CN111987127B

CN111987127B - Display panel and display device

Info

Publication number: CN111987127B
Application number: CN202010859699.2A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 纪卢芳月; 刘超; 汪建平; 褚红亮; 岑岗; 王涛
Original assignee: Hefei Visionox Technology Co Ltd
Current assignee: Hefei Visionox Technology Co Ltd
Priority date: 2020-08-24
Filing date: 2020-08-24
Publication date: 2024-03-19
Anticipated expiration: 2040-08-24
Also published as: CN111987127A

Abstract

The invention discloses a display panel and a display device. The display panel comprises a substrate, wherein the substrate comprises a display area and a non-display area surrounding the display area, the non-display area sequentially comprises an outgoing line area, a bending area and an extension wiring area along the direction of the display area pointing to the non-display area; an inorganic layer disposed on the substrate; a first metal layer disposed on the inorganic layer; a first organic layer disposed on the first metal layer; a second metal layer disposed on the first organic layer; a second organic layer disposed on the second metal layer; wherein the first organic layer, the second metal layer and the second organic layer completely cover the wire outlet region, the bending region and the extension wiring region. The display panel can avoid the problem of poor contact of the touch module, and improves the product yield.

Description

Display panel and display device

Technical Field

The embodiment of the invention relates to the technical field of display, in particular to a display panel and a display device.

Background

With the development of display technology, users have increasingly higher requirements on the screen ratio of the display screen of the electronic device, so that the narrow-frame display of the electronic device is receiving more and more attention in the industry.

To achieve a narrow bezel display, existing display panels typically have integrated circuit (Integrated Circuit, IC) portions bent to the back of the display panel. However, since the wiring of the touch module of the existing display panel is overlapped with the array through the via hole, the formation of the via hole has the problem of over etching or etching residue, which results in poor contact of the touch module and influences the product yield.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention provides a display panel and a display device, which can avoid the problem of poor contact of a touch module and improve the yield of products.

In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present invention provides a display panel, including:

the substrate comprises a display area and a non-display area surrounding the display area, wherein the non-display area sequentially comprises an outgoing line area, a bending area and an extension wiring area along the direction of the display area pointing to the non-display area;

an inorganic layer disposed on the substrate;

a first metal layer disposed on the inorganic layer;

a first organic layer disposed on the first metal layer;

a second metal layer disposed on the first organic layer;

a second organic layer disposed on the second metal layer;

wherein the first organic layer, the second metal layer and the second organic layer completely cover the wire outlet region, the bending region and the extension wiring region.

The display panel above, optionally, the non-display region further includes a first stress relief region located between the outgoing line region and the bending region, a second stress relief region located between the bending region and the extension wiring region, and a bonding region located at a side of the extension wiring region away from the second stress relief region;

the first organic layer, the second metal layer and the second organic layer completely cover the first stress relief area and the second stress relief area, and partially cover the bonding area.

The display panel above, optionally, corresponds to the display area, further includes:

the thin film transistor is arranged on the substrate and comprises a grid electrode and a source electrode and a drain electrode;

the light-emitting elements are arranged on the thin film transistor, any two adjacent light-emitting elements are separated by a pixel limiting layer, and each light-emitting element comprises an anode;

the touch control module is arranged on the light-emitting element and comprises a first touch control electrode and a second touch control electrode, and the first touch control electrode and the second touch control electrode are arranged in an insulating and crossing mode.

The display panel above, optionally, the first metal layer and the source/drain electrode are arranged on the same layer; alternatively, the first metal layer is co-layer with the anode.

The display panel above, optionally, the second metal layer and the first touch electrode are arranged on the same layer; or the second metal layer and the second touch electrode are arranged on the same layer.

In the above display panel, optionally, the material of the first organic layer is an optical adhesive.

The display panel as above, optionally, further comprising:

support columns disposed on the pixel defining layer;

the first organic layer and the pixel limiting layer are arranged on the same layer, or the first organic layer and the support columns are arranged on the same layer.

The display panel as above, optionally, further comprising:

a planarization layer disposed between the light emitting element and the touch module;

wherein the first organic layer is disposed on the same layer as the pixel defining layer, or the first organic layer is disposed on the same layer as the planarization layer.

In the above display panel, optionally, the material of the second organic layer is an optical adhesive.

In a second aspect, embodiments of the present invention further provide a display device, including a display panel having any of the features of the first aspect.

