CN114251935A - Drying device and drying method - Google Patents

Drying device and drying method Download PDF

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Publication number
CN114251935A
CN114251935A CN202111093055.8A CN202111093055A CN114251935A CN 114251935 A CN114251935 A CN 114251935A CN 202111093055 A CN202111093055 A CN 202111093055A CN 114251935 A CN114251935 A CN 114251935A
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China
Prior art keywords
heating
drying
concentration
solvent
substrate
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CN202111093055.8A
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Chinese (zh)
Inventor
鲁承旭
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Samsung Display Co Ltd
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Samsung Display Co Ltd
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Publication of CN114251935A publication Critical patent/CN114251935A/en
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    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H10—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES; ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • H10K—ORGANIC ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES
    • H10K71/00—Manufacture or treatment specially adapted for the organic devices covered by this subclass
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F26—DRYING
    • F26B—DRYING SOLID MATERIALS OR OBJECTS BY REMOVING LIQUID THEREFROM
    • F26B13/00—Machines and apparatus for drying fabrics, fibres, yarns, or other materials in long lengths, with progressive movement
    • F26B13/10—Arrangements for feeding, heating or supporting materials; Controlling movement, tension or position of materials
    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B41—PRINTING; LINING MACHINES; TYPEWRITERS; STAMPS
    • B41F—PRINTING MACHINES OR PRESSES
    • B41F23/00—Devices for treating the surfaces of sheets, webs, or other articles in connection with printing
    • B41F23/04—Devices for treating the surfaces of sheets, webs, or other articles in connection with printing by heat drying, by cooling, by applying powders
    • B41F23/044—Drying sheets, e.g. between two printing stations
    • B41F23/0443—Drying sheets, e.g. between two printing stations after printing
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F26—DRYING
    • F26B—DRYING SOLID MATERIALS OR OBJECTS BY REMOVING LIQUID THEREFROM
    • F26B21/00—Arrangements or duct systems, e.g. in combination with pallet boxes, for supplying and controlling air or gases for drying solid materials or objects
    • F26B21/06—Controlling, e.g. regulating, parameters of gas supply
    • F26B21/10—Temperature; Pressure
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F26—DRYING
    • F26B—DRYING SOLID MATERIALS OR OBJECTS BY REMOVING LIQUID THEREFROM
    • F26B23/00—Heating arrangements
    • F26B23/04—Heating arrangements using electric heating
    • F26B23/06—Heating arrangements using electric heating resistance heating
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F26—DRYING
    • F26B—DRYING SOLID MATERIALS OR OBJECTS BY REMOVING LIQUID THEREFROM
    • F26B25/00—Details of general application not covered by group F26B21/00 or F26B23/00
    • F26B25/06—Chambers, containers, or receptacles
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F26—DRYING
    • F26B—DRYING SOLID MATERIALS OR OBJECTS BY REMOVING LIQUID THEREFROM
    • F26B25/00—Details of general application not covered by group F26B21/00 or F26B23/00
    • F26B25/22—Controlling the drying process in dependence on liquid content of solid materials or objects
    • F—MECHANICAL ENGINEERING; LIGHTING; HEATING; WEAPONS; BLASTING
    • F26—DRYING
    • F26B—DRYING SOLID MATERIALS OR OBJECTS BY REMOVING LIQUID THEREFROM
    • F26B3/00—Drying solid materials or objects by processes involving the application of heat
    • F26B3/02—Drying solid materials or objects by processes involving the application of heat by convection, i.e. heat being conveyed from a heat source to the materials or objects to be dried by a gas or vapour, e.g. air
    • F26B3/04—Drying solid materials or objects by processes involving the application of heat by convection, i.e. heat being conveyed from a heat source to the materials or objects to be dried by a gas or vapour, e.g. air the gas or vapour circulating over or surrounding the materials or objects to be dried
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H10—SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES; ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • H10K—ORGANIC ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES
    • H10K71/00—Manufacture or treatment specially adapted for the organic devices covered by this subclass
    • H10K71/40—Thermal treatment, e.g. annealing in the presence of a solvent vapour

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Manufacturing & Machinery (AREA)
  • Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • Microbiology (AREA)
  • Sustainable Development (AREA)
  • Textile Engineering (AREA)
  • Drying Of Solid Materials (AREA)
  • Electroluminescent Light Sources (AREA)

Abstract

The invention provides a drying device and a drying method. The drying device may include: a stage for supporting a substrate and including a plurality of heating blocks for heating the substrate; and a dry upper plate disposed at an upper portion of the stage and including a plurality of solvent sensors detecting a concentration of solvent vapor (solvent vapor) generated from the substrate at a plurality of positions.

Description

Drying device and drying method
Technical Field
The present invention relates to a drying apparatus and a drying method.
Background
Currently, as a Display device, a Display device of various types is used, and a Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) and an Organic Light-Emitting Display (OLED) are typically used. A liquid crystal display device is a display device including a backlight unit and displaying an image by blocking or transmitting light emitted from the backlight unit. In addition, the organic light emitting display device, which has recently attracted attention, has a self-light emitting characteristic and does not require an additional light source unlike a liquid crystal display device.
