JP3078268B2 - Organic EL display device and manufacturing method thereof - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention [0002] The present invention relates to a method and a structure for manufacturing an organic electroluminescence display (hereinafter, abbreviated as an organic EL display) used as a display device and a light source.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A display device using an organic EL element is:
It has the following advantages over liquid crystal displays, which are currently the mainstream flat panel displays.

[0003] 1) Wide viewing angle due to self-emission 2) Display with a thickness of 2 to 3 mm can be easily manufactured 3) Natural light emission color because no polarizing plate is used 4) Dynamic range of light and dark 5) Operates in a wide temperature range 6) Response time is more than 3 digits faster than liquid crystal, making it easy to display moving images Despite such advantages, it is difficult to reach the market Was. This is for the following reasons.

In general, an organic EL device is roughly described as follows.
It is composed of a stack of thin films having three separate functions: an electrode made of a “transparent conductive film”, an “organic layer including a light emitting layer”, and an electrode made of a “metal or alloy having a small work function”. These "organic layers containing the light-emitting layer" and "metals or alloys having a low work function" are easily degraded by moisture and oxygen, and the "organic layer containing the light-emitting layer" is easily soluble in a solvent and weak to heat. Had manufacturing difficulties. In other words, in a method using water, an organic solvent, and heat, it is difficult to separate and divide an element after forming an “organic layer including a light-emitting layer” and a “metal or alloy having a small work function”. is there. That is, when an organic EL display device of a class equivalent to a display currently realized by liquid crystal is to be manufactured, a mature semiconductor manufacturing technology or a liquid crystal display manufacturing technology cannot be applied as it is.

Therefore, the following techniques have been devised which enable the separation of the second electrode without being exposed to the air. According to this technique, a highly reliable organic EL is disclosed. Manufacturing of displays became possible.

For example, JP-A-5-275172 and JP-A-5-258859, US Pat.
Nos. 0 and 5294869. This is because, for example, as shown in FIG. 32, a partition 43 higher than the film 44 constituting the organic EL film is formed between the display line electrodes to be separated, so that the partition 43 is not perpendicular to the plane of the substrate 33. This method utilizes the fact that the material 41 of the organic EL element is not deposited on the shadowed portion of the partition 43 by vacuum deposition.

However, according to this method, in order to form a light-emitting line with a good yield and the same width, the width of the insulating strip 42 (or pedestal) shown in FIG. Wide insulator 42
Must be formed under the partition 43. This is because, in the vacuum film forming method, the presence of the barrier ribs 43 hinders film deposition near the barrier ribs 43. Therefore, in the structure without the insulating strip 42, the first electrode and the second electrode 43 near the barrier ribs 43 where the organic film becomes thinner. Electrodes may be short-circuited, especially on large substrates where it is difficult to improve the film thickness uniformity of the organic film.
This is because the yield becomes very poor.

Conversely, when the insulating strip 42 is formed for the purpose of increasing the yield, the width of the light emitting line is limited by the area where the insulating strip 42 is formed. The width of the insulating strip 42 is designed according to the angle between the metal deposition source 31 and the substrate 33 and the size of the substrate 33 itself, for example, as shown in FIG. That is, as shown in FIG. 33, for example, as shown in FIG. 34, when the width of the insulating strip 42 is small, the angle A between the metal flying from the metal deposition source 31 to the substrate 33 and the partition 43 becomes small, as shown in FIG. In the position B where the angle between the metal flying from the metal deposition source 31 to the substrate 33 and the partition wall 43 is large, as shown in FIG. This causes a problem that the light emitting area becomes narrow, and the width of the light emitting line changes depending on the position of the substrate 33. Therefore, in order to make the widths of the light emitting lines uniform over the entire area of the substrate, it is necessary to increase the width of the insulating strip with a margin. Further, the margin for positioning the insulating strip and the partition wall is required to be at least 3 μm to 5 μm when a display device is manufactured on a large-sized substrate by using a one-shot exposure type exposure apparatus. However, it is clear that widening the insulating strip is nothing but a reduction in the light emitting area, and is disadvantageous for a bright display.

Another method is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. H8-2629.
No. 98, No. 8-264828, a method of forming a light emitting element in a cavity structure, a trench structure, and a well structure in those structures and separating the light emitting elements from each other. It is clear that similar disadvantages arise.

Also, a method of forming an insulating wall having an inverted tapered structure, an overhang structure, and an undercut structure on an electrode as disclosed in JP-A-8-315981, JP-A-9-283280, and JP-A-9-161969. At
In consideration of forming a light emitting line having the same width and a high yield, an insulating strip is actually required similarly.

[0011]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a light emitting device having a large ratio of light emitting areas, high reliability, use of a large substrate, and manufacturing by disposing a large number of displays on one substrate. It is an object of the present invention to provide an organic EL display device capable of reducing the manufacturing cost and a method of manufacturing the same.

[0012]

Means for Solving the Problems A conventionally proposed structure for separating elements such as a partition structure, a cavity structure, a trench structure, a well structure, an inverted taper structure, an overhang structure, and an undercut structure (hereinafter, referred to as a structure). In any case, the element separation structures are located closer to the film forming material source than the positions of the elements where these element separation structures emit light. Therefore, when manufacturing a display device with a high yield, it is necessary to provide a margin having a width approximately equal to the height of the element isolation structure in the insulating strip. However, providing a large margin narrows the light-emitting area, which affects display quality. Reducing the height of the element isolation structure means that it is more likely that the “metal electrode having a small work function” will cover the element isolation structure, which means that it is difficult to isolate the element, and therefore, , The yield decreases.

