CN112358193A

CN112358193A - Ultra-thin glass substrate processing method and display panel processing method

Info

Publication number: CN112358193A
Application number: CN202011158629.0A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 周晧煜; 蒋承忠; 吴天鸣; 黄俊杰; 陈风
Original assignee: Enrique Zhejiang Display Technology Co Ltd
Current assignee: Anhui Fansheng Display Technology Co ltd
Priority date: 2020-10-26
Filing date: 2020-10-26
Publication date: 2021-02-12
Anticipated expiration: 2040-10-26
Also published as: CN112358193B

Abstract

The invention provides a manufacturing method of an ultrathin glass substrate and a manufacturing method of a display panel, wherein the manufacturing method of the ultrathin glass substrate comprises the following steps: providing a glass base material, wherein n substrate areas and a framework area surrounding the substrate areas are preset on the glass base material, and n is more than or equal to 2; forming a panel functional layer on at least one side of the upper surface and the lower surface of a substrate area of a glass base material, wherein the panel functional layer comprises one or a combination of a TFT (thin film transistor) backboard, an organic light-emitting layer, a touch detection layer, a fingerprint identification layer and a cover plate, and an etching protective layer is formed on one side of the panel functional layer, which is deviated from the substrate area; etching at least the framework region of the glass base material to separate the substrate region from the glass base material and form a stress dissipation edge at the edge of the substrate region; and removing the etching protective layer to obtain the independent glass substrate. The invention can simultaneously process the functional layers in a plurality of areas while obtaining the glass substrate from the glass base material, and can avoid the damage of cutter wheel cutting and laser cutting to the formed functional layers.

Description

Ultra-thin glass substrate processing method and display panel processing method

Technical Field

The invention relates to the technical field of panel processing, in particular to a processing method of an ultrathin glass substrate and a processing method of a display panel.

Background

Ultra-thin glass substrates (UTG substrates) are an important component of foldable cover sheets, and the quality of the ultra-thin substrates themselves is critical to achieve the effect of smaller or even 2mm bend radii. Particularly, after the UTG substrate is cut into a specific size, special treatment of the edge part of the substrate, namely, removing defects such as edge breakage and microcracks generated by cutting is needed, so as to avoid the breakage of glass caused by microcracks and the like when the substrate is bent. In general, there are two issues to be addressed: 1) what cutting mode is taken to obtain a relatively straight edge quality; 2) and removing edge defects by adopting polishing and other modes.

At present, the wheel knife type cutting is limited to straight line cutting, the difficulty is still faced in the aspect of carrying out product profile (lead R angle) cutting, and moreover, the UTG substrate of about 100um without chemical strengthening treatment is very fragile, and the mechanical pressure generated in the wheel knife cutting process is difficult to bear, so that high-proportion fragments are generated, or the defects of obvious chipping, unfilled corner and the like of the edge of the substrate are generated undesirably. These defects are very fatal defects for subsequent edge polishing, and can directly result in rejection of the substrate. Therefore, finding a suitable cutting means to obtain a substrate with flat edges is an important work component.

In contrast, the laser cutting with non-mechanical force can obtain a better edge cutting effect and may become a mainstream mode of future ultrathin substrate cutting, and the laser cutting refers to melting and evaporating a workpiece by energy released when a laser beam irradiates on the surface of the workpiece so as to achieve the purpose of cutting and slicing. The laser cutting does not apply pressure on the surface of the glass, so that the glass substrate cannot be broken, and various special-shaped cuts can be made.

On the other hand, the UTG substrate is easy to have quality defects such as scratch or mutual extrusion and support damage of the glass surface in the processing and transferring process, at present, the protective ink spraying mode is adopted to reduce or avoid the problems, and the processing processes of large sheet UTG mother plate glass cutting, edge polishing, chemical strengthening and protective ink spraying are formed. Finally, the UTG substrate which is subjected to the chemical strengthening treatment is coated with the functional film to form the foldable cover plate.

For this purpose, a general embodiment is: the ultra-thin substrate is sprayed with the protective ink at UTG and then laser cut or machined to the desired dimensions. However, it is a very difficult task to uniformly spray ink on the surface of UTG substrate, especially to eliminate the related air bubbles, ensure uniform film thickness, uniform color, clean spraying environment, etc. Meanwhile, the laser cutting path is often subjected to uneven spraying to cause the problem that laser is scattered in the area, and finally, the defects of incomplete glass cutting, difficult slicing, serious edge breakage and the like are caused, and the subsequent edge polishing process is seriously influenced by the defects.

Therefore, the invention provides a manufacturing method of an ultrathin glass substrate and a manufacturing method of a display panel.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention aims to provide a manufacturing method of an ultrathin glass substrate and a manufacturing method of a display panel, which overcome the difficulties in the prior art, can simultaneously process a plurality of regions and a functional layer while obtaining the glass substrate from a glass base material, can avoid the damage of cutter wheel cutting and laser cutting to the formed functional layer, and improve the product quality of the ultrathin glass substrate.

