and may have a thickness of about 30 μm or less by the above-described processes. Alternatively, the metal plate 10 may have a thickness of about 30 μm or less through a thickness reduction process after the above process.

In addition, the preparing step S410 of the metal plate 10 may further include a thickness reducing step according to the thickness of the metal plate 10. The thickness reduction step may be performed by rolling and/or etching the metal plate 10.

For example, the metal plate 10 having a thickness of about 30 μm may be required to manufacture a deposition mask having a definition of 400PPI or more, the metal plate 10 having a thickness of about 20 μm to about 30 μm may be required to manufacture a deposition mask having a definition of 500PPI or more, and the metal plate 10 having a thickness of about 15 μm to about 20 μm may be required to manufacture a deposition mask having a definition of 800PPI or more.

In addition, the preparation step of the metal plate 10 may optionally further include a surface treatment step. In particular, in a nickel alloy such as invar, the etching rate may be high at the start of etching, and thus the etching factor of the small holes V1 of the first and second through holes TH1 and TH2 may be reduced. In addition, in the etching process for forming the macro holes V2 of the first and second through holes TH1 and TH2, the photoresist layer forming the macro holes V2 may be stripped by side etching of the etching solution. Therefore, it may be difficult to form through holes having fine sizes and to uniformly form the through holes. Therefore, the manufacturing yield may be reduced.

Therefore, a surface treatment layer for surface modification may be provided on the surface of the metal plate 10 to change the elements, content, crystal structure, and corrosion rate. Here, the surface modification may refer to a layer formed of various materials disposed on the surface to increase an etching factor.

That is, the surface treatment layer is a layer for preventing rapid etching on the surface of the metal plate 10, and may be a barrier layer having a slower rate than the metal plate 10. The surface treatment layer may have a different crystal surface and crystal structure from the metal plate 10. For example, the surface treatment layer may contain an element different from the metal plate 10, and thus the surface treatment layer has a crystal surface and a crystal structure different from those of the metal plate 10.

For example, the surface treatment layer may have a different corrosion potential from the metal plate 10 under the same corrosion environment. For example, when the treatment is performed with the same etching solution at the same temperature for the same time, the surface treatment layer may have a different corrosion current and corrosion potential from the metal plate 10.

The metal plate 10 may include a surface treatment layer or a surface treatment portion on one surface and/or both surfaces and the entire area and/or available area. The surface treatment layer or the surface treatment portion may contain an element different from the metal plate 10, or may contain a metal element having a low corrosion rate in a larger content than the metal plate 10.

Subsequently, a step of forming the first through holes TH1 and the second through holes TH2 by providing a photoresist layer on the metal plate 10 may be performed.

For this, a first photoresist layer PR1 may be disposed on one surface of the metal plate 10, thereby forming small holes V1 of the first through hole TH1 and the second through hole TH2 in the one surface of the metal plate 10. The first photoresist layer PR1 may be exposed and developed to form a first photoresist layer PR1 patterned on one surface of the metal plate 10. That is, the first photoresist layer PR1 including the opening portion may be formed on one surface of the metal plate. In addition, an etching prevention layer such as a coating layer or a film layer for preventing etching may be provided on the other surface of the metal plate 10 opposite to the one surface.

Subsequently, the opening portion of the patterned first photoresist layer PR1 may be half-etched to form a first groove in one surface of the metal plate 10. The opening portions of the first photoresist layer PR1 may be exposed to an etching solution, and thus, the opening portions of one surface of the metal plate 10, on which the first photoresist layer PR1 is not disposed, may be etched.

The step of forming the first groove may be a step of performing etching until a thickness T1 of about 20 μm to about 30 μm of the metal plate 10 is halved. The depth of the first groove formed in this step may be about 10 to 15 μm. That is, the thickness T2 of the metal plate measured at the center of the first groove formed after this step may be about 10 μm to about 15 μm.

The step S430 of forming the first groove may be a step of forming a groove using anisotropic etching or a semi-additive process. Specifically, the opening portion of the first photoresist layer PR1 may be half-etched using an anisotropic etching or a half-additive process. Therefore, in the first groove formed by half etching, the etching rate in the depth direction (b direction) can be higher than the side etching rate (a direction) as compared with isotropic etching.

The etch factor of aperture V1 may be 2.0 to 3.0. For example, the etch factor of the aperture V1 may be 2.1 to 3.0. For example, the etch factor of the aperture V1 may be 2.2 to 3.0. Here, the etching factor may refer to a depth B of an etched small hole/a width a of the photoresist layer extending from the island portion IS on the small hole and protruding toward the center direction of the via hole (etching factor B/a). A refers to the average of the width of one side of the photoresist layer protruding over one aperture and the width of the other side of the photoresist layer.