For example, when a partition having a height of 4 μm and a width of 5 μm is provided, the following is obtained. Since the alignment error between the partition and the insulating strip is about 5 μm when a general batch exposure type exposure apparatus is used, the width of the insulating strip also needs to be 5 μm as a margin. In addition, when the “organic film including the light emitting layer” is incident from a maximum oblique angle of 45 ° with respect to the direction perpendicular to the substrate, a margin equal to at least the height of the partition wall of 4 μm is necessary in consideration of a shadowed portion. . Therefore, when the two sides of the partition are summed up, an insulating strip having a total width of 23 μm of the width of the partition and the entire margin is required.

The gap between adjacent transparent conductive films is 5 μm
In the case of a high-definition simple matrix display in which pixels are arranged at a pitch of 100 μm, (10
0-23) × (100-5) ÷ (100 × 100) =
0.7315, which means that the effective light emitting area is about 73%.

The essence of the problem is that the element isolation structure has a structure that projects greatly from the light emitting surface in the direction in which the film-forming material comes in. If there is no margin in the insulating strip and the light emitting area at the substrate position does not change and a high yield can be obtained, the light emitting area can be widened, and as a result, a bright display device can be manufactured. it can.

That is, the above object is achieved by the following constitutions. (1) It has a wiring electrode, a first electrode connected to the wiring electrode via a contact hole, one or more kinds of organic layers involved in a light emitting function, and a second electrode. Organic E that can emit light independently and electrically
L has a plurality of L element structures, and has a groove structure for separating a second electrode of an adjacent organic EL element structure at a boundary between adjacent organic EL element structures;
An organic EL display device formed between adjacent first electrodes and in a region other than a light emitting region functioning as a pixel. (2) The organic EL display device according to (1), wherein a part of the first electrode is formed on the contact hole, and an insulating layer is formed between the first electrode and the organic layer on the first electrode. (3) the contact hole is arranged in contact with at least one side of the first electrode having a substantially polygonal shape;
The organic EL display device according to (1) or (2), wherein the first electrode is electrically connected to the wiring electrode through the contact hole. (4) The depth of the groove structure is (1/2) to 20 times the total thickness of the organic layer and the second electrode layer.
The organic EL display device according to any one of (3). (5) The above-mentioned (1) to (4), wherein an overhang portion is formed near at least one opening of the groove structure in a direction substantially parallel to the substrate and protruding toward the center of the groove structure. The organic EL display device according to any one of the above. (6) The organic EL display device according to (5), wherein the overhang portion is formed near both openings of the groove structure. (7) The above-mentioned (1) to (6), wherein the bottom of the groove structure has a three-dimensional structure projecting in a direction perpendicular to the substrate surface and having a height equal to or lower than the second electrode layer in the light emitting region.
The organic EL display device according to any one of the above. (8) The organic EL display device according to the above (7), wherein the three-dimensional structure has a larger width at the upper end side than at the bottom side of the groove structure. (9) The overhang portion is formed of an insulating material, and a part of the overhang portion is formed on a substrate or a base layer and is formed so as to cover a part of the first electrode. The organic EL display device according to any one of (1) to (8). (10) The overhang portion is formed at a height of 10 nm to 5 μm from the opening end of the groove structure.
The organic EL display device according to any one of (9). (11) The overhang portion formed on the substrate or the underlayer has a step portion or an end portion having a taper angle of 45 degrees or less with respect to a film forming surface.
The organic EL display device according to any one of (1) to (10). (12) The organic EL display device according to any one of (5) to (11), wherein the overhang portion has a conductive film having a thickness of 2 μm or less formed on at least a part of the region. (13) a step of forming a wiring electrode on an insulating substrate, and a step of forming a base layer on the substrate on which the wiring electrode is formed;
Forming a groove structure in an underlayer formed on the substrate,
A step of forming a first electrode, a step of forming at least an organic layer involved in a light-emitting function, and a step of forming a second electrode, wherein a step is formed when the second electrode is formed. A method of manufacturing an organic EL display device in which the second electrode is separated at a formed groove structure using a method having low covering property. (14) The method for manufacturing an organic EL display device according to (13), wherein a part of the first electrode is formed on the contact hole, and an insulating layer is formed between the first electrode and the organic layer on the first electrode. (15) The method according to (13) or (14), wherein the first electrode, the organic layer, and the second electrode are formed by a vapor deposition method. (16) The method according to any one of (13) to (15), wherein the second electrode is formed by oblique deposition. (17) When forming the groove structure or after forming the groove structure, an overhang protruding in the direction substantially parallel to the substrate and near the center of the groove structure near at least one opening of the groove structure. The method for manufacturing an organic EL display device according to any one of the above (13) to (16), comprising a step of forming a hang portion. (18) In forming the groove structure, a three-dimensional structure is formed which protrudes from a bottom of the groove structure in a direction perpendicular to a substrate surface and has a height equal to or lower than a second electrode layer in a light emitting region. (13) The method for manufacturing an organic EL display device according to any one of (17) to (17). (19) When forming the overhang portion, an insulating material is used, and a part thereof is formed on a substrate or a base layer to cover a part of the first electrode (17). Or (18) the method for manufacturing an organic EL display device.

[0017]

According to the present invention, the problem is solved as follows. The basic principle is that the structure is such that the element isolation structure does not protrude high from the substrate. That is, it is realized by forming an element isolation structure in which a portion for separating adjacent elements is separated by a groove structure, or an element isolation structure in which a structure for further isolating elements is added to the groove structure. it can. The first electrode disposed closer to the substrate is formed so as to cross this groove or is connected as necessary via another conductive film. At least a portion crossing the groove is covered with an insulating film so as not to short-circuit with the light emitting layer or the second electrode. After forming such a structure, an organic film including a light-emitting layer may be formed, and then the second electrode may be formed by a method that cannot completely cover the element isolation structure.