The embodiment of the invention provides a processing method of an ultrathin glass substrate, which comprises the following steps:

s210, providing a glass base material, wherein n substrate areas and a framework area surrounding the substrate areas are preset on the glass base material, and n is more than or equal to 2;

s220, forming a panel functional layer on at least one of the upper surface and the lower surface of the substrate area of the glass base material, wherein the panel functional layer comprises one or a combination of a TFT (thin film transistor) back plate, an organic light emitting layer, a touch detection layer, a fingerprint identification layer and a cover plate, and forming an etching protective layer on one side of the panel functional layer, which is far away from the substrate area;

s230, at least etching the framework region of the glass base material, enabling the substrate region to be separated from the glass base material, and forming a stress dissipation edge at the edge of the substrate region;

s240, removing the etching protection layer to obtain the independent glass substrate.

Preferably, the step S220 includes the steps of:

s221, forming a polymer reinforcing layer on at least one of upper and lower surfaces of the substrate region of the glass base material, wherein the polymer reinforcing layer comprises acryl, a silicon-containing organic polymer material, an epoxy resin, a fluororesin, a polyamide, a polyimide, a polycarbonate, a polyethylene terephthalate, and poly-1, 4-cyclohexanedimethylene terephthalate;

s222, a panel functional layer is formed on one side, deviating from the substrate area, of the high polymer reinforcing layer, the panel functional layer at least comprises a TFT backboard, an organic light emitting layer and a touch detection layer which are sequentially stacked in the substrate area, and an etching protective layer is formed on one side, deviating from the substrate area, of the panel functional layer.

Preferably, the etching protection layer covers the surface and four side faces of the panel functional layer, which face away from the substrate area.

Preferably, through a first etching process, eliminating all framework regions in the glass parent material, and leaving the substrate region protected by the etching protection layer;

and forming a stress dissipation edge at the edge of the substrate region by a second etching process.

Preferably, by one etching, the entire skeleton region in the glass parent material is eliminated and a stress dissipation edge is formed at the edge of the substrate region.

Preferably, the etching protective layer only covers the upper surface and the lower surface of the substrate region, and the upper surface and the lower surface of the framework region are exposed out of the etching protective layer;

or one side of the glass base material is fully covered by the etching protection layer, the other side of the substrate area is only covered by the etching protection layer, and the skeleton area is exposed out of the etching protection layer.

Preferably, the substrate regions are arranged in a matrix on the glass base material, and the skeleton region is provided between adjacent substrate regions.

Preferably, the stress dissipation edge is a circular arc edge, a blade edge or a polygonal edge, the blade edge or the polygonal edge comprises at least one bevel edge or an arc bevel edge, and the angle range between the bevel edge and the glass parent material is (15 degrees and 90 degrees).

Preferably, the thickness of the glass parent material is 10um to 150 um;

the stress dissipation edge surrounds the edge of the substrate area, and the width of the stress dissipation edge is 5um to 300 um.

Preferably, the step S240 is followed by a step S250 of forming a polymer reinforcing layer on at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the glass substrate, wherein the polymer reinforcing layer comprises acrylic, a silicon-containing organic polymer material, an epoxy resin, a fluorine resin, a polyamide, a polyimide, a polycarbonate, a polyethylene terephthalate, and poly-1, 4-cyclohexanedimethylene terephthalate.

The embodiment of the invention also provides a display panel processing method, which comprises the above ultra-thin glass substrate processing method.

The invention aims to provide a manufacturing method of an ultrathin glass substrate, which can simultaneously process a plurality of regions for a functional layer while obtaining the glass substrate from a glass parent material, can avoid the damage of cutter wheel cutting and laser cutting to the formed functional layer, and improves the product quality of the ultrathin glass substrate.

Drawings

Other features, objects and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent upon reading of the following detailed description of non-limiting embodiments thereof, with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a first flowchart of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method of the present invention.

FIGS. 2 to 11 are schematic views illustrating a first process of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method according to the present invention.

FIGS. 12 to 14 are schematic views illustrating a second process of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method of the present invention.

FIGS. 15 to 17 are schematic views illustrating a third process of the method for manufacturing an ultra-thin glass substrate according to the present invention.

FIG. 18 is a second flowchart of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method of the present invention.

FIGS. 19 to 22 are schematic views illustrating a fourth process of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method of the present invention.

FIG. 23 is a third flowchart of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method of the present invention.

Fig. 24 to 29 are schematic views illustrating a fifth process of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method according to the present invention.

FIG. 30 is a fourth flowchart illustrating a method for fabricating an ultra-thin glass substrate according to the present invention.

FIGS. 31 to 35 are schematic views illustrating a sixth process of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method according to the present invention.

Reference numerals

1 glass base material

11 area of the substrate

12 framework region

13 stress dissipating edge

131 stress dissipating edge

132 stress dissipating edge

133 stress dissipating edge

14 glass substrate

15 camera mounting hole

20 first etching protective layer

21 open pore area

22 second etch protection layer

23 functional layer

24 polymer reinforcing layer

3 etching solution

4 support piece

5 hand basket

Detailed Description

Example embodiments will now be described more fully with reference to the accompanying drawings. Example embodiments may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the concept of example embodiments to those skilled in the art. The same reference numerals in the drawings denote the same or similar structures, and thus their repetitive description will be omitted.