In manufacturing such a substrate for a display device, various processes such as a process of depositing various materials on the substrate of the organic light emitting display device and a heat treatment process including a drying process and a baking process may be performed. The heat treatment process is performed in order to form a film having desired characteristics and in order to induce a physical or chemical change of a material or to remove a carrier liquid.
Disclosure of Invention
The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a drying apparatus and a drying method that can detect the distribution of the solvent vapor concentration inside a drying chamber in real time.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a drying apparatus and a drying method that can locally control a drying rate of a substrate based on a detected distribution of a solvent vapor concentration in a drying chamber.
The technical problem of the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned technical problem, and other technical problems not mentioned will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following descriptions.
A drying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention for achieving the above object may include: a stage for supporting a substrate and including a plurality of heating blocks for heating the substrate; and a dry upper plate disposed at an upper portion of the stage and including a plurality of solvent sensors detecting a concentration of solvent vapor (solvent vapor) generated from the substrate at a plurality of positions.
The plurality of locations may include a first location and a second location, the plurality of solvent sensors comprising: a first solvent sensor for detecting a first concentration of the solvent vapor at the first location; and a second solvent sensor for detecting a second concentration of the solvent vapor at the second position, the plurality of heating blocks including a first heating block corresponding to the first position and a second heating block corresponding to the second position, a heating temperature of the first heating block being set higher than a heating temperature of the second heating block in a case where the first concentration is higher than the second concentration.
In the case where the first concentration is lower than the second concentration, the heating temperature of the first heating block may be set lower than the heating temperature of the second heating block.
The plurality of solvent sensors may be disposed diagonally on the dry upper plate.
The plurality of solvent sensors may be disposed in an X-shape on the dry upper plate.
The plurality of solvent sensors may be arranged in a cross shape on the dry upper plate.
The plurality of heating blocks may be arranged in an array on the stage.
The plurality of heating blocks may be disposed in a concentric quadrilateral on the stage.
The plurality of heating blocks may be arranged in concentric circles on the stage.
The drying apparatus may further include a vacuum line (vacuum line) connected to a vacuum pump to discharge the solvent vapor.
A drying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention for achieving the above object may include: a plurality of heating blocks for heating the substrate; a plurality of solvent sensors for detecting a concentration of solvent vapor generated from the substrate at a plurality of positions; and a drying speed control device for controlling the heating temperature of the plurality of heating blocks according to the concentration measured by the plurality of solvent sensors, thereby adjusting the drying speed of the substrate.
The plurality of locations may include a first location and a second location, the plurality of solvent sensors comprising: a first solvent sensor for detecting a first concentration of the solvent vapor at the first location; and a second solvent sensor for detecting a second concentration of the solvent vapor at the second position, wherein the plurality of heating blocks include a first heating block corresponding to the first position and a second heating block corresponding to the second position, and the drying rate control device is set such that a heating temperature of the first heating block is higher than a heating temperature of the second heating block when the first concentration is higher than the second concentration.
In the case where the first concentration is lower than the second concentration, the drying rate control means may set the heating temperature of the first heating block to be lower than the heating temperature of the second heating block.
The drying rate control device may include a first interface for receiving concentration data detected by the plurality of solvent sensors, and a second interface for transmitting an instruction for setting heating temperatures of the plurality of heating blocks.
The drying speed control apparatus may include a processor that receives an input of concentration data detected by the plurality of solvent sensors and calculates heating temperatures of the plurality of heating blocks.
The drying device may further include a vacuum line connected to a vacuum pump to exhaust the solvent vapor.
The drying method according to an embodiment of the present invention for achieving the above technical object may include: providing a substrate to a stage comprising a plurality of heating blocks; providing a dry upper plate including a plurality of solvent sensors to an upper portion of the stage; detecting, with the plurality of solvent sensors, a concentration of a solvent vapor generated from the substrate at a plurality of locations; and controlling heating temperatures of the plurality of heating blocks according to the concentrations measured by the plurality of solvent sensors, thereby adjusting a drying speed of the substrate.
The plurality of locations may include a first location and a second location, the plurality of solvent sensors comprising: a first solvent sensor for detecting a first concentration of the solvent vapor at the first location; and a second solvent sensor for detecting a second concentration of the solvent vapor at the second position, wherein the plurality of heating blocks includes a first heating block corresponding to the first position and a second heating block corresponding to the second position, and the step of adjusting the drying rate includes a step of setting such that a heating temperature of the first heating block is higher than a heating temperature of the second heating block when the first concentration is higher than the second concentration.
In the case where the first concentration is lower than the second concentration, the step of adjusting the drying speed may include the step of setting in such a manner that the heating temperature of the first heating block is lower than the heating temperature of the second heating block.
The step of adjusting the drying speed may include the steps of detecting the concentration and controlling the heating temperature according to a preset time pattern.
According to the embodiments of the present invention, by disposing a plurality of solvent sensors on the drying upper plate and detecting the concentration distribution of solvent vapor inside the drying chamber in real time, it is possible to detect a difference in drying speed of the substrate by location, and by locally controlling the drying speed of a location where the difference is large, it is possible to uniformly form the thickness of the light emitting layer.