According to this method, since the light emitting region is generally arranged closer to the source of the film forming material than the element isolation structure, it is not necessary to consider the shadow of the element isolation structure. That is, the reduction in the area of the light emitting region due to the height and the alignment margin of the element isolation structure is extremely reduced.

As in the above-described example, the gap between adjacent transparent conductive films is 5 μm, the width of the groove is 5 μm, the margin for forming the insulating film with respect to the groove is 5 μm on one side of the groove, and high-definition pixels are arranged at 100 μm pitch. Assuming a simple matrix display, (100-15) × (100-5) ÷
(100 × 100) = 0.8075, which indicates that the effective light emitting area increases by about 7%.

[0020]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, for example, an organic EL display device according to the present invention comprises a wiring electrode 11 and a first electrode connected to the wiring electrode via a contact hole 13. FIG. 3 and one or more organic layers involved in the light-emitting function, and a second electrode, and a plurality of organic EL element structures capable of emitting light independently independently. A groove structure 2 for separating a second electrode of an adjacent organic EL element structure is provided at a boundary of the organic EL element structure, and the wiring electrode 11 is provided at least in a region other than the light emitting region 15 functioning as a pixel. Is formed. In addition,
FIG. 1 is a partial plan view of an organic EL display device, and FIG.
It is A 'sectional arrow view. 1 and 2, a wiring electrode 11 and a base layer 1b are formed on a substrate 1, a first electrode 3 is further formed thereon, and a pixel (light emitting region) is formed.
The insulating layer 4 is formed in the other part. The organic layer and the second electrode further formed thereon are omitted.

As described above, by arranging the wiring electrodes mainly between the island-shaped patterns of the pixels of the first electrode, light emission is not blocked, and the aperture ratio can be improved. Similarly, by disposing the contact hole at a position corresponding to at least one side of the substantially polygonal shape of each pixel of the first electrode, it is not necessary to extend the wiring electrode to the position of the contact hole. Can be achieved.

An object of the present invention is to provide an element isolation structure in which a portion for separating adjacent elements is separated by a groove structure, or
This can be realized by forming an element isolation structure in which a three-dimensional structure for facilitating element isolation is added to the groove structure.

That is, the element isolation structure has an element film formation surface,
In addition, since the film-forming material does not protrude from the light-emitting surface in the direction in which the film-forming material comes in, no structural partition or insulating strip is required, and the effective light-emitting area can be widened.

The groove structure may be formed directly on the substrate,
An underlayer having a predetermined thickness may be formed on a substrate, and the underlayer may be formed on the underlayer. The size of the groove structure is not particularly limited as long as the element can be separated. The size of the display device, the size of the organic EL element to be separated, and the thickness of each layer to be formed are described. The thickness may be appropriately determined depending on the thickness, the film formation method, and the like. Specifically, usually, the width: 1 to 20 μm,
In particular, about 5 to 10 μm, and depth: about 1/2 to 20 times, particularly about 2 to 10 times, the total thickness of the organic layer and the second electrode layer.

The underlayer is preferably formed of a material having insulation properties, capable of being etched, and not interfering with the first electrode layer formed thereon. The base layer for forming the groove structure may be formed using a photosensitive insulating material. Specifically, polyimide,
Resin materials such as acrylic resin and olefin resin, S
iO ₂ , SiN _x , SiON, Al ₂ O ₃ , SOG (spi
non-glass) films and other inorganic materials. The base layer may be formed by selecting a suitable material from known film forming means depending on the material to be used, such as vapor deposition, sputtering, coating, printing, and spin coating.

The groove structure may be formed as a simple U-shaped concave portion, may have a shape extending toward the vicinity of the opening, or may have a shape expanding toward the bottom. Although such a taper angle is not particularly limited, it is preferably about ± 30 to 60 degrees, particularly about ± 45 degrees with respect to the opening direction (perpendicular to the substrate). In addition, it has an overhang near the opening in a direction substantially parallel to the substrate and protruding toward the center of the groove structure, and a structure projecting from the bottom in a direction (upward) perpendicular to the substrate surface. You may.

A display device having this element isolation structure can be manufactured, for example, as follows.

First, a substrate having a groove structure is formed. There are the following methods. In this method, a base layer is formed on an insulating substrate, and a groove is formed in the base layer by photolithography.

Before forming the underlayer, a wiring electrode connected to the first electrode is formed. The wiring electrode is formed in a portion other than the display region serving as a pixel. By forming the wiring electrode in a portion other than the pixel, light can be efficiently extracted without obstructing the wiring electrode when extracting light emission from the substrate side.

After forming the wiring electrodes, a base layer is formed,
Further, a groove structure is formed.

Next, a first electrode is formed. The first electrode is formed so as to be electrically connected to a region where an adjacent element is formed. For this purpose, the connection may be made via the wiring electrode formed under the base layer. First
May be patterned using a photolithography method or the like.

An insulating layer is formed to insulate the first electrode formed at the contact hole. This is because current leakage between the first electrode and the second electrode is likely to occur in the contact hole portion, which tends to cause a defect. In addition, light emission in the contact hole portion is shielded from light by the wiring electrode, and the light is emitted to the outside. This is because it is difficult to be released and is wasted. Further, the insulating film formed over the light emitting region of the first electrode is removed by a photolithography method or the like.