FIG. 1 is a first flowchart of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method of the present invention. As shown in fig. 1, the method for manufacturing an ultra-thin glass substrate of the present invention comprises the following steps:

s110, providing a glass base material 1, wherein n substrate regions 11 and a framework region 12 surrounding the substrate regions 11 are preset on the glass base material 1, n is larger than or equal to 2, and the thickness of the glass base material 1 is 10um to 150 um.

S120, forming etching protective layers on at least the upper surface and the lower surface of the substrate area 11 of the glass base material.

S130, at least the skeleton region 12 of the glass parent material 1 is etched, the substrate region 11 is separated from the glass parent material 1, and a stress dissipation edge 13 is formed at the edge of the substrate region 11. In this embodiment, dry etching or wet etching in chemical etching is used.

And S140, removing the etching protection layer to obtain the independent glass substrate 14.

In the manufacturing process of the invention, the cutter wheel and the laser are not needed any more, the glass substrate can be obtained from the glass base material, and simultaneously the functional layers are processed in a plurality of areas, so that the damage of the cutter wheel cutting and the laser cutting to the formed functional layers can be avoided, and the product quality of the ultrathin glass substrate is improved.

In a preferred embodiment, step S120 includes the steps of:

s121, forming a polymer reinforcing layer 24 on at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate region 11 of the glass base material, wherein the polymer reinforcing layer 24 includes: acryl, organic polymer material containing silicon (silane, silicone resin, silicon rubber), epoxy resin, fluorine resin, polyamide, polyimide, Polycarbonate (PC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), poly-1, 4-cyclohexanedimethyl terephthalate (PCT).

And S122, forming an etching protection layer on one side of the polymer reinforcing layer 24, which is far away from the substrate region 11, so that when the glass substrate 14 is bent and restored, the overall flexibility of the glass substrate 14 is enhanced, and the anti-fragmentation property of the glass substrate 14 is improved.

In a preferred embodiment, step S120 includes the steps of:

and S123, forming a panel functional layer 23 on at least one of the upper surface and the lower surface of the substrate area 11 of the glass base material, wherein the panel functional layer 23 comprises one or a combination of a TFT back plate, an organic light emitting layer, a touch detection layer, a fingerprint identification layer and a cover plate.

And S124, forming an etching protection layer on one side of the panel functional layer 23, which is far away from the substrate area 11.

In a preferred embodiment, by means of the first etching process, the entire skeleton region 12 in the glass parent material 1 is removed, leaving the substrate region 11 protected by the etching protection layer.

By the second etching process, a stress-dissipating edge 13 is formed at the edge of the substrate region 11.

In a preferred embodiment, the entire skeleton region 12 of the glass preform 1 is removed and a stress-dissipating edge 13 is formed at the edge of the substrate region 11 by one etching, but not limited thereto.

In a preferred embodiment, the etching protection layer covers only the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate region 11, and both the upper and lower surfaces of the skeleton region 12 are exposed outside the etching protection layer, but not limited thereto.

In a preferred embodiment, one side of the glass preform 1 is fully covered by the etching protection layer, the other side of the substrate region 11 is only covered by the etching protection layer, and the skeleton region 12 is exposed outside the etching protection layer, but not limited thereto.

In this example, acidic liquid was used for etching: preparing (1) HF + H2SO4+ CH3COOH, (2) HF + HNO3+ H2O, (3) HF + H2O + NH4F by taking HF as a main body, adding 10-15% of HCL by taking ammonium fluoride or sodium fluoride as a main body, and etching by acetic acid. Or, the alkaline liquid of the phosphate + alkaline solution is used for etching. Or plasma etching and sand blasting are adopted.

In a preferred embodiment, the substrate regions 11 are arranged in a matrix on the glass preform 1, and the adjacent substrate regions 11 are separated by the skeleton region 12, but not limited thereto.

In a preferred embodiment, the stress dissipating edge 13 is a circular arc edge, a blade edge, or a polygonal edge, and the blade edge or the polygonal edge includes at least one bevel edge or an arc-shaped bevel edge, and the plane of the bevel edge forms an included angle with the plane of the glass parent material 1, and the included angle is (15 °, 90 °), but not limited thereto.

In a preferred embodiment, the thickness of the glass parent material 1 is 10um to 150um, but not limited thereto.

In a preferred embodiment, the stress dissipating edge 13 surrounds the edge of the substrate region 11, and the width of the stress dissipating edge 13 is 5um to 300um, but not limited thereto.

The invention also provides a manufacturing method of the display panel, and the supporting process comprises the manufacturing method of the ultrathin glass substrate.

FIGS. 2 to 11 are schematic views illustrating a first process of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method according to the present invention. As shown in fig. 2 to 11, the first process of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method of the present invention is as follows:

referring to fig. 2, first, a glass preform 1 is provided, the glass preform 1 has a thickness of 10um to 150um, substrate regions 11 are arranged in the glass preform 1 in a matrix, and adjacent substrate regions 11 are separated by a skeleton region 12.