The invention provides a display panel and a display device, wherein an inorganic layer, a first metal layer, a first organic layer, a second metal layer and a second organic layer which are sequentially stacked are formed in a non-display area, the first organic layer, the second metal layer and the second organic layer completely cover a wire outlet area, a bending area and an extension wiring area, namely, the first organic layer, the second metal layer and the second organic layer extend in the wire outlet area, the bending area and the extension wiring area, so that the wiring of a touch module is not required to be overlapped with an array through a via hole, the problem of over etching or etching residues in the formation of the via hole is avoided, and the product yield is improved.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a conventional display panel;

fig. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a display panel according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of another display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 4 is a schematic structural diagram of a display device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

The invention is described in further detail below with reference to the drawings and examples. It is to be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are merely illustrative of the invention and are not limiting thereof. It should be further noted that, for convenience of description, only some, but not all of the structures related to the present invention are shown in the drawings.

Meanwhile, the description of the drawings and the embodiments is illustrative and not restrictive. Like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout the specification. In addition, the thickness of some layers, films, panels, regions, etc. may be exaggerated in the drawings for understanding and ease of description. It will also be understood that when an element such as a layer, film, region or substrate is referred to as being "on" another element, it can be directly on the other element or intervening elements may also be present. In addition, "on … …" refers to positioning an element on or under another element, but does not in essence refer to positioning on the upper side of another element according to the direction of gravity. For ease of understanding, the drawings of the present invention depict elements on the upper side of another element.

In addition, unless explicitly described to the contrary, the word "comprise" and variations such as "comprises" or "comprising" will be understood to imply the inclusion of a stated element but not the exclusion of any other element.

It should also be noted that references to "and/or" in embodiments of the present invention are intended to encompass any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items. Various components are described in the embodiments of the present invention using "first", "second", "third", etc., but these components should not be limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another element. Also, the singular forms "a," "an," and "the ()" are intended to include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

While an embodiment may be practiced differently, the specific process sequence may be performed differently than as described. For example, two consecutively described processes may be performed at substantially the same time or in an order reverse to the order described.

In order to realize a narrow frame display, the conventional display panel typically has an IC portion bent to the back of the display panel. Fig. 1 shows a schematic structural diagram of a conventional display panel, and as shown in fig. 1, a trace 1 of a touch module is overlapped with a metal trace 2 in an array through a via hole in a non-display area NAA. In actual production, the via hole and the display area AA are formed in the same process, and the problem of over etching or etching residues of the display area AA exists due to different etching depth requirements, so that poor contact of the touch module is caused; and because of the existence of the through holes, the surface of the metal wiring 2 is uneven, uneven Al holes are easy to appear, and the product yield is affected. In order to solve the above problems, embodiments of the present invention provide a display panel and a display device, which can avoid the problem of poor contact of a touch module and improve the product yield.

Next, the structure of the display panel and its technical effects are described in detail.

In addition, the following embodiments are exemplified by the display panel being rectangular, and in practical applications, the display panel may be regular or irregular, such as circular, polygonal, etc., and the present invention is not limited thereto. Meanwhile, in order to describe the wiring in the display panel more clearly, the size of each structure in the display panel is correspondingly adjusted in the following drawings.

It should be further noted that, in the following drawings, the ellipses "…" included in the embodiments of the present invention refer to that the flexible display panel extends in the left-right direction or the up-down direction, and omitted portions may include other structures, which are not particularly limited in the embodiments of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a display panel according to an embodiment of the invention. The display panel includes: the substrate 10, the substrate 10 includes a display area AA and a non-display area NAA surrounding the display area AA, the non-display area NAA includes an outgoing line area NAA 1, a bending area NAA 2 and an extended wiring area NAA 3 in this order along the direction in which the display area AA points to the non-display area NAA; an inorganic layer 20 disposed on the substrate 10; a first metal layer 30 disposed on the inorganic layer 20; a first organic layer 40 disposed on the first metal layer 30; a second metal layer 50 disposed on the first organic layer 40; a second organic layer 60 disposed on the second metal layer 50.

Referring to fig. 2, the first organic layer 40, the second metal layer 50, and the second organic layer 60 completely cover the wire outlet area NAA 1, the inflection area NAA 2, and the extended wiring area NAA 3.

Corresponding to the display area AA, the display panel further includes: the thin film transistor disposed on the substrate 10, for example, a thin film transistor having a top gate structure, specifically, the thin film transistor includes: a buffer layer 101 on the substrate 10, an active layer 102 on the buffer layer 101, a gate insulating layer 103 on the active layer 102, a gate 104 on the gate insulating layer 103, an interlayer insulating layer 105 on the gate 104, a source 106 and a drain 107 on the interlayer insulating layer 105; a passivation layer 108 on the source electrode 106 and the drain electrode 107; the source electrode 106 and the drain electrode 107 may be located on the same layer and obtained through a single patterning process, and thus, the source electrode 106 and the drain electrode 107 may also be referred to as a source-drain metal layer.