Subsequently, a second photoresist layer PR2 may be disposed on the other surface of the metal plate 10. Subsequently, the second photoresist layer PR2 may be exposed and developed so that the second photoresist layer PR2 patterned on one surface of the metal plate 10 is disposed (S440). That is, the second photoresist layer PR2 including the first opening portion OR1 and the second opening portion OR2 may be formed on the other surface of the metal plate 10. In addition, an etching prevention layer such as a coating layer or a film layer for preventing etching may be provided on one surface of the metal plate 10.

The first and second opening portions OR1 and OR2 of the second photoresist layer PR2 may be exposed to an etching solution, and thus the first and second opening portions OR1 and OR2 of the other surface of the metal plate 10, on which the second photoresist layer PR2 is not disposed, may be etched. The other surface of the metal plate 10 may be etched by anisotropic etching or isotropic etching.

When the first and second opening portions OR1 and OR2 of the second photoresist layer PR2 are etched, the first groove in one surface of the metal plate 10 may be connected to the large hole V2 to form the first and second through holes TH1 and TH 2. That is, a large hole formed by etching through the first opening portion OR1 may be connected to a small hole to form the first through hole TH 1. In addition, large holes formed by etching through the second opening portion OR2 may be connected to small holes to form the second through holes TH 2. At this time, the first opening portion OR1 is located in an area corresponding to the available area AA of the other surface of the metal plate 10, and the second opening portion OR2 is located in an area corresponding to the outer area OA corresponding to the other surface of the metal plate 10. In addition, the width of the first opening portion OR1 is greater than the width of the second opening portion OR 2.

Alternatively, the width of the first opening portion OR1 and the width of the second opening portion OR2 may be the same, but the interval between the plurality of first opening portions OR1 and the interval between the plurality of second opening portions OR2 may be different. That is, the interval between the plurality of first opening portions OR1 may be smaller than the interval between the plurality of second opening portions OR 2.

The area of the upper surface of the second island portion IS2 may vary according to the size and position of the second opening portion OR 2. For example, as the size of the second opening portion OR2 IS reduced, the area etched through the second opening portion may be reduced, and thus the area of the upper surface of the second island portion IS2 formed may be increased.

In addition, the sizes of the second opening portions may be different from each other. For example, the size of the second opening portion OR2 located in the outer area OA adjacent to the available areas AA1, AA2, and AA3 may be larger than the size of the second through hole TH2 located in the area adjacent to the unetched area.

In addition, the size of the second opening portion may be decreased as the distance from the usable portion is gradually increased. Accordingly, the width of the second through holes TH2 may decrease as the distance from the available area AA increases. Therefore, the area of the second island IS2 may gradually increase from the usable areas AA1, AA2, and AA3 toward the unusable portion UA.

The step of forming the first and second through holes may be a step of forming the first and second through holes TH1 and TH2 by performing a step of forming a second groove for forming the large hole V2 after the step of forming the first groove for forming the small hole V1.

Alternatively, the step of forming the first and second through holes TH1 and TH2 may be a step of: the first and second through holes TH1 and TH2 are formed by performing the step of forming the first groove for forming the small hole V1 after the step of forming the second groove for forming the large hole V2.

Alternatively, the step of forming the first and second through holes TH1 and TH2 may be a step of: the first through holes TH1 and the second through holes TH2 are formed by simultaneously performing the step of forming the first grooves for forming the small holes V1 and the step of forming the second grooves for forming the large holes V2.

Next, the deposition mask 100 may be formed by: by removing the first photoresist layer PR1 and the second photoresist layer PR2, a deposition mask 100 including a large hole V2 formed in one surface, a small hole V1 formed in the other surface opposite to the one surface, and a first through hole TH1 and a second through hole TH2 formed by communicating portions connected to a boundary between the large hole V2 and the small hole V1 is formed.

The deposition mask 100 formed through the above steps may include the same material as the metal plate 10. For example, the deposition mask 100 may include a material having the same position as the metal plate 10. In addition, the island portion IS of the deposition mask 100 may include the surface treatment layer described above.

In the deposition mask 100 formed through the above-described steps, the maximum thickness of the center of the first rib RB (the thickness of the first rib) formed in the usable area AA may be less than the maximum thickness of the unetched unusable area UA. For example, the maximum thickness of the center of the first rib RB1 may be about 15 μm. For example, the maximum thickness of the center of the first rib RB1 may be less than about 10 μm. However, the maximum thickness of the unusable portion UA of the deposition mask may be about 20 μm to about 30 μm and about 15 μm to about 25 μm. That is, the maximum thickness of the unusable portion UA of the deposition mask 100 may correspond to the thickness of the metal plate 10 prepared in the preparation step of the metal plate 10.

Referring to fig. 15, in the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment, a height between one surface of the deposition mask 100 where the small hole V1 is formed and the communicating portion may be about 3.5 μm or less. For example, the height H1 may be about 0.1 μm to about 3.4 μm. For example, the height H1 may be about 0.5 μm to about 3.2 μm. For example, the height H1 may be about 1 μm to about 3 μm.