Referring to fig. 3 and 4, n substrate regions 11 and a skeleton region 12 surrounding the substrate regions 11 are preset on a glass parent material 1, where n is greater than or equal to 2, etching protective layers 20 are respectively formed on upper and lower surfaces of the substrate regions 11 of the glass parent material, the etching protective layers 20 only cover the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate regions 11, and the upper and lower surfaces of the skeleton region 12 are exposed outside the etching protective layers 20, so that the upper and lower surfaces of the skeleton region 12 can be etched simultaneously in subsequent etching, a stress dissipation edge 13 having a plurality of stress dissipation surfaces is easily formed, the substrate regions 11 are arranged in a matrix on the glass parent material 1, and a skeleton region 12 is provided between adjacent substrate regions 11.

Referring to fig. 5, 6, 7, 8, the skeleton region 12 of the glass parent material 1 is etched, the substrate region 11 is detached from the glass parent material 1, and a stress-dissipating edge 13 is formed at the edge of the substrate region 11. In this embodiment, the first etching process is performed to remove all the skeleton regions 12 in the glass preform 1, leaving the substrate regions 11 protected by the etching resist 20. The stress dissipating edge 13 is a blade edge, the stress dissipating edge 13 surrounds the edge of the substrate region 11, and the width of the stress dissipating edge 13 is 5um to 300 um.

Finally, referring to fig. 9, the etching resist 20 is removed to obtain the independent glass substrate 14.

Referring to fig. 10, in a modified embodiment, the stress-dissipating edge 131 may also be a circular-arc-shaped edge to dissipate stress in different directions, so as to improve the anti-cracking capability of the glass substrate 14.

Referring to fig. 11, in a modification, the stress-dissipating edge 131 may also be a triangular edge to dissipate stress in a plurality of different directions to improve the shatter resistance of the glass substrate 14.

FIGS. 12 to 14 are schematic views illustrating a second process of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method of the present invention. Referring to fig. 12 to 14, in a modification, based on the above process, in the process of forming the etching protection layers on the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate region 11, one side of the glass preform 1 is fully covered by the etching protection layer 22, the other side of the substrate region 11 is only covered by the etching protection layer 20, and the skeleton region 12 is exposed outside the etching protection layer, so that in the etching process, the side of the glass preform 1 fully covered by the etching protection layer 22 is not etched, and only the other side is etched, thereby finally forming a slope-type stress dissipation edge 133 on the edge of the glass substrate 14.

FIGS. 15 to 17 are schematic views illustrating a third process of the method for manufacturing an ultra-thin glass substrate according to the present invention. Referring to fig. 15 to 17, in a modification, in the process of forming the etching protective layers on the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate region 11 based on the above-described process, the polymer reinforcing layer 24 may be formed on at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate region 11 of the glass base material. An etching protection layer is formed on the side of the polymer reinforcing layer 24 away from the substrate region 11, and finally the glass substrate 14 with the upper and lower surfaces covered by the polymer reinforcing layer 24 can be obtained, so that when the glass substrate 14 is bent and restored, the flexibility of the whole glass substrate 14 is enhanced, and the anti-cracking property of the glass substrate 14 is improved.

In a modification, based on the above process, in the process of forming the etching protection layers on the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate region 11, the panel function layer 23 may be formed on at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate region 11 of the glass base material, and the panel function layer 23 may include one or a combination of a TFT backplane, an organic light emitting layer, a touch detection layer, a fingerprint identification layer, and a cover plate. An etching protective layer is formed on the panel functional layer 23 on the side away from the substrate region 11.

FIG. 18 is a second flowchart of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method of the present invention. As shown in fig. 18, the method for manufacturing an ultra-thin glass substrate of the present invention comprises the following steps:

s210, providing a glass base material 1, wherein n substrate regions 11 and a framework region 12 surrounding the substrate regions 11 are preset on the glass base material 1, and n is greater than or equal to 2.

S220, forming a panel functional layer 23 on at least one of the upper surface and the lower surface of the substrate area 11 of the glass base material 1, wherein the panel functional layer 23 comprises one or a combination of a TFT (thin film transistor) back plate, an organic light emitting layer, a touch detection layer, a fingerprint identification layer and a cover plate, and forming an etching protection layer on one side of the panel functional layer 23, which is far away from the substrate area 11.

S230, at least the skeleton region 12 of the glass parent material 1 is etched, the substrate region 11 is separated from the glass parent material 1, and a stress dissipation edge 13 is formed at the edge of the substrate region 11.

And S240, removing the etching protective layer to obtain the independent glass substrate 14.

In the manufacturing process of the invention, a cutter wheel and laser are not needed any more, the damage of the cutter wheel cutting and the laser cutting to the quality of the ultrathin glass substrate can be avoided, the panel functional layer 23 can be directly processed in the plurality of substrate areas 11 on the glass parent material 1, and the damage of the cutter wheel cutting and the laser cutting to the panel functional layer 23 can also be avoided, so that the time of the subsequent manufacturing process is greatly saved, the step of obtaining the glass substrate with the panel functional layer is simplified, the manufacturing speed of the display substrate of the ultrathin glass is accelerated, the stress dissipation effect of the edge of the ultrathin glass substrate is enhanced, and the product quality of the ultrathin glass substrate is improved.