In particular, the substrate 10 may be flexible and thus stretchable, foldable, bendable or rollable, such that the display panel may be stretchable, foldable, bendable or rollable. The substrate 10 may be formed of any suitable insulating material having flexibility. The substrate 10 may serve to block oxygen and moisture, prevent diffusion of moisture or impurities, and provide a flat surface on the upper surface of the substrate 10.

For example, the substrate 10 may be formed of a polymer material such as Polyimide (PI), polycarbonate (PC), polyethersulfone (PES), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), polyethylene naphthalate (PEN), polyarylate (PAR), or Fiberglass Reinforced Plastic (FRP), and the like, and may be transparent, translucent, or opaque.

Buffer layer 101, buffer layer 101 may cover the entire upper surface of substrate 10. For example, the buffer layer 101 may be formed of a material selected from inorganic materials such as silicon oxide (SiOx), silicon nitride (SiNx), silicon oxynitride (SioxNy), aluminum oxide (AlOx), or aluminum nitride (AlNx), or a material selected from organic materials such as acryl, polyimide (PI), or polyester. Buffer layer 101 may comprise a single layer or multiple layers. The buffer layer 101 may block diffusion of impurities in the substrate 10 to other film layers.

The active layer 102 is located on the buffer layer 101, and the active layer 102 includes a source region and a drain region formed by doping N-type impurity ions or P-type impurity ions. The region between the source region and the drain region is a channel region.

The active layer 102 may be an amorphous silicon material, a polycrystalline silicon material, a metal oxide material, or the like. The active layer can be formed by adopting a low-temperature amorphous silicon technology when the active layer adopts a polycrystalline silicon material, namely, the amorphous silicon material is melted by the laser to form the polycrystalline silicon material. In addition, various methods such as a Rapid Thermal Annealing (RTA) method, a Solid Phase Crystallization (SPC) method, an Excimer Laser Annealing (ELA) method, a Metal Induced Crystallization (MIC) method, a Metal Induced Lateral Crystallization (MILC) method, or a Sequential Lateral Solidification (SLS) method may also be utilized.

The gate insulating layer 103 includes an inorganic layer such as silicon oxide, silicon nitride, and may include a single layer or a plurality of layers. The gate 104 is located on the gate insulating layer 103 and is patterned from a first metal layer. The first metal layer may include a single layer or multiple layers of gold (Au), silver (Ag), copper (Cu), nickel (Ni), platinum (Pt), palladium (Pd), aluminum (Al), molybdenum (MO), or chromium (Cr), or such as aluminum (Al): neodymium (Nd) alloys and alloys of Molybdenum (MO) and tungsten (W) alloys.

An interlayer insulating layer 105 is located on the gate electrode 105. The interlayer insulating layer 105 may be formed of an insulating inorganic layer of silicon oxide, silicon nitride, or the like. Alternatively, the interlayer insulating layer 105 may be formed of an insulating organic layer.

A source drain electrode (i.e., source electrode 106 and drain electrode 107) is located on the interlayer insulating layer 105. The source electrode 106 and the drain electrode 107 are electrically connected to the source region and the drain region, respectively, through contact holes penetrating the gate insulating layer 103 and the interlayer insulating layer 105.

A passivation layer 108 is located on the source drain metal layer. The passivation layer 108 may be formed of an inorganic layer of silicon oxide or silicon nitride or the like or an organic layer. Illustratively, a first planarization layer may also be included on the passivation layer 108. The first planarization layer includes an organic layer of acryl, polyimide (PI), benzocyclobutene (BCB), or the like, and has a planarization function.

A light emitting element is disposed above the thin film transistor, and when the light emitting element is an organic light emitting diode, the light emitting element includes an anode 109, a hole injection layer (not shown in fig. 2), a hole transport layer (not shown in fig. 2), a light emitting layer (not shown in fig. 2), an electron transport layer (not shown in fig. 2), an electron injection layer (not shown in fig. 2), and a cathode (not shown in fig. 2) in this order in a direction away from the substrate 10. The anode 109 of the light emitting element is electrically connected to the drain 107 of the thin film transistor. Specifically, the anode 109 is electrically connected to the drain electrode 107 through a via penetrating the passivation layer 108 and the first planarization layer.