Further, according to the embodiment of the present invention, since the drying rate control device is provided to control the heating temperatures of the plurality of heating blocks based on the concentrations measured by the plurality of solvent sensors to adjust the drying rate of the substrate, the drying rate adjustment and the thickness adjustment of the light emitting layer can be automatically performed.
Drawings
Fig. 1 is a diagram illustrating a drying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 2 to 5 are diagrams for explaining a drying method according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 6 to 8 are diagrams for explaining a dry upper plate according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 9 to 11 are views for explaining the stage according to the embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 12 is a diagram illustrating a drying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 13 is a flowchart for explaining a drying method according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Detailed Description
Various embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings so that those skilled in the art to which the present invention pertains can easily carry out the present invention. The present invention may be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein.
In order to clearly explain the present invention, portions that are not related to the description are omitted, and the same reference numerals are used for the same or similar structural elements throughout the specification.
Note that, for convenience, the size and thickness of each structure shown in the drawings are arbitrarily shown, and thus the present invention is not necessarily limited to the illustrated contents. In the drawings, the thickness is exaggerated for clarity of a plurality of layers and regions. For convenience of explanation, the thicknesses of some layers and regions are exaggerated in the drawings.
Further, when a layer, a film, a region, a plate, or the like is referred to as being partially "over" or "on" other portions, this includes not only a case where "directly" over "the other portions but also a case where another portion exists in the middle thereof. Conversely, when a portion is referred to as being "directly over" another portion, it means that there is no other portion in between. The term "above" or "upper" of a reference portion means that the reference portion is located above or below, and does not necessarily mean that the reference portion is located "above" or "upper" in the direction opposite to the gravitational force.
In addition, when a part "includes" a certain structural element throughout the specification, unless otherwise specified, it means that other structural element is not excluded and may be further included.
In addition, throughout the specification, when "in a plan view" is referred to, this indicates a case where the object portion is viewed from above, and when "in a cross section", this indicates a case where a cross section of the object portion cut vertically is viewed from a side surface.
Fig. 1 is a diagram illustrating a drying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Referring to fig. 1, in the case of using the inkjet printing method, the drying apparatus 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention may adjust the drying speed of the ink in consideration of the vapor concentration distribution of the ink for the light emitting layer, and the drying apparatus 1 may include a drying chamber 10 and a vacuum line 12. The inkjet printing method drops an ink for a light emitting layer for forming a light emitting layer to a substrate in an inkjet printing chamber to form a light emitting layer for each pixel, and dries the substrate in a drying chamber 10, and details thereof will be described later with reference to fig. 2 to 5.
The substrate 110 dropped with the ink for the light emitting layer in the inkjet printing chamber may be carried into the drying chamber 10 so as to perform a drying process on the substrate 110. In the present embodiment, the drying chamber 10 may include a stage 100, a plurality of heating blocks 102, a drying upper plate 120, and a plurality of solvent sensors 122.
The stage 100 may support the substrate 110 during a drying process. The stage 100 may be a substrate tray or a chuck, but the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and the stage 100 may be implemented to be capable of moving up and down in order to adjust the distance between the stage 100 and the drying upper plate 120, as needed.
The stage 100 may include a plurality of heating blocks 102. The plurality of heating blocks 102 may be disposed in contact with or close to the upper surface of the stage 100 to heat the substrate 110 mounted on the stage 100. The plurality of heating blocks 102 are heated at a temperature suitable for adjusting the drying speed of the ink on the substrate 110, and may be generally set to a heating temperature having a lower level than that of the subsequent baking process.
In particular, the plurality of heating blocks 102 may be set to correspond to heating blocks at different positions, which may have respectively different heating temperatures. In other words, for the plurality of heating blocks 102, the heating blocks 102 corresponding to a plurality of positions between the substrate 110 and the drying upper plate 120 can be controlled individually for the plurality of positions. For example, the plurality of locations may include a first location and a second location between the substrate 110 and the drying upper plate 120, and the plurality of heating blocks 102 may include a first heating block corresponding to the first location and a second heating block corresponding to the second location. According to the progress of the drying process, the heating temperature of the first heating block may be set to be higher than the heating temperature of the second heating block, the heating temperature of the first heating block may also be set to be lower than the heating temperature of the second heating block, and the heating temperature of the first heating block may also be set to be the same as the heating temperature of the second heating block.
The dry upper plate 120 may be disposed at an upper portion of the stage 100. When the substrate 110 is mounted on the stage 100, the drying upper plate 120 may be provided on the upper portion of the substrate 110. The drying upper plate 120 may be implemented to be capable of moving up and down to adjust a distance between the drying upper plate 120 and the stage 100 or the substrate 110 mounted on the stage 100, or to implement alignment between the drying upper plate 120 and the stage 100 or the substrate 110 mounted on the stage 100 by moving left and right, as needed.