In a preferred embodiment, step S220 includes the steps of:

s221, a polymer reinforcing layer 24 is formed on at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate region 11 of the glass base material.

S222, forming a panel functional layer 23 on a side of the polymer reinforcing layer 24 away from the substrate area 11, where the panel functional layer 23 at least includes a TFT backplane, an organic light emitting layer, and a touch detection layer stacked in the substrate area 11 in sequence, and forming an etching protection layer on a side of the panel functional layer 23 away from the substrate area 11. So as to enhance the flexibility of the glass substrate 14 as a whole when the glass substrate 14 is bent and restored, thereby improving the chipping prevention property of the glass substrate 14.

In a preferred embodiment, the etching protection layer covers the surface and four sides of the panel functional layer 23 facing away from the substrate region 11, but is not limited thereto.

In a preferred embodiment, by means of the first etching process, the entire skeleton region 12 in the glass parent material 1 is removed, leaving the substrate region 11 protected by the etching protection layer. By the second etching process, a stress dissipation edge 13 is formed at the edge of the substrate region 11, but not limited thereto.

Alternatively, one side of the glass preform 1 is entirely covered with the etching protective layer, the other side of the substrate region 11 is covered with only the substrate region 11, and the skeleton region 12 is exposed outside the etching protective layer, but not limited thereto.

In a preferred embodiment, the stress-dissipating edge 13 is a rounded edge, a blade edge, or a polygonal edge, and the blade edge or the polygonal edge includes at least one bevel or a curved bevel, and the bevel is at an angle (15 °, 90 °) to the glass parent material 1, but not limited thereto.

The stress dissipation edge 13 surrounds the edge of the substrate region 11, and the width of the stress dissipation edge 13 is 5um to 300um, but not limited thereto.

In a preferred embodiment, the step S240 is followed by a step S250 of forming a polymer reinforcing layer on at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the glass substrate 14, wherein the polymer reinforcing layer comprises acrylic, a silicon-containing organic polymer material, an epoxy resin, a fluororesin, a polyamide, a polyimide, a polycarbonate, polyethylene terephthalate, and poly-1, 4-cyclohexanedimethylene terephthalate.

FIGS. 19 to 22 are schematic views illustrating a fourth process of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method of the present invention. As shown in fig. 19 to 22, the fourth process of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method of the present invention is as follows:

referring to fig. 19 and 20, a glass preform 1 is first provided, where n substrate regions 11 and a skeleton region 12 surrounding the substrate regions 11 are preset on the glass preform 1, where n is greater than or equal to 2. The thickness of the glass base material 1 is 10um to 150um, the substrate regions 11 are arranged in the glass base material 1 in a matrix, and the adjacent substrate regions 11 are separated by the skeleton region 12. A panel functional layer 23 is formed on the upper surface of the substrate area 11 of the glass base material, the panel functional layer 23 comprises one or a combination of a TFT (thin film transistor) back plate, an organic light emitting layer, a touch detection layer, a fingerprint identification layer and a cover plate, and an etching protection layer 20 is respectively formed on one side of the glass base material 1 where the panel functional layer 23 is not arranged and on one side of the panel functional layer 23 departing from the substrate area 11.

Referring to fig. 21, at least the skeleton region 12 of the glass preform 1 is etched, the substrate region 11 is detached from the glass preform 1, and a stress-dissipating edge 13 is formed at the edge of the substrate region 11.

Referring to fig. 22, the etching resist is removed to obtain a separate glass substrate 14, and the glass substrate 14 with the panel functional layer 23 is obtained.

According to the invention, the glass substrate 14 can be obtained from the glass base material 1, meanwhile, the functional layer simultaneous processing is carried out on a plurality of areas (corresponding to the subsequent display panel in a bisection mode) on the glass base material 1, so that the time of the functional layer processing is greatly saved, and the damage of the cutter wheel cutting and the laser cutting to the formed functional layer can be avoided because the cutter wheel and the laser are not needed to be used in the subsequent process of dividing the glass substrate 14, and meanwhile, the product quality of the processing speed of the display panel is provided.

FIG. 23 is a third flowchart of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method of the present invention. As shown in fig. 23, the method for manufacturing an ultra-thin glass substrate of the present invention comprises the following steps:

s310, providing a glass base material 1, wherein n substrate regions 11 and a framework region 12 surrounding the substrate regions 11 are preset on the glass base material 1, and n is greater than or equal to 2.

And S320, respectively forming etching protective layers on at least the upper surface and the lower surface of the substrate area 11 of the glass base material, wherein the etching protective layers are provided with at least one opening area exposing the local substrate area 11.

S330, at least etching the skeleton region 12 of the glass parent material 1, separating the substrate region 11 from the glass parent material 1, forming at least one through hole and/or thinning region on the substrate region 11 through the opening region, and forming a stress dissipation edge 13 on the edge of the substrate region 11.