In addition, any adjacent two light emitting elements are separated by a pixel defining layer 110, and a support column 111 is provided on the pixel defining layer 110.

The light emitting element is provided with a touch module (not shown in fig. 2), and the touch module includes a first touch electrode and a second touch electrode, where the first touch electrode and the second touch electrode are disposed in an insulating and crossing manner. A second planarization layer (not shown in fig. 2) may be further disposed between the light emitting element and the touch module. The second planarization layer includes an organic layer of acryl, polyimide (PI), benzocyclobutene (BCB), or the like, and has a planarization function.

In combination with the structure of the display area AA and the structure of the non-display area NAA in fig. 2, in one embodiment, the first metal layer 30 is disposed on the same layer as the source and drain electrodes (i.e., the source 106 and the drain 107); alternatively, the first metal layer 30 is provided in the same layer as the anode 109. So as to simplify the manufacturing process of the display panel.

In combination with the structure of the display area AA and the structure of the non-display area NAA in fig. 2, in an embodiment, the second metal layer 50 is disposed on the same layer as the first touch electrode; alternatively, the second metal layer 50 is disposed on the same layer as the second touch electrode. So as to simplify the manufacturing process of the display panel.

As can be seen, in the non-display area NAA of the display panel, the second metal layer 50 completely covers the outgoing line area NAA 1, the bending area NAA 2 and the extended wiring area NAA 3, that is, the second metal layer 50 directly extends from the display area AA to the non-display area NAA in the outgoing line area NAA 1, the bending area NAA 2 and the extended wiring area NAA 3, and the second metal layer 50 is used as a fan-out area wiring of the touch module, and can be connected to the IC part without overlapping with the first metal layer 30, so as to realize signal conduction. Therefore, the wiring of the touch module is not required to be overlapped with the array through the via hole, the problem of over etching or etching residues in the formation of the via hole is avoided, and the product yield is improved. In addition, the wiring of the touch module is not required to overlap the array through the via hole, and the surface of the first organic layer 40 is flat, so that the surface of the formed second metal layer 50 is also flat, and thus, the phenomenon of Al void is not generated.

Further, fig. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional structure of another display panel according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in fig. 3, the non-display area NAA further includes a first stress relief area NAA 4 located between the outgoing area NAA 1 and the folded area NAA 2, a second stress relief area NAA 5 located between the folded area NAA 2 and the extended wiring area NAA 3, and a bonding area NAA6 located at a side of the extended wiring area NAA 3 away from the second stress relief area NAA 5. Wherein the first organic layer 40, the second metal layer 50 and the second organic layer 60 completely cover the first stress relief area NAA 4 and the second stress relief area NAA 5, and partially cover the bonding area NAA 6.

As can be seen from fig. 3, by providing the first stress relief area NAA 4 and the second stress relief area NAA 5 on both sides of the inflection area NAA 2, the stress received by the non-display area NAA at the time of inflection can be reduced; meanwhile, the first stress relief area NAA 4 may improve the problem of uneven stress between the outgoing line area NAA 1 and the bending area NAA 2, and the second stress relief area NAA 5 may improve the stress between the bending area NAA 2 and the extension wiring area NAA 3 during bending, so as to improve the stability of the display panel.

In addition, the first organic layer 40, the second metal layer 50 and the second organic layer 60 extend to the bonding area NAA6, and can be connected with the IC portion, so as to realize signal conduction.

In an embodiment, the material of the first organic layer 40 may be an optical adhesive. The first organic layer 40 is disposed between the first metal layer 30 and the second metal layer 50, and may serve an insulating function. Meanwhile, the optical cement has the advantages of good cementing strength, low elastic modulus and the like, can increase the cohesiveness between film layers, and simultaneously buffers the stress generated by the bending area NAA 2 during bending.

Alternatively, the first organic layer 40 may be disposed at the same layer as the pixel defining layer 110, or the first organic layer 40 may be disposed at the same layer as the support columns 111 to reduce the manufacturing difficulty of the display panel.

In an embodiment, the material of the second organic layer 60 may be an optical adhesive. The second organic layer 60 is disposed on the second metal layer 50 and may function to protect the second metal layer 50. Meanwhile, the optical cement has the advantages of good cementing strength, low elastic modulus and the like, can increase the cohesiveness between film layers, and simultaneously buffers the stress generated by the bending area NAA 2 during bending.