The dry top plate 120 may include a plurality of solvent sensors 122. The plurality of solvent sensors 122 are disposed in contact with or close to the lower surface of the drying upper plate 120 so that the concentration of the solvent vapor generated from the substrate 110 can be detected at a plurality of positions between the substrate 110 and the drying upper plate 120. According to a specific implementation, the plurality of solvent sensors 122 may be provided with holes (holes) or channels through which gas containing solvent vapor generated from the ink may pass within the drying chamber 10 so as to effectively expose the plurality of solvent sensors 122 to the solvent vapor, and the plurality of solvent sensors 122 may detect the concentration of the solvent vapor from the gas flowing through the holes or channels.
In particular, the plurality of solvent sensors 122 may detect the concentration of the solvent vapor for different respective positions. For example, between the substrate 110 and the dry upper plate 120, the plurality of locations may include a first location and a second location, and the plurality of solvent sensors 122 may include: a first solvent sensor for detecting a first concentration of solvent vapor at a first location; and a second solvent sensor for detecting a second concentration of solvent vapor at a second location.
The vacuum line 12 is connected to a vacuum pump, and can discharge solvent vapor inside the drying chamber 10 to the outside. For the flow of solvent vapor, a valve may be provided between the vacuum line 12 and the vacuum pump, and the valve may be, for example, a throttle valve, but the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto. The vacuum pump may be a roughing pump (rough pump), a roughing pump and a turbo pump, or a roughing pump and an ultra-low temperature pump (cryogenic pump), and the roughing pump may be a dry pump such as a scroll pump, a diaphragm pump, a screw pump, or the like, but the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto.
In the present embodiment, a semiconductor material for forming various layers such as a display layer, a touch layer, an anti-reflection layer, and the like for configuring a display device may be formed on the substrate 110, but the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and any semiconductor material for manufacturing any display device may be formed on the substrate 110. Note that the embodiments of the present invention can be applied to any drying process for a display device to which an inkjet printing method is applied, regardless of the object of the drying process. Furthermore, the scope of the present invention covers all processes for manufacturing thin films with inks, for example all processes for manufacturing printed OLEDs, solar cells, sensors, QD (quantum dot) filters, etc.
For convenience of explanation, in this embodiment, it is assumed that a partition 112, an insulating film 114 partitioned by the partition 112 and forming pixels, a pixel electrode 116, and a light emitting layer 118 are formed on a substrate 110 in order to form a display layer of an organic light emitting display device. However, as described above, the present embodiment can be applied to any substrate on which any ink for a light emitting layer is dropped in the ink jet printing chamber. That is, although fig. 1 shows an example of the display device, the display device of the present invention is not limited to this, and the display device may have a structure in which the insulating film 114 is formed over the entire surface of the substrate 110, and then the partition 112 is formed over the insulating film 114, for example.
The substrate 110 may include plastic so as to have a flexible characteristic, or may be formed of glass having no flexible characteristic. The substrate 110 including plastic may include at least one of polystyrene (polystyrene), polyvinyl alcohol (polyvinyl alcohol), Polymethyl methacrylate (polymethylmethacrylate), polyether sulfone (polyvinyl sulfone), polyacrylate (polyacrylate), polyetherimide (polyetherimide), polyethylene naphthalate (polyethylene naphthalate), polyethylene terephthalate (polyethylene terephthalate), polyphenylene sulfide (polyphenylene sulfide), poly (polyarylate), polyimide (polyarylate), polycarbonate (polycarbonate), cellulose triacetate (triacetate), and cellulose acetate propionate (cellulose acetate). In addition, the substrate 110 may further include a flexible material that can be bent or folded, and may be a single layer or a plurality of layers. In addition, a buffer layer, a barrier layer, and the like may be further formed on the substrate 110, but the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto.
When the substrate 110 is made of a plastic material, a moving substrate (not shown) made of glass or the like may be further provided between the heating block 102 of the stage 100 and the substrate 110. The plastic material of the substrate 110 can be prevented from being directly heated to change characteristics by moving the substrate.
An insulating film 114, a pixel electrode 116, and a light emitting layer 118 may be included on the substrate 110. The substrate 110 of the present embodiment is a substrate included in an organic light emitting display device, and although not shown, may further include a plurality of transistors, and the plurality of transistors may further include a semiconductor layer, a conductive layer, and an insulating film therebetween.
The insulating film 114 may be formed to improve the light emitting efficiency of the light emitting layer 118, and may include an organic insulating material such as a general-purpose polymer such as polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) or Polystyrene (PS), a polymer derivative having a phenolic group, an acrylic polymer, an imide polymer, polyimide, an acrylic polymer, or a siloxane polymer, but the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto.
The pixel electrode 116 may be formed on the insulating film 114. The pixel electrode 116 may be provided separately for each pixel (pixel). The pixel electrode 116 may include a metal such as silver (Ag), lithium (Li), calcium (Ca), aluminum (Al), magnesium (Mg), gold (Au), and may also include a Transparent Conductive Oxide (TCO) such as Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) and Indium Zinc Oxide (IZO), but the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto.
The pixels may be defined by partition walls 112. The partition wall 112 may include an organic insulating substance such as a general-purpose polymer such as polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) or Polystyrene (PS), a polymer derivative having a phenolic group, an acrylic polymer, an imide-based polymer, polyimide, an acrylic polymer, a siloxane-based polymer, or the like. The partition walls 112 may contain a black dye and be opaque.