After forming the above structure, an organic layer including at least a light emitting layer, which is involved in a light emitting function, is formed. Subsequently, a second electrode is formed by a method that cannot completely cover the groove structure. As a method that cannot completely cover the groove structure, the opening direction of the groove structure (the direction perpendicular to the substrate) may have a certain angle with respect to the flying direction of the film-forming particles. More specifically, in a vapor deposition method or a sputtering method, the substrate surface may be inclined so as to have an angle other than 90 degrees with respect to a line connecting the center of the evaporation source or the target with the center of the substrate. In this case, oblique deposition with little wraparound is particularly preferred. By making the flying direction of the film-forming particles different from the opening direction of the groove structure, a shadow portion is formed inside the groove structure due to the incident angle of the film-forming particles, and a region where the shadow portion is not formed is formed. Becomes
The incident angle of the film-forming particles with respect to the opening direction of the groove structure is preferably about 10 to 80 degrees, and more preferably about 60 to 80 degrees.

In the case where an overhang is provided near the opening of the groove structure in the center direction of the groove structure, or when there is a structure projecting from the bottom of the groove structure, the direction in which the film-forming particles fly and the groove structure May be the same as the opening direction.

Further, a metal or an insulating film which is stable against moisture and oxygen may be laminated as a protective film on the second electrode layer.

At this time, even if the angle at which the second electrode material enters the substrate greatly differs, the film formation region changes only in the groove, and does not affect the actual light emitting region at all. You can see that. That is, even when a display is manufactured using a large-sized substrate, parts A and B in FIG. 33 are shown.
As compared with FIG. 34 of the conventional example, as shown in FIG. 35, the incident angle of the film-forming particles 41 of the second electrode is different, and the phenomenon that the light emitting region is reduced does not occur. is there.

Usually, at least one of the first electrode and the second electrode forms a light-transmitting film.

The organic layer including the light emitting layer may be formed by a vacuum film forming method or a spin coating method. However, when forming by a spin coating method, it is necessary to make the groove depth such that the groove structure is not completely buried.

As shown in Example 2 below, the groove structure is
It is also possible to form them after forming the electrodes. In this case, it is desirable to form the groove structure under such a condition that the surface of the wiring electrode is not exposed from the formed groove. Wiring electrodes are made of inexpensive and low-resistance metal materials such as Al and Al alloys, and C
It is desirable to adopt a structure in which a stable conductor such as r or TiN is laminated. The wiring electrode is preferably formed in a portion other than the light emitting region.

As shown in Example 3 below, when forming the auxiliary wiring for the second electrode, it is preferable to form it after forming the insulating layer 4. In this case, since the formed auxiliary wiring of the second electrode has poor step coverage when the organic layer is formed, a part of the auxiliary wiring is exposed without being completely covered with the organic layer,
When a second electrode layer is formed thereon, contact and continuity are achieved at the exposed portion. The constituent material of the auxiliary wiring is the same as that of the wiring electrode of the first electrode. The auxiliary wiring is preferably formed on a portion other than the light emitting region, particularly on the insulating layer 4.

Next, the organic EL display device of the present invention will be described in more detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 3 shows a first embodiment of the organic EL display device of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view showing an example of the configuration. In the figure, in the organic EL display device of the present invention, a rectangular or U-shaped groove structure is formed in an underlayer 1a formed on a substrate such as glass. An organic layer 5 is formed on the first electrode layer 3. When the film-forming particles 7 fly from the direction of the arrow on the organic layer 5, the second electrode layer 6 is formed as shown in the figure. Then, the formed second electrode layer 6
Has a region where a film is not formed inside the groove structure 2, and the two elements are separated with the groove structure 2 interposed therebetween.

FIG. 4 shows the state of the second electrode layer formed when the incident angle of the film-forming particles 7 is changed in FIG. As is clear from the figure, even when the incident angle of the film-forming particles is changed, only the size of the non-film-forming region formed inside the groove structure is different, and the other portions are not affected.
It can be seen that the light emitting region of the element is not narrowed.

FIG. 5 shows a second embodiment of the organic EL display device of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view showing an example of the configuration. In this example, an overhang portion 8 is provided near the opening of the groove structure 2 in a direction substantially parallel to the substrate and protruding toward the center of the groove structure. The groove structure 2 is formed on the underlayer 1a on the substrate. The overhang portion 8 is formed in the shape of an eave protruding on both sides of the opening of the groove structure 2. The thickness of the eave-shaped overhang is preferably about 10 nm to 5 μm. Note that, although a part of the constituent material of the organic layer 5 and the second electrode 6 is deposited inside the groove structure 2, there is no electrical conduction across the groove.

The overhang portion 8 can be formed, for example, as follows. First, a first layer is formed by means of good coverage such as coating and spin coating so as to fill the inside of the groove structure 2. In this case, as a material of the first layer, a polyimide, an SOG film, or the like is preferable. Further, the first layer is removed while leaving the inside of the groove structure 2, a second layer serving as the overhang 8 is formed thereon while leaving the opening 21, and the first layer is formed by removing the first layer. . As the constituent material of the second layer, resin materials such as resist, polyimide, acrylic resin, and olefin resin, SiO ₂ ,
SiN _x , SiON, Al ₂ O ₃ , SOG (spin on gla
ss) Inorganic materials such as membranes are preferred. Other configurations are the same as those in FIG. 3, and the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 6 shows a third embodiment of the organic EL display device according to the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view showing an example of the configuration. In this example, an overhang portion 8 projecting toward the center of the groove structure is formed near the opening of the groove structure 2 in a direction substantially parallel to the substrate, and the protrusion gradually decreases toward the bottom of the groove structure 2. It is formed in a tapered shape. By forming the overhang portion 8 in a tapered shape, the strength of the overhang portion 8 is increased, and the overhang portion 8 is less likely to be broken in subsequent steps, for example, steps such as heating and cleaning.