The invention provides a display panel, which comprises a substrate, wherein the substrate comprises a display area and a non-display area surrounding the display area, the non-display area sequentially comprises a wire outlet area, a bending area and an extension wiring area along the direction of the display area pointing to the non-display area; an inorganic layer disposed on the substrate; a first metal layer disposed on the inorganic layer; a first organic layer disposed on the first metal layer; a second metal layer disposed on the first organic layer; a second organic layer disposed on the second metal layer; wherein the first organic layer, the second metal layer and the second organic layer completely cover the wire outlet region, the bending region and the extension wiring region. Through forming the inorganic layer, first metal layer, first organic layer, second metal layer and the organic layer structure of second that stacks gradually in non-display area, first organic layer, second metal layer and second organic layer cover the district of being qualified for the next round of competitions, bending zone and extension wiring district completely, first organic layer, second metal layer and second organic layer extend in district, bending zone and extension wiring district promptly to no longer need make the wiring of touch module overlap joint with the array through the via hole, avoided the problem that the overetch or the etching that exists in the via hole formation remain, thereby promoted the product yield.

The embodiment of the invention also provides a display device, and fig. 4 shows a schematic structural diagram of the display device provided by the embodiment of the invention. As shown in fig. 4, the display device 70 includes a display panel 71 provided in any embodiment of the present invention.

The display device 70 may also include a front camera and a sensor. The front camera and the sensor are disposed correspondingly below the sub-display area of the display panel 71. Alternatively, other devices, such as a gyroscope or an earpiece, may be provided under the secondary display area in addition to the front camera and the sensor.

The display panel 71 may be a flexible organic light emitting display panel or an inflexible organic light emitting display panel. The light emission mode of the organic light emitting display panel may be top emission, bottom emission, or double-sided emission.

The display device 70 provided by the embodiment of the invention can be applied to intelligent wearable equipment (such as an intelligent bracelet and an intelligent watch) and also can be applied to equipment such as an intelligent mobile phone, a tablet personal computer and a display.

Note that the above is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and the technical principle applied. It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to the particular embodiments described herein, but is capable of various obvious changes, rearrangements and substitutions as will now become apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention. Therefore, while the invention has been described in connection with the above embodiments, the invention is not limited to the embodiments, but may be embodied in many other equivalent forms without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention, which is set forth in the following claims.

Claims

1. A display panel, comprising:

a substrate including a display region and a non-display region surrounding the display region, the non-display area sequentially comprises an outgoing line area, a bending area and an extension wiring area along the direction of the display area pointing to the non-display area;

an inorganic layer disposed on the substrate;

a first metal layer disposed on the inorganic layer;

the first organic layer is arranged on the first metal layer, and the surface of the first organic layer is flat;

a second metal layer with a flat surface, which is arranged on the first organic layer;

a second organic layer disposed on the second metal layer;

wherein the first organic layer, the second metal layer, and the second organic layer completely cover the wire outlet region, the bending region, and the extended wiring region;

the second metal layer with the flat surface extends from the display area to the non-display area in the outgoing area, the bending area and the extension wiring area, and is used as a fan-out area wiring of the touch module to be connected to the IC part.

2. The display panel of claim 1, wherein the non-display region further comprises a first stress relief region between the outgoing region and the folded region, a second stress relief region between the folded region and the extended routing region, and a bonding region on a side of the extended routing region remote from the second stress relief region;

wherein the first organic layer, the second metal layer, and the second organic layer completely cover the first stress relief region and the second stress relief region, and partially cover the bonding region.

3. The display panel of claim 1, further comprising, corresponding to the display area:

the light-emitting elements are arranged on the thin film transistor, any two adjacent light-emitting elements are separated by a pixel limiting layer, and the light-emitting elements comprise anodes;

4. The display panel of claim 3, wherein the first metal layer is co-layer with the source and drain electrodes; alternatively, the first metal layer is disposed in the same layer as the anode.

5. The display panel of claim 3, wherein the second metal layer is co-layer with the first touch electrode; or the second metal layer and the second touch electrode are arranged on the same layer.

6. The display panel of claim 1, wherein the material of the first organic layer is an optical paste.

7. A display panel according to claim 3, further comprising:

support columns disposed on the pixel defining layer;

wherein the first organic layer is disposed on the same layer as the pixel defining layer, or the first organic layer is disposed on the same layer as the support column.

8. A display panel according to claim 3, further comprising:

wherein the first organic layer is disposed in the same layer as the pixel defining layer, or the first organic layer is disposed in the same layer as the planarization layer.

9. The display panel according to claim 1, wherein the material of the second organic layer is an optical paste.

10. A display device comprising a display panel as claimed in any one of claims 1-9.