The light-emitting layer 118 may include a material layer that inherently emits light of basic colors such as red, green, and blue. The light-emitting layer 118 may have a structure in which a plurality of material layers that emit light of different colors are stacked.
The above description has been based on an organic light-emitting display device and has been made with the light-emitting layer 118 as an organic substance. However, according to an embodiment, the substrate 110 may be a substrate including a color filter or a color conversion layer in a liquid crystal display device or an organic light emitting display device, and in this case, the light emitting layer 118 may be a color filter layer or a color conversion layer formed of an organic substance. In addition, according to an embodiment, the light emitting layer 118 may be a material layer including various organic materials, inorganic materials, quantum dots. Further, the embodiment of the present invention can be applied not only to drying of the light emitting layer but also to drying of any layer formed by ink-jetting of an alignment film of a liquid crystal display device, an encapsulation layer of an organic light emitting display device, or the like.
Hereinafter, an exemplary process performed with respect to the light emitting layer 118, which is to drop ink by an ink jet printing method, dry the ink dropped on the substrate 110, and bake, will be described with reference to fig. 2 to 5.
Fig. 2 to 5 are diagrams for explaining a drying method according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Referring to fig. 2, ink for forming the light emitting layer 118a may be dropped onto the substrate 110 on which the insulating film 114 and the pixel electrode 116 are formed in the inkjet printing chamber. Specifically, the dropping device 14 may apply the ink on the substrate 110 by dropping the ink to the pixel region defined by the partition wall 112. Of course, the other layers 114, 116 may also be formed in the same or similar manner as the light emitting layer 118 a.
In order to drop the ink, a stage for mounting the substrate 110, a dropping device 14 including an ink jet head having at least one nozzle, an alignment sensor for aligning the dropping device 14, and the like may be provided in the ink jet printing chamber. Further, a transfer device for moving the dropping device 14 to a desired position may be further provided inside the inkjet printing chamber.
As the solvent of the ink for the light-emitting layer dropped on the substrate 110 by the dropping device 14, an organic solvent such as mesitylene (mesitylene), tetralin (tetralin), or cyclohexanone (cyclohexenone) may be used, but the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and various solvents that can exert any influence on the ink for the light-emitting layer may be used.
Next, referring to fig. 3, the substrate 110 having completed the ink dropping process may be carried out of the inkjet printing chamber and carried into the drying chamber 10. In the steps of fig. 2 and fig. 3, the light emitting layer 118a includes a solvent, and the solvent of the light emitting layer 118a can be removed in a subsequent drying process.
Next, referring to fig. 4, as the drying process is performed in the drying chamber 10, solvent vapor is generated from the light emitting layer 118 b. The solvent vapor generated from the light emitting layer 118b can be discharged to the outside through the vacuum line 12 at the lower portion of the stage 100 through the passage in the left and right side directions of the substrate 110 after moving in the direction of the dry upper plate 120 along the path indicated by the arrow in fig. 4. A vacuum pump connected to the vacuum line 12 facilitates the evacuation of the solvent vapor.
In this process, the concentration of the solvent vapor may vary from place to place between the substrate 110 and the drying upper plate 120. That is, the concentration distribution of the solvent vapor may not be uniform in the left-right direction of fig. 4 between the substrate 110 and the drying upper plate 120.
Factors that cause the concentration distribution of the solvent vapor to be uneven may have various cases. Examples thereof include: a case where the evacuation rate is slower than the rate of generation of the solvent vapor from the substrate 110 in the drying process, a case where the solvent vapor moves slowly between the drying upper plate 120 and the substrate 110 for some reason, a case where the gap between the drying upper plate 120 and the substrate 110 is narrow and a part of the light-emitting layer 118b absorbs the solvent vapor again, and the like. Thus, a difference may occur in the drying speed of the light emitting layer 118b, and thus the drying profile of the light emitting layer 118b is different, and the thickness of the light emitting layer 118b may be unevenly formed.
For example, in fig. 4, the drying speed of the light emitting layer 118b in the middle region (hereinafter, referred to as "center region") of the substrate 110 may be slower than the drying speed of the light emitting layer 118b in the both end regions (hereinafter, referred to as "edge regions") of the substrate 110. That is, drying in the center region may occur at a slower rate than drying in the edge regions. Thus, the dried morphology of the light emitting layer 118b in the central region and the dried morphology of the light emitting layer 118b in the edge region may be different.
To prevent or minimize such non-uniformity, the plurality of solvent sensors 122a, 122b may detect the concentration of the solvent vapor at a first location (e.g., an edge region) and a second location (e.g., a center region). That is, the first solvent sensor 122a may detect a first concentration of the solvent vapor in the edge region, and the second solvent sensor 122b may detect a second concentration of the solvent vapor in the center region.
The plurality of solvent sensors 122a and 122b may detect the concentration of the solvent vapor at any time during the drying process, or may detect the concentration of the solvent vapor at predetermined time intervals or in a predetermined time pattern. Of course, the plurality of solvent sensors 122a, 122b may also detect the concentration of the solvent vapor in real time.