And S340, removing the etching protection layer to obtain the independent glass substrate 14 with the through hole and/or the thinned area.

In the manufacturing process of the invention, a cutter wheel and laser are not needed any more, the damage of the cutter wheel cutting and the laser cutting to the quality of the ultrathin glass substrate can be avoided, through holes and/or thinning areas can be directly processed in a plurality of substrate areas 11 on the glass base material 1, the damage of laser drilling to the glass substrate 14 is also avoided, the time of subsequent manufacturing processes is greatly saved, the step of obtaining the glass substrate with a panel function layer is simplified, the manufacturing speed of the display substrate of the ultrathin glass is accelerated, the stress dissipation effect of the edge of the ultrathin glass substrate is enhanced, and the product quality of the ultrathin glass substrate is improved.

In a preferred embodiment, the first etching process is performed to remove all of the skeleton region 12 in the glass preform 1, and the substrate region 11 protected by the etching protection layer is left, but not limited thereto.

Through the second etching process, at least one through hole and/or thinned region is formed in the substrate region 11, and the stress dissipation edge 13 is formed at the edge of the substrate region 11, but not limited thereto.

In a preferred embodiment, the entire skeleton region 12 of the glass preform 1 is removed by one etching, at least one through hole and/or thinned region is formed in the substrate region 11, and a stress dissipation edge 13 is formed at the edge of the substrate region 11, but not limited thereto.

In a preferred embodiment, step S320 includes the steps of:

s321, forming a polymer reinforcing layer 24 on at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate region 11 of the glass base material.

S322, forming an etching protection layer on a side of the polymer reinforcing layer 24 away from the substrate region 11, where the etching protection layer has at least one opening region exposing a part of the substrate region 11. So as to enhance the flexibility of the glass substrate 14 as a whole when the glass substrate 14 is bent and restored, thereby improving the chipping prevention property of the glass substrate 14.

In a preferred embodiment, step S320 includes the steps of:

and S323, forming a panel functional layer 23 on at least one of the upper surface and the lower surface of the substrate area 11 of the glass base material, wherein the panel functional layer 23 comprises one or a combination of a TFT back plate, an organic light emitting layer, a touch detection layer, a fingerprint identification layer and a cover plate.

And S324, forming an etching protection layer on one side of the panel functional layer 23, which is far away from the substrate area 11, wherein the etching protection layer is provided with at least one opening area exposing part of the substrate area 11.

In a preferred embodiment, the open pore area is any one of a circular pore, an elliptical pore, a water drop pore, and a special pore, but not limited thereto.

In a preferred embodiment, the thickness of the glass parent material 1 is 10um to 150 um. But not limited thereto.

In a preferred embodiment, the through-hole is a camera mounting hole 15.

In a preferred embodiment, the thinned area corresponds to a fingerprint sensor.

The invention also provides a manufacturing method of the display panel, wherein the supporting process comprises the manufacturing method of the ultrathin glass substrate, the through hole is used for mounting an acoustic or optical sensor, and the lower surface of the thinned area is provided with a fingerprint sensor.

Fig. 24 to 29 are schematic views illustrating a fifth process of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method according to the present invention. As shown in fig. 24 to 29, the fifth process of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method of the present invention is as follows:

referring to fig. 24 and 25, first, a glass preform 1 is provided, where n substrate regions 11 and a skeleton region 12 surrounding the substrate regions 11 are preset on the glass preform 1, where n is greater than or equal to 2. The thickness of the glass base material 1 is 10um to 150um, the substrate regions 11 are arranged in the glass base material 1 in a matrix, and the adjacent substrate regions 11 are separated by the skeleton region 12. Etching protective layers are respectively formed on the upper surface and the lower surface of the substrate area 11 of the glass base material, and the etching protective layers are provided with at least one opening area exposing the local substrate area 11. In this embodiment, the opening region is a circular hole.

Referring to fig. 26 and 27, the skeleton region 12 of the glass parent material 1 is etched, the substrate region 11 is detached from the glass parent material 1, a camera mounting hole 15 is formed in the substrate region 11 through the opening region, and a stress dissipation edge 13 is formed at the edge of the substrate region 11.

Referring to fig. 28, 29, the etching protective layer 20 is removed to obtain the independent glass substrate 14 having the camera mounting hole 15.

According to the invention, the glass substrate 14 can be obtained from the glass base material 1, and meanwhile, the glass base material 1 is punched, so that an acoustic or optical sensor can be conveniently installed in the subsequent processing procedure, the time of the functional layer processing procedure is greatly saved, the damage of laser punching to the glass substrate 14 is avoided, the time of the subsequent processing procedure is greatly saved, the step of obtaining the glass substrate with the panel functional layer is simplified, the processing speed of the display substrate of the ultrathin glass is accelerated, the stress dissipation effect of the edge of the ultrathin glass substrate is enhanced, and the product quality of the ultrathin glass substrate is improved.