The overhang portion 8 in this example is, for example,
A first layer is formed so as to fill the inside of the groove structure 2, a second layer is formed thereon while leaving an opening 21, and a part of the first layer is formed by appropriately selecting etching conditions. Can be formed. Other configurations are the same as those in FIG. 5, and the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 7 shows a fourth embodiment of the organic EL display device according to the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view showing an example of the configuration. In this example, an overhang portion 8 extending in the direction substantially parallel to the substrate near the opening of the groove structure 2 and extending in the center direction of the groove structure is formed only on one side of the opening of the groove structure 2. I have. And
The overhang is formed in a tapered shape that gradually decreases toward the bottom of the groove structure 2. Other configurations are the same as those in FIG. 6, and the same components are denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 8 shows a fifth embodiment of the organic EL display device of the present invention.
FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectional view showing an example of the configuration. In this example, there is a structure 9 protruding from the bottom of the groove structure 2 toward the opening. The structure 9 may have the same size at the bottom and the opening, may be formed to be larger toward the opening, or may be formed to be larger toward the bottom. It is preferable that the separation surface is formed so as to increase toward the opening. It is preferable that the height of the structure 9 be equal to or less than the surface on which the element is formed, particularly equal to or less than the position of the second electrode layer formed on a portion to be a light emitting region on the substrate.
If the height of the structure 9 is too high, inconveniences such as the formation of a non-film formation region of the second electrode in a portion outside the groove structure will occur. The other configuration is the same as that of FIG. In addition, the structure may have a base on the bottom side of the groove structure, and may have an overhang on the opening side in a direction substantially parallel to the substrate surface or having an increased width.

The material of the structure is preferably the same as the underlayer, a negative photosensitive resin or the like. In the case of a structure having a base and an overhang, a polyimide, a resist or the like is preferable for the base, and a resist or a photosensitive resin such as a photosensitive polyimide is preferable for the overhang.

Next, the organic EL device constituting the organic EL display device of the present invention will be described.

The organic EL device according to the present invention includes, for example,
As shown in FIG. 3, ITO is used as the first electrode on the substrate 1.
And the like, an organic layer 5 involved in at least one kind of light emitting function, and an electron injection electrode 6 as a second electrode. The organic layer may have a configuration including a hole injection transport layer, a light emitting layer, and an electron injection transport layer. Alternatively, the reverse lamination may be adopted.

For example, a first hole injection electrode such as ITO, a first hole injection layer, a first light emitting layer, a first electron injection layer, and a first electron injection electrode are formed on a substrate. Are sequentially formed, and a second electron injection layer, a second light emitting layer, a second hole injection layer, and a second hole injection electrode are sequentially formed thereon. A hole injection layer of
A configuration in which a third light-emitting layer, a third electron injection layer, and a second electron injection electrode are sequentially formed may be employed.

Alternatively, a first electron injection electrode, a first electron injection layer, a first light emitting layer, a first hole injection layer, and a first hole injection electrode are sequentially formed on a substrate. Forming a second hole injection layer, a second light emitting layer, a second electron injection layer, and a second electron injection electrode thereon, and further forming a third electron injection layer thereon. , A third light emitting layer, and a third light emitting layer.
And a second hole injection electrode. In this case, the thickness of the electron injection electrode or the like is preferably 100 nm or less in order to secure light transmittance. The structure having the plurality of light-emitting layers is suitable for full-color light emission and white light emission.

The hole injection electrode is usually formed as the first electrode on the substrate side, and is configured to extract emitted light. Therefore, a transparent or translucent electrode is preferable. As the transparent electrode, ITO (tin-doped indium oxide), IZO (zinc-doped indium oxide), ZnO, SnO ₂ , In ₂
O _{3 and the} like can be mentioned, and preferably, ITO (tin-doped indium oxide), IZO (zinc-doped indium oxide)
Is preferred. ITO usually contains In ₂ O ₃ and SnO in a stoichiometric composition, but the amount of O may slightly deviate from this.

The thickness of the hole injecting electrode may be a certain thickness or more capable of sufficiently injecting holes, and is preferably 1 or more.
The range is preferably from 0 to 500 nm, more preferably from 30 to 300 nm. The upper limit is not particularly limited. However, if the thickness is too large, problems such as peeling, deterioration in workability, damage due to stress, reduction in light transmittance, and leakage due to surface roughness occur. On the other hand, if the thickness is too small, there is a problem in film strength, hole transport ability, and resistance value during production.

This hole injection electrode layer can be formed by a vapor deposition method or the like, but is preferably formed by a sputtering method.

As the electron injection electrode, a substance having a low work function is preferable. For example, K, Li, Na, Mg, La, C
e, Ca, Sr, Ba, Al, Ag, In, Sn, Z
It is preferable to use a single metal element such as n or Zr, or a two-component or three-component alloy system containing them for improving the stability. As an alloy system, for example, Ag · Mg (A
g: 1 to 20 at%), Al.Li (Li: 0.3 to 14)
at%), In.Mg (Mg: 50-80at%), Al.
Ca (Ca: 5 to 20 at%) and the like are preferable. Further, these oxides may be formed in combination with an auxiliary electrode having good electric conductivity. Note that the electron injection electrode can be formed by an evaporation method or a sputtering method.

The thickness of the electron injecting electrode thin film may be a certain thickness or more for sufficiently injecting electrons.
Preferably, the thickness may be 1 nm or more. The upper limit is not particularly limited, but the thickness may be generally about 1 to 500 nm. An auxiliary electrode may be further provided on the electron injection electrode.