The concentration data of the solvent vapor by location thus collected by the plurality of solvent sensors 122a, 122b may be analyzed and applied to process improvements. For example, the drying profile of the light-emitting layer 118b in the entire region may be made uniform by performing the following various operations based on the collected concentration data of the solvent vapor: the pumping speed of the vacuum pump is adjusted, the interval between the drying upper plate 120 and the substrate 110 is adjusted, or the temperature of the stage 100 is adjusted, etc.
In particular, as a result of analyzing the concentration data of the solvent vapor collected by the plurality of solvent sensors 122a and 122b for each position, when the drying rate of the light-emitting layer 118b at the position adjacent to the second solvent sensor 122b and the drying rate of the light-emitting layer 118b at the position adjacent to the first solvent sensor 122a are different from each other by a predetermined range or more, the slow drying rate can be increased by the plurality of heating blocks 102a and 102 b.
Specifically, the plurality of heating blocks 102a, 102b may heat the substrate 110 at an appropriate temperature to promote the degree of drying, and may include a first heating block 102a corresponding to a first position and a second heating block 102b corresponding to a second position, which operate independently of each other.
For example, in the case where the first concentration is higher than the second concentration, the heating temperature of the first heating block 102a may be set higher than the heating temperature of the second heating block 102 b. Thereby, the emission of the solvent vapor of the light emitting layer 118b is more active at a position adjacent to the first heating block 102a, so that the drying speed can be relatively increased. In contrast, in the case where the first concentration is lower than the second concentration, the heating speed of the first heating block 102a may be set lower than the heating temperature of the second heating block 102 b. Thereby, the emission of the solvent vapor of the light emitting layer 118b is more active at a position adjacent to the second heating block 102b, so that the drying speed can be relatively increased.
In this manner, by providing the plurality of solvent sensors 122a and 122b on the drying upper plate 120 and detecting the concentration distribution of the solvent vapor inside the drying chamber 10 in real time, it is possible to detect the difference in the drying speed of the substrate 110 for each position, and for example, by using the plurality of heating blocks 102a and 102b capable of setting the heating temperature, the drying speed of the position having a large difference can be locally controlled, and the thickness of the light emitting layer can be uniformly formed.
Next, referring to fig. 5, a baking process may be performed on the substrate 110 having completed the drying process. For the baking process, the substrate 110 is heated from room temperature to a maximum temperature of about 250 ℃ to about 350 ℃ level after being carried into the baking chamber provided with the heater 16. After the baking process is completed, as shown in fig. 5, the light emitting layer 118c may have a profile with a flat upper surface.
Fig. 6 to 8 are diagrams for explaining a dry upper plate according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Referring to fig. 6, a plurality of solvent sensors including a solvent sensor 122A may be disposed in an X-shape on a dry upper plate 120A according to an embodiment of the present invention, and referring to fig. 7, a plurality of solvent sensors including a solvent sensor 122B may be disposed diagonally on a dry upper plate 120B according to another embodiment of the present invention. In addition, referring to fig. 8, a plurality of solvent sensors including a solvent sensor 122C may be disposed in a cross shape on the drying upper plate 120C of still another embodiment of the present invention.
Of course, the arrangement form of the solvent sensor shown in fig. 6 to 8 is merely exemplary, and the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and the solvent sensor of the dry upper plate may be implemented in any arrangement form capable of efficiently and precisely controlling the drying speed so as to uniformly form the thickness of the light emitting layer.
Fig. 9 to 11 are views for explaining the stage according to the embodiment of the present invention.
Referring to fig. 9, a plurality of heating blocks including a heating block 102A may be disposed in an array shape on an object stage 100A according to an embodiment of the present invention, and referring to fig. 10, a plurality of heating blocks including a heating block 102B may be disposed in a concentric quadrangle shape on an object stage 100B according to another embodiment of the present invention. In addition, referring to fig. 11, a plurality of heating blocks including a heating block 102C may be concentrically arranged on a stage 100C according to still another embodiment of the present invention. At least two of the plurality of heating blocks may be implemented to operate independently of each other or simultaneously together.
Of course, the arrangement of the heating blocks shown in fig. 9 to 11 is merely exemplary, and the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and the heating block of the stage may be implemented in any arrangement capable of setting a heating temperature to be precisely controlled at a desired position of the substrate.
Fig. 12 is a diagram illustrating a drying apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Referring to fig. 12, the drying apparatus 2 according to an embodiment of the present invention may include a drying chamber 10, a vacuum line 12, and a drying speed control device 20. As for details of the drying chamber 10 and the vacuum line 12, the same description as that described above with reference to fig. 1 to 5 can be referred to, and repeated description thereof is omitted.
The drying speed control device 20 may be configured to adjust the drying speed of the substrate 110 by controlling the heating temperatures of the plurality of heating blocks 102a, 102b according to the concentrations measured by the plurality of solvent sensors 122a, 122 b.