FIG. 30 is a fourth flowchart illustrating a method for fabricating an ultra-thin glass substrate according to the present invention. As shown in fig. 30, the method for manufacturing an ultra-thin glass substrate of the present invention comprises the following steps:

s410, providing a glass base material 1, wherein n substrate regions 11 and a framework region 12 surrounding the substrate regions 11 are preset on the glass base material 1, and n is greater than or equal to 2.

And S420, forming etching protective layers on at least the upper surface and the lower surface of the substrate region 11 of the glass base material.

S430, immersing the glass parent material with the etching protection layer in a reaction cavity with an etching medium, wherein the reaction cavity further comprises a plurality of supporting pieces 4 for supporting the glass parent material and a lifting basket located below the supporting pieces 4 along the gravity direction, the supporting pieces 4 support the framework region 12 of the glass parent material 1, and the etching medium at least etches the framework region 12 of the glass parent material 1.

S440, after the edge of the substrate region 11 is etched to form the stress dissipation edge 13 and is separated from the glass parent material 1, the substrate region 11 falls by gravity and respectively falls into the basket through the channel between the supporting members 4.

S450, detecting whether all the substrate areas 11 are separated from the glass parent material 1 and fall into the basket, if so, executing the step S460, otherwise, returning to the step S450.

S460, pulling out the lifting basket from the reaction cavity, and taking out the substrate area 11 separated from the glass parent material 1.

And S470, removing the etching protection layer to obtain the independent glass substrate 14.

According to the invention, the framework region 12 of the glass base material 1 is supported by the support piece 4, so that the substrate region 11 is separated from the glass base material 1 after being etched and falls into the basket under the influence of gravity, the basket can take out all the glass substrates 14 at one time, a cutter wheel and laser are not needed in the whole process, the glass substrates can be obtained from the glass base material, and simultaneously the functional layers are processed in a plurality of regions, so that the damage of the cutter wheel cutting and the laser cutting to the formed functional layers can be avoided, and the product quality of the ultrathin glass substrate is improved.

In a preferred embodiment, the supporting members 4 support only the skeleton region 12 of the glass parent material 1, the carrier has through holes through which the supporting members 4 pass, and a gap between the supporting members 4 is equal to or greater than a first projected region of the carrier based on a second projected region of the base plate region 11 based on the carrier.

In a preferred embodiment, the etching protection layer covers only the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate region 11, and the upper and lower surfaces of the skeleton region 12 are exposed outside the etching protection layer.

In a preferred embodiment, step S420 includes the steps of:

s421, a polymer reinforcing layer 24 is formed on at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate region 11 of the glass base material.

S422, an etching protection layer is formed on a side of the polymer reinforcing layer 24 away from the substrate region 11, but not limited thereto.

In a preferred embodiment, step S420 includes the steps of:

and S423, forming a panel functional layer 23 on at least one of the upper surface and the lower surface of the substrate area 11 of the glass base material, wherein the panel functional layer 23 comprises one or a combination of a TFT back plate, an organic light emitting layer, a touch detection layer, a fingerprint identification layer and a cover plate.

S424, forming an etching protection layer on a side of the panel functional layer 23 away from the substrate region 11, but not limited thereto.

In a preferred embodiment, the entire skeleton region 12 of the glass preform 1 is removed by a first etching process, leaving the substrate region 11 protected by the etching protection layer, and the stress-dissipating edge 13 is formed at the edge of the substrate region 11 by a second etching process.

Alternatively, the entire skeleton region 12 in the glass preform 1 is removed and the stress relief edge 13 is formed at the edge of the substrate region 11 by only one etching, but not limited thereto.

FIGS. 31 to 35 are schematic views illustrating a sixth process of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method according to the present invention. As shown in fig. 31 to 35, the sixth process of the ultra-thin glass substrate processing method of the present invention is as follows:

referring to fig. 31, first, a glass preform 1 is provided, where n substrate regions 11 and a skeleton region 12 surrounding the substrate regions 11 are predetermined on the glass preform 1, and n is greater than or equal to 2. The thickness of the glass base material 1 is 10um to 150um, the substrate regions 11 are arranged in the glass base material 1 in a matrix, and the adjacent substrate regions 11 are separated by the skeleton region 12. Etching protective layers are formed on the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate region 11 of the glass base material, respectively, and are immersed in a reaction chamber having an etching solution 3.

Referring to fig. 32, the glass parent material with the etching protection layer is immersed in a reaction chamber having an etching medium, the reaction chamber further includes a plurality of support members 4 supporting the glass parent material and a basket located below the support members 4 in a gravity direction, the support members 4 support the skeleton region 12 of the glass parent material 1, and the etching medium etches at least the skeleton region 12 of the glass parent material 1. The support members 4 support only the skeleton region 12 of the glass parent material 1, the carrier has through holes through which the support members 4 pass, and a gap between the support members 4 is equal to or greater than a first projected region of the carrier and a second projected region of the base plate region 11 of the carrier. The etching protective layer covers only the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate region 11, and the upper and lower surfaces of the skeleton region 12 are exposed outside the etching protective layer.