The thickness of the auxiliary electrode may be a certain thickness or more, preferably 50 nm or more, more preferably 100 nm or more, in order to secure electron injection efficiency and prevent entry of moisture, oxygen or an organic solvent. The range of 100 to 1000 nm is preferred. If the auxiliary electrode layer is too thin, the effect cannot be obtained, and the step coverage of the auxiliary electrode layer is reduced, and the connection with the terminal electrode is not sufficient. on the other hand,
If the auxiliary electrode layer is too thick, the stress of the auxiliary electrode layer increases, so that the dark spot growth rate increases.

The total thickness of the electron injection electrode and the auxiliary electrode is not particularly limited, but is usually 100 to 100.
It may be about 0 nm.

After forming the electrode, in addition to the auxiliary electrode, S
inorganic materials iO _X such as Teflon, a protective film may be formed using an organic material such as fluorocarbon polymers containing chlorine. The protective film may be transparent or opaque, and the thickness of the protective film is about 50 to 1200 nm. The protective film may be formed by a general sputtering method, an evaporation method, a PECVD method, or the like, in addition to the reactive sputtering method.

Further, it is preferable to form a sealing layer on the element in order to prevent oxidation of the organic layer and the electrode of the element. The sealing layer adheres and seals the sealing plate using an adhesive resin layer in order to prevent moisture from entering. The sealing gas is Ar, H
e, an inert gas such as N _{2 and the} like are preferable. Further, the moisture content of the sealing gas is preferably 100 ppm or less, more preferably 10 ppm or less, and particularly preferably 1 ppm or less. Although there is no particular lower limit for this water content, it is usually 0.1
It is about ppm.

The material of the sealing plate is preferably a flat plate, and may be a transparent or translucent material such as glass, quartz, resin, etc., but glass is particularly preferred. As such a glass material, an alkali glass is preferable from the viewpoint of cost, and in addition, a glass composition such as soda lime glass, lead alkali glass, borosilicate glass, aluminosilicate glass, and silica glass is also preferable. In particular, soda glass, a glass material without surface treatment can be used at low cost,
preferable. As the sealing plate, other than a glass plate, a metal plate, a plastic plate, or the like can be used.

The height of the sealing plate may be adjusted to a desired height by using a spacer. Examples of the material of the spacer include resin beads, silica beads, glass beads, and glass fibers, and glass beads are particularly preferable. The spacer is usually a granular material having a uniform particle size, but the shape is not particularly limited, and may be various shapes as long as it does not hinder the function as the spacer. As the size, the diameter in terms of a circle is 1 to 20 μm, more preferably 1 to 10 μm, and especially 2 to 20 μm.
8 μm is preferred. Those having such a diameter have a grain length of 10
It is preferably about 0 μm or less, and the lower limit is not particularly limited, but is usually about the same as or larger than the diameter.

When a recess is formed in the sealing plate,
Spacers may or may not be used. The preferred size when used is within the above range,
Particularly, the range of 2 to 8 μm is preferable.

The spacer may be mixed in the sealing adhesive in advance, or may be mixed at the time of bonding. The content of the spacer in the sealing adhesive is preferably 0.01
-30 wt%, more preferably 0.1-5 wt%.

The adhesive is not particularly limited as long as it can maintain stable adhesive strength and has good airtightness, but it is preferable to use a cationic curing type ultraviolet curing epoxy resin adhesive. .

The substrate material is not particularly limited and can be appropriately determined depending on the material of the electrodes of the organic EL structure to be laminated. For example, a metal material such as Al, or a transparent or transparent material such as glass, quartz, or resin. The material may be translucent or opaque. In this case, in addition to glass, ceramics such as alumina, metal sheets such as stainless steel are subjected to insulation treatment such as surface oxidation, and thermosetting resins such as phenolic resin And a thermoplastic resin such as polycarbonate.

Next, the organic layer provided in the organic EL device will be described.

The light emitting layer has a function of injecting holes (holes) and electrons, a function of transporting them, and a function of generating excitons by recombination of holes and electrons. It is preferable to use a relatively electronically neutral compound for the light emitting layer.

The hole injecting / transporting layer has a function of facilitating the injection of holes from the hole injecting electrode, a function of stably transporting holes, and a function of hindering electrons.
The electron injection transport layer has a function of facilitating injection of electrons from the electron injection electrode, a function of stably transporting electrons, and a function of preventing holes. These layers increase and confine holes and electrons injected into the light emitting layer, optimize the recombination region, and improve luminous efficiency.

The thickness of the light emitting layer, the thickness of the hole injecting and transporting layer, and the thickness of the electron injecting and transporting layer are not particularly limited and vary depending on the forming method.
It is preferable that the thickness be in the range of 10 to 300 nm.

The thickness of the hole injecting and transporting layer and the thickness of the electron injecting and transporting layer depend on the design of the recombination / light emitting region, but may be about the same as the thickness of the light emitting layer or about 1/10 to 10 times. When the hole or electron injection layer and the transport layer are separated from each other, it is preferable that the injection layer has a thickness of 1 nm or more and the transport layer has a thickness of 1 nm or more. At this time, the upper limit of the thickness of the injection layer and the transport layer is usually about 500 nm for the injection layer and 500 nm for the transport layer.
It is about. Such a film thickness is the same when two injection / transport layers are provided.

For the light emitting layer, a fluorescent substance which is a compound having a light emitting function is used. Examples of such a fluorescent substance include compounds disclosed in JP-A-63-264892, for example, at least one selected from compounds such as quinacridone, rubrene, and styryl dyes. A quinoline derivative such as a metal complex dye having 8-quinolinol or a derivative thereof as a ligand, such as tris (8-quinolinolato) aluminum;
Tetraphenylbutadiene, anthracene, perylene,
Coronene, 12-phthaloperinone derivatives, and the like. Further, Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 8-12600 (Japanese Patent Application No.
Phenylanthracene derivatives described in JP-A-8-12969 (Japanese Patent Application No. 6-1144).
No. 56) can be used.