For example, the first solvent sensor 122a detects a first concentration of the solvent vapor at a first position, the second solvent sensor 122b detects a second concentration of the solvent vapor at a second position, the first heating block 102a corresponds to the first position, and the second heating block 102b corresponds to the second position, and in the case where the first concentration is higher than the second concentration, the drying rate control device 20 may set the heating temperature of the first heating block 102a to be higher than the heating temperature of the second heating block 102 b. In contrast, in the case where the first concentration is lower than the second concentration, the drying speed control device 20 may set the heating temperature of the first heating block 102a to be lower than the heating temperature of the second heating block 102 b.
For this purpose, in the present embodiment, the drying rate control device 20 may include at least a first interface for receiving the concentration data detected by the plurality of solvent sensors 122a and 122b and a second interface for transmitting an instruction for setting the heating temperatures of the plurality of heating blocks 102a and 102b, and the drying rate control device 20 may be implemented by an electronic device having a processor for receiving the input of the concentration data detected by the plurality of solvent sensors 122a and 122b and calculating the heating temperatures of the plurality of heating blocks 102a and 102 b. Of course, the scope of the present invention is not limited to this, and the drying rate control device 20 may be implemented by other hardware including a part or all of the above-described structures, may be implemented by a combination of hardware and software that performs a part or all of the above-described functions, or may be implemented by only software that performs a part or all of the above-described functions.
Fig. 13 is a flowchart for explaining a drying method according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Referring to fig. 13, a drying method according to an embodiment of the present invention may include: step S1301, providing a substrate 110 to a stage 100 including a plurality of heating blocks 102a, 102 b; and a step S1303 of providing the dry upper plate 120 including the plurality of solvent sensors 122a, 122b to the upper portion of the stage 100.
Here, the stage 100 and the drying upper plate 120 may be provided to be capable of moving up and down, respectively, so as to adjust a distance between each other. Further, the aforementioned description is referred to for more details of the stage 100 and the dry upper plate 120.
In addition, the drying method may further include: in step S1305, the concentration of the solvent vapor generated from the substrate 110 is detected at a plurality of positions by the plurality of solvent sensors 122a and 122 b.
Here, the plurality of solvent sensors 122a, 122b may be provided with holes or channels through which gas including solvent vapor generated from the ink within the drying chamber 10 may pass so as to effectively expose the plurality of solvent sensors 122a, 122b to the solvent vapor, and the plurality of solvent sensors 122a, 122b may detect the concentration of the solvent vapor from the gas flowing through the holes or channels. Further, reference may be made to the foregoing description for further details regarding the plurality of solvent sensors 122a, 122 b.
In addition, the drying method may further include: in step S1307, the heating temperatures of the plurality of heating blocks 102a, 102b are controlled according to the concentrations measured by the plurality of solvent sensors 122a, 122b, thereby adjusting the drying speed of the substrate 110.
Here, the plurality of heating blocks 102a, 102b may be set such that heating blocks corresponding to different positions may have respectively different heating temperatures. Further, the foregoing description may be referred to for more details of the plurality of heating blocks 102a and 102 b.
Here, the plurality of positions includes a first position and a second position, and the plurality of solvent sensors 122a and 122b includes: a first solvent sensor 122a for detecting a first concentration of solvent vapor at a first location; and a second solvent sensor 122b for detecting a second concentration of the solvent vapor at a second position, wherein the plurality of heating blocks 102a and 102b include a first heating block 102a corresponding to the first position and a second heating block 102b corresponding to the second position, and the step of adjusting the drying speed may include a step of setting the heating temperature of the first heating block 102a to be higher than the heating temperature of the second heating block 102b when the first concentration is higher than the second concentration.
In contrast, in the case where the first concentration is lower than the second concentration, the step of adjusting the drying speed may include a step of setting in such a manner that the heating temperature of the first heating block 102a is lower than the heating temperature of the second heating block 102 b.
In addition, the step of adjusting the drying speed may include the steps of detecting the concentration and controlling the heating temperature according to a predetermined time pattern. Furthermore, the step of adjusting the drying speed may include the steps of detecting the concentration at any time and controlling the heating temperature, or controlling the heating temperature at predetermined time intervals. Of course, the step of adjusting the drying speed may further include the steps of detecting the concentration in real time and controlling the heating temperature.
According to the embodiments of the present invention described so far, by disposing a plurality of solvent sensors on the drying upper plate and detecting the concentration distribution of the solvent vapor inside the drying chamber in real time, it is possible to detect the difference in the position-by-position drying speed of the substrate, and by locally controlling the drying speed at the position where the difference is large, it is possible to uniformly form the thickness of the light emitting layer.
Further, according to the embodiment of the present invention, since the drying speed control device is provided to control the heating temperatures of the plurality of heating blocks based on the concentrations measured by the plurality of solvent sensors to adjust the drying speed of the substrate, the drying speed adjustment and the thickness adjustment of the light emitting layer can be automatically performed.
The embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail, but the scope of the present invention is not limited thereto, and various modifications and improvements made by those skilled in the art using the basic concept of the present invention defined in the appended claims are also within the scope of the present invention.