Referring to fig. 33 and 34, after the edge of the substrate region 11 is etched to form the stress-dissipating edge 13 and detached from the glass preform 1, the substrate region 11 falls by gravity and falls into the basket through the passages between the supporting members 4, respectively. Whether all the substrate regions 11 are separated from the glass base material 1 and fall into the basket is detected, and if so, the subsequent step of lifting the basket is executed.

Referring to fig. 35, the basket is pulled out from the reaction chamber to bring out the substrate region 11 separated from the glass base material 1, and finally the etching protective layer is removed to obtain the independent glass substrate 14.

In summary, an object of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing an ultra-thin glass substrate, which can obtain a glass substrate from a glass base material and simultaneously process a plurality of regions of a functional layer, thereby preventing damage to the formed functional layer due to cutter wheel cutting and laser cutting, and improving the product quality of the ultra-thin glass substrate.

The foregoing is a more detailed description of the invention in connection with specific preferred embodiments and it is not intended that the invention be limited to these specific details. For those skilled in the art to which the invention pertains, several simple deductions or substitutions can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention, and all shall be considered as belonging to the protection scope of the invention.

Claims

1. A method for manufacturing an ultrathin glass substrate is characterized by comprising the following steps:

s210, providing a glass base material (1), wherein n substrate regions (11) and a framework region (12) surrounding the substrate regions (11) are preset on the glass base material (1), and n is greater than or equal to 2;

s220, forming a panel functional layer (23) on at least one of the upper surface and the lower surface of the substrate area (11) of the glass base material, wherein the panel functional layer (23) comprises one or a combination of a TFT (thin film transistor) back plate, an organic light emitting layer, a touch detection layer, a fingerprint identification layer and a cover plate, and an etching protective layer is formed on one side, away from the substrate area (11), of the panel functional layer (23);

s230, at least etching a skeleton region (12) of the glass parent material (1), so that the substrate region (11) is separated from the glass parent material (1), and a stress dissipation edge (13) is formed at the edge of the substrate region (11);

s240, removing the etching protection layer to obtain the independent glass substrate (14).

2. The ultra-thin glass substrate processing method of claim 1, wherein the step S220 comprises the steps of:

s221, forming a polymer reinforcing layer (24) on at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate region (11) of the glass base material, wherein the polymer reinforcing layer comprises the components of acrylic, a silicon-containing organic polymer material, an epoxy resin, a fluorine resin, a polyamide, a polyimide, a polycarbonate, a polyethylene terephthalate and a poly-1, 4-cyclohexanedimethylterephthalate;

s222, a panel functional layer (23) is formed on one side, deviating from the substrate area (11), of the polymer reinforcing layer (24), the panel functional layer (23) at least comprises a TFT backboard, an organic light emitting layer and a touch detection layer which are sequentially stacked on the substrate area (11), and an etching protective layer is formed on one side, deviating from the substrate area (11), of the panel functional layer (23).

3. The ultra-thin glass substrate processing method according to claim 2, wherein the etching protection layer covers a surface and four sides of the panel functional layer (23) facing away from the substrate area (11).

4. The ultra-thin glass substrate processing method according to claim 1, wherein, by a first etching process, the entire skeleton region (12) in the glass parent material (1) is eliminated, leaving the substrate region (11) protected by the etching protection layer;

and forming a stress dissipation edge (13) at the edge of the substrate region (11) through a second etching process.

5. The ultra-thin glass substrate processing method according to claim 1, wherein the entire skeleton region (12) in the glass parent material (1) is removed and a stress dissipation edge (13) is formed at an edge of the substrate region (11) by one etching.

6. The ultra-thin glass substrate processing method according to claim 1, wherein the etching protection layer covers only the upper and lower surfaces of the substrate region (11), and the upper and lower surfaces of the skeleton region (12) are exposed outside the etching protection layer;

or one side of the glass base material (1) is fully covered by the etching protection layer, the other side of the substrate area (11) is only covered by the etching protection layer, and the skeleton area (12) is exposed out of the etching protection layer.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the substrate regions (11) are arranged in a matrix on the glass preform (1), and the skeleton region (12) is disposed between adjacent substrate regions (11).

8. The ultra-thin glass substrate processing method of claim 1, wherein the stress-dissipating edge (13) is a circular arc edge, a blade edge, or a polygonal edge, the blade edge or the polygonal edge comprises at least one bevel edge or an arc bevel edge, the bevel edge has an angle with the glass parent material (1) in a range of (15 °, 90 °), and the glass parent material (1) has a thickness of 10um to 150 um;

the stress dissipation edge (13) surrounds the edge of the substrate area (11), and the width of the stress dissipation edge (13) is 5um to 300 um.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising a step S250 after the step S240, wherein a polymer reinforcing layer is formed on at least one of the upper and lower surfaces of the glass substrate (14), and the polymer reinforcing layer comprises acrylic, silicon-containing organic polymer material, epoxy resin, fluorine resin, polyamide, polyimide, polycarbonate, polyethylene terephthalate, and poly (1, 4-cyclohexanedimethylene terephthalate).

10. A method for manufacturing a display panel, comprising the method for manufacturing an ultra-thin glass substrate according to any one of claims 1 to 9.