Further, it is preferable to use in combination with a host substance capable of emitting light by itself, and it is preferable to use it as a dopant. In such a case, the content of the compound in the light emitting layer is 0.01 to 10 wt%, and more preferably 0.1 to 10 wt%.
It is preferably 1 to 5% by weight. When used in combination with a host substance, the emission wavelength characteristics of the host substance can be changed, light emission shifted to a longer wavelength becomes possible, and the luminous efficiency and stability of the device are improved.

The host substance is preferably a quinolinolato complex, and more preferably an aluminum complex having 8-quinolinol or a derivative thereof as a ligand. Such an aluminum complex is disclosed in JP-A-63-26469.
No. 2, JP-A-3-255190, JP-A-5-7073
3, JP-A-5-258859, JP-A-6-2158
No. 74 and the like.

Specifically, first, tris (8-quinolinolato) aluminum, bis (8-quinolinolato) magnesium, bis (benzo {f} -8-quinolinolato) zinc, bis (2-methyl-8-quinolinolato) aluminum Oxide, tris (8-quinolinolato) indium,
Tris (5-methyl-8-quinolinolato) aluminum, 8-quinolinolatolithium, tris (5-chloro-
8-quinolinolato) gallium, bis (5-chloro-8-
Quinolinolato) calcium, 5,7-dichloro-8-quinolinolatoaluminum, tris (5,7-dibromo-
8-hydroxyquinolinolato) aluminum and poly [zinc (II) -bis (8-hydroxy-5-quinolinyl) methane].

Further, in addition to 8-quinolinol or its derivative, an aluminum complex having another ligand may be used, such as bis (2-methyl-
8-quinolinolato) (phenolato) aluminum (III)
, Bis (2-methyl-8-quinolinolato) (ortho-
Cresolato) aluminum (III), bis (2-methyl-
8-quinolinolato) (meth-cresolate) aluminum
(III), bis (2-methyl-8-quinolinolato) (para-cresolato) aluminum (III), bis (2-methyl-8-quinolinolato) (ortho-phenylphenolate)
Aluminum (III), bis (2-methyl-8-quinolinolato) (meth-phenylphenolato) aluminum (II
I), bis (2-methyl-8-quinolinolato) (para-
Phenylphenolato) aluminum (III), bis (2-
Methyl-8-quinolinolato) (2,3-dimethylphenolato) aluminum (III), bis (2-methyl-8-quinolinolato) (2,6-dimethylphenolato) aluminum (III), bis (2-methyl- 8-quinolinolato)
(3,4-dimethylphenolato) aluminum (III),
Bis (2-methyl-8-quinolinolato) (3,5-dimethylphenolato) aluminum (III), bis (2-methyl-8-quinolinolato) (3,5-di-tert-butylphenolato) aluminum (III) ), Bis (2-methyl-8)
-Quinolinolato) (2,6-diphenylphenolato) aluminum (III), bis (2-methyl-8-quinolinolato) (2,4,6-triphenylphenolato) aluminum (III), bis (2-methyl- 8-quinolinolato)
(2,3,6-trimethylphenolato) aluminum (I
II), bis (2-methyl-8-quinolinolato) (2,
3,5,6-tetramethylphenolato) aluminum (I
II), bis (2-methyl-8-quinolinolato) (1-naphthrat) aluminum (III), bis (2-methyl-8
-Quinolinolato) (2-naphthrat) aluminum (II
I), bis (2,4-dimethyl-8-quinolinolato)
(Ortho-phenylphenolato) aluminum (III),
Bis (2,4-dimethyl-8-quinolinolato) (para-
Phenylphenolato) aluminum (III), bis (2,
4-dimethyl-8-quinolinolato) (meta-phenylphenolato) aluminum (III), bis (2,4-dimethyl-8-quinolinolato) (3,5-dimethylphenolato) aluminum (III), bis (2 4-dimethyl-8
-Quinolinolato) (3,5-di-tert-butylphenolato) aluminum (III), bis (2-methyl-4-ethyl-8-quinolinolato) (para-cresolato) aluminum (III), bis (2-methyl) -4-methoxy-8-quinolinolato) (para-phenylphenolato) aluminum (III), bis (2-methyl-5-cyano-8-quinolinolato) (ortho-cresolato) aluminum (III),
Bis (2-methyl-6-trifluoromethyl-8-quinolinolato) (2-naphthrat) aluminum (III);

In addition, bis (2-methyl-8-quinolinolato) aluminum (III) -μ-oxo-bis (2-
Methyl-8-quinolinolato) aluminum (III), bis (2,4-dimethyl-8-quinolinolato) aluminum
(III) -μ-oxo-bis (2,4-dimethyl-8-quinolinolato) aluminum (III), bis (4-ethyl-
2-methyl-8-quinolinolato) aluminum (III)-
μ-oxo-bis (4-ethyl-2-methyl-8-quinolinolato) aluminum (III), bis (2-methyl-4
-Methoxyquinolinolato) aluminum (III) -μ-oxo-bis (2-methyl-4-methoxyquinolinolato)
Aluminum (III), bis (5-cyano-2-methyl-
8-quinolinolato) aluminum (III) -μ-oxo-
Bis (5-cyano-2-methyl-8-quinolinolato) aluminum (III), bis (2-methyl-5-trifluoromethyl-8-quinolinolato) aluminum (III) -μ
-Oxo-bis (2-methyl-5-trifluoromethyl-8-quinolinolato) aluminum (III) and the like.