Description of the reference numerals
1. 2: the drying device 10: drying chamber
100: the stage 102: heating block
110: substrate 112: partition wall
114: insulating film 116: pixel electrode
118: light-emitting layer 120: drying upper plate
122: the solvent sensor 12: vacuum pipeline
14: the dropping device 16: heating device

Claims (13)

1. A drying apparatus comprising:
a stage for supporting a substrate and including a plurality of heating blocks for heating the substrate; and
and a drying upper plate disposed on an upper portion of the stage and including a plurality of solvent sensors that detect a concentration of a solvent vapor generated from the substrate at a plurality of positions.
2. The drying apparatus according to claim 1,
the plurality of locations includes a first location and a second location,
the plurality of solvent sensors includes: a first solvent sensor for detecting a first concentration of the solvent vapor at the first location; and a second solvent sensor for detecting a second concentration of the solvent vapor at the second location,
the plurality of heating blocks comprises a first heating block corresponding to the first position and a second heating block corresponding to the second position,
in a case where the first concentration is higher than the second concentration, the heating temperature of the first heating block is set to be higher than the heating temperature of the second heating block.
3. The drying apparatus according to claim 2,
in a case where the first concentration is lower than the second concentration, the heating temperature of the first heating block is set to be lower than the heating temperature of the second heating block.
4. The drying apparatus according to claim 1,
the plurality of solvent sensors are arranged on the drying upper plate along a diagonal line, or arranged in an X shape on the drying upper plate, or arranged in a cross shape on the drying upper plate.
5. The drying apparatus according to claim 1,
the plurality of heating blocks are arranged on the object stage in an array shape, or arranged on the object stage in a concentric quadrangle shape, or arranged on the object stage in a concentric circle shape.
6. The drying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the drying chamber,
further comprising a vacuum line connected to a vacuum pump to evacuate the solvent vapor.
7. A drying apparatus comprising:
a plurality of heating blocks for heating the substrate;
a plurality of solvent sensors for detecting a concentration of solvent vapor generated from the substrate at a plurality of positions; and
and a drying speed control device for controlling the heating temperatures of the plurality of heating blocks according to the concentrations measured by the plurality of solvent sensors, thereby adjusting the drying speed of the substrate.
8. The drying apparatus according to claim 7,
the plurality of locations includes a first location and a second location,
the plurality of solvent sensors includes: a first solvent sensor for detecting a first concentration of the solvent vapor at the first location; and a second solvent sensor for detecting a second concentration of the solvent vapor at the second location,
the plurality of heating blocks comprises a first heating block corresponding to the first position and a second heating block corresponding to the second position,
the drying rate control means is set so that the heating temperature of the first heating block is higher than the heating temperature of the second heating block when the first concentration is higher than the second concentration,
when the first concentration is lower than the second concentration, the drying rate control device sets the heating temperature of the first heating block to be lower than the heating temperature of the second heating block.
9. The drying apparatus according to claim 7,
the drying rate control device includes a first interface for receiving concentration data detected by the plurality of solvent sensors, and a second interface for sending an instruction for setting heating temperatures of the plurality of heating blocks,
the drying speed control apparatus includes a processor that receives an input of concentration data detected by the plurality of solvent sensors and calculates heating temperatures of the plurality of heating blocks.
10. The drying apparatus as set forth in claim 7,
further comprising a vacuum line connected to a vacuum pump to evacuate the solvent vapor.
11. A method of drying comprising the steps of:
providing a substrate to a stage comprising a plurality of heating blocks;
providing a dry upper plate including a plurality of solvent sensors to an upper portion of the stage;
detecting, with the plurality of solvent sensors, a concentration of a solvent vapor generated from the substrate at a plurality of locations; and
controlling heating temperatures of the plurality of heating blocks according to the concentrations measured by the plurality of solvent sensors, thereby adjusting a drying speed of the substrate.
12. The drying method according to claim 11,
the plurality of locations includes a first location and a second location,
the plurality of solvent sensors includes: a first solvent sensor for detecting a first concentration of the solvent vapor at the first location; and a second solvent sensor for detecting a second concentration of the solvent vapor at the second location,
the plurality of heating blocks comprises a first heating block corresponding to the first position and a second heating block corresponding to the second position,
the step of adjusting the drying speed in a case where the first concentration is higher than the second concentration includes a step of setting in such a manner that a heating temperature of the first heating block is higher than a heating temperature of the second heating block,
in the case where the first concentration is lower than the second concentration, the step of adjusting the drying speed includes a step of setting such that a heating temperature of the first heating block is lower than a heating temperature of the second heating block.
13. The drying method according to claim 11,
the step of adjusting the drying speed includes the steps of detecting the concentration and controlling the heating temperature according to a preset time pattern.
CN202111093055.8A 2020-09-22 2021-09-17 Drying device and drying method Pending CN114251935A (en)

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Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO2024187468A1 (en) * 2023-03-16 2024-09-19 宁德时代未来能源(上海)研究院有限公司 Drying apparatus and drying method of drying apparatus

Cited By (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
WO2024187468A1 (en) * 2023-03-16 2024-09-19 宁德时代未来能源(上海)研究院有限公司 Drying apparatus and drying method of drying apparatus

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