Accordingly, since a distance between one surface of the deposition mask 100 and the substrate provided with the deposition pattern can be approximated, deposition failure due to a shadow effect can be prevented. For example, when R, G and B patterns are formed using the deposition mask 100 according to an embodiment, deposition failure in depositing a different deposition material in an area between two adjacent patterns may be prevented. Specifically, as shown in fig. 13, when the patterns are formed in the order of R, G and B from the left side, it is possible to prevent the R pattern and the G pattern from being deposited in the region between the R pattern and the G pattern due to the shadow effect.

In addition, in the deposition mask 100 according to the embodiment, the size of the first island portion IS1 in the usable area may be reduced. In particular, since the area of the upper surface of the first island portion IS1, which IS an unetched surface, may be reduced, the organic material may easily pass through the first through holes TH1 when depositing the organic material. Accordingly, deposition efficiency may be improved.

In addition, the area of the first island IS1 may decrease from the centers of the usable areas AA1, AA2, and AA3 toward the unusable area UA. Accordingly, since the organic material may be smoothly supplied to the first through holes located in the edges of the available areas AA1, AA2, and AA3, it is possible to improve deposition efficiency and improve the quality of a deposition pattern.

The features, structures, effects, and the like described in the above embodiments are included in at least one embodiment, and are not necessarily limited to only one embodiment. Further, the features, structures, effects, and the like illustrated in each embodiment may be combined or modified with other embodiments by those skilled in the art to which the embodiments belong. Therefore, the contents related to such combination and modification should be construed as being included in the scope of the embodiments.

Although the preferred embodiments have been disclosed for illustrative purposes, these embodiments are merely illustrative, and do not limit the present invention. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications and applications may be made without departing from the embodiments. For example, the components described in the embodiments may be modified and implemented. Further, differences with respect to such modifications and applications should be construed as being included in the scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A deposition mask formed of a metallic material for organic light emitting diode O L ED pixel deposition, the deposition mask including a plurality of usable portions for deposition and unusable portions other than the usable portions,

wherein the usable portion includes a plurality of usable areas spaced apart from each other in a longitudinal direction and disposed at a center of the usable portion, and outer areas surrounding the plurality of usable areas, respectively,

wherein the usable area includes:

a plurality of first apertures formed in one surface;

a plurality of first large holes formed in the other surface opposite to the one surface;

a plurality of first through holes in communication with the first small holes and the first large holes; and

a first island portion formed between the first via holes,

wherein the outer region comprises:

a plurality of second apertures formed in one surface;

a plurality of second macro-apertures formed on the other surface opposite to the one surface;

a plurality of second through holes in communication with the second small holes and the second large holes; and

a second island portion formed between the second through holes, and

wherein the second through hole is provided to surround the usable area and has a smaller size than the first through hole.

2. The deposition mask of claim 1, wherein a spacing between centers of the second vias is greater than a spacing between centers of the first vias.

3. The deposition mask of claim 1, wherein a first aperture ratio of the first via in the usable area is greater than a second aperture ratio of the second via in the outer area.

4. The deposition mask of claim 1, wherein an area of the first island portion is smaller than an area of the second island portion.

5. The deposition mask as set forth in claim 1,

wherein the usable area includes a first rib formed by bringing the first large holes of the first through-holes into contact with each other,

wherein the outer region includes a second rib formed by bringing the second large holes of the second through-holes into contact with each other, and

wherein a thickness of a central portion of the second rib is less than a thickness of the unusable area and is greater than a thickness of a central portion of the first rib.

6. The deposition mask according to claim 5, further comprising a third rib formed by bringing the first large hole of the first through-hole into contact with the second large hole of the second through-hole at a boundary between the usable area and the outer area, and

wherein a thickness of a central portion of the third rib is less than a thickness of a non-deposition area.

7. The deposition mask according to claim 6, wherein a thickness of a central portion of the third rib is greater than a thickness of a central portion of the first rib and less than a thickness of a central portion of the second rib.

8. The deposition mask of claim 5, further comprising a third island portion between the first via and the second via in a boundary between the usable area and the outer area, and

wherein an area of an upper surface of the third island portion is larger than an area of an upper surface of the first island portion and smaller than an area of an upper surface of the second island portion.

9. The deposition mask as set forth in claim 8,

wherein the third island portion includes:

a first sub-third island located in the usable area; and

a second sub-third island portion located in the outer region,

wherein an area of an upper surface of the first sub third island portion is smaller than an area of an upper surface of the second sub third island portion.

10. The deposition mask of claim 1, wherein the outer region comprises:

a first outer region disposed adjacent to and surrounding the usable region; and

a second outer region disposed adjacent to the unusable region and surrounding the first outer region,

wherein the second via is located in the first outer region,

wherein the second outer region comprises:

a plurality of third apertures formed in one surface;

a plurality of third macro-apertures formed in another surface opposite the one surface;

a plurality of third through holes in communication with the plurality of third apertures and the third large hole; and

a fourth island portion formed between the third through holes, and

wherein the second via has a smaller size than the first via and a larger size than the third via.