Other host materials are disclosed in
Phenylanthracene derivative described in JP-A-12600 (Japanese Patent Application No. 6-110569) and JP-A-8-1296
No. 9 (Japanese Patent Application No. 6-114456) is also preferable.

The light emitting layer may also serve as the electron injection / transport layer. In such a case, it is preferable to use tris (8-quinolinolato) aluminum or the like. These fluorescent substances may be deposited.

The light emitting layer is preferably a mixed layer of at least one kind of hole injecting and transporting compound and at least one kind of electron injecting and transporting compound, if necessary.
Further, it is preferable that a dopant is contained in the mixed layer. The content of the compound in such a mixed layer is preferably 0.01 to 20% by weight, more preferably 0.1 to 15% by weight.

In the mixed layer, a hopping conduction path of carriers is formed, so that each carrier moves in a substance having a favorable polarity, and injection of a carrier having the opposite polarity is unlikely to occur, so that the organic compound is less likely to be damaged. This has the advantage that the element life is extended. Further, by including the above-described dopant in such a mixed layer, the emission wavelength characteristics of the mixed layer itself can be changed, the emission wavelength can be shifted to a longer wavelength, and the emission intensity is increased, The stability of the device can be improved.

The hole injecting / transporting compound and the electron injecting / transporting compound used in the mixed layer may be selected from a compound for a hole injecting / transporting layer and a compound for an electron injecting / transporting layer, respectively. Among them, compounds for the hole injection transport layer include amine derivatives having strong fluorescence,
For example, it is preferable to use a triphenyldiamine derivative which is a hole transport material, a styrylamine derivative, or an amine derivative having an aromatic condensed ring.

As the compound capable of injecting and transporting electrons, it is preferable to use a quinoline derivative, furthermore a metal complex having 8-quinolinol or a derivative thereof as a ligand, particularly tris (8-quinolinolato) aluminum (Alq3). It is also preferable to use the above-mentioned phenylanthracene derivatives and tetraarylethene derivatives.

The mixing ratio in this case depends on the respective carrier mobilities and carrier concentrations. In general, the weight ratio of the compound of the hole injecting / transporting compound / the compound having the electron injecting / transporting function is from 1/99 to less. 99/1, more preferably 10/90 to 90/10, particularly preferably 20/80
It is preferable to set it to about 80/20.

The thickness of the mixed layer is preferably not less than the thickness corresponding to one molecular layer and less than the thickness of the organic compound layer. Specifically, the thickness is preferably 1 to 85 nm, more preferably 5 to 60 nm, particularly preferably 5 to 50 nm.

As a method for forming the mixed layer, co-evaporation in which evaporation is performed from different evaporation sources is preferable. However, when the vapor pressures (evaporation temperatures) are approximately the same or very close, they are mixed in advance in the same evaporation board. Alternatively, it can be deposited. In the mixed layer, it is preferable that the compounds are uniformly mixed, but in some cases, the compounds may exist in an island shape. The light-emitting layer is generally formed to a predetermined thickness by vapor-depositing an organic fluorescent substance or by dispersing and coating the resin in a resin binder.

The hole injecting and transporting layer is described, for example, in JP-A-63-295695 and JP-A-2-19169.
4, JP-A-3-792, JP-A-5-234
681, JP-A-5-239455, JP-A-5-299174, JP-A-7-126225, JP-A-7-126226, JP-A-8-100
Various organic compounds described in JP-A-172, EP0650955A1, and the like can be used. For example, a tetraarylbendicine compound (triaryldiamine or triphenyldiamine: TPD), an aromatic tertiary amine, a hydrazone derivative, a carbazole derivative, a triazole derivative, an imidazole derivative, an oxadiazole derivative having an amino group, polythiophene, etc. . These compounds may be used alone or in combination of two or more. When two or more kinds are used in combination, they may be stacked as separate layers or mixed.

When the hole injecting and transporting layer is provided separately for the hole injecting and transporting layers, a preferred combination can be selected from the compounds for the hole injecting and transporting layer. At this time, it is preferable to laminate the compounds in order from the hole injecting electrode (ITO or the like) with the smallest ionization potential. Further, it is preferable to use a compound having a good thin film property on the surface of the hole injection electrode. Such a stacking order is the same when two or more hole injection transport layers are provided. With such a stacking order, the driving voltage is reduced, and the occurrence of current leakage and the occurrence and growth of dark spots can be prevented. In addition, in the case of forming an element, since a thin film of about 1 to 10 nm can be made uniform and pinhole-free because evaporation is used,
Even if a compound having a small ionization potential and having absorption in the visible region is used for the hole injection layer, it is possible to prevent a change in the color tone of the emission color and a decrease in efficiency due to reabsorption. The hole injecting and transporting layer can be formed by vapor deposition of the above compound in the same manner as the light emitting layer and the like.

The electron injecting and transporting layer, which is provided as necessary, includes a quinoline derivative such as an organometallic complex having 8-quinolinol such as tris (8-quinolinolato) aluminum (Alq3) or a derivative thereof as a ligand. An oxadiazole derivative, a perylene derivative, a pyridine derivative, a pyrimidine derivative, a quinoxaline derivative, a diphenylquinone derivative, a nitro-substituted fluorene derivative, or the like can be used. The electron injection / transport layer may also serve as the light emitting layer. In such a case, it is preferable to use tris (8-quinolinolato) aluminum or the like. The electron injecting and transporting layer may be formed by vapor deposition or the like, similarly to the light emitting layer.

When the electron injecting and transporting layer is divided into an electron injecting layer and an electron transporting layer, a preferable combination can be selected from the compounds for the electron injecting and transporting layer. At this time, it is preferable to stack the compounds in descending order of the electron affinity value from the electron injection electrode side. Such a stacking order is the same when two or more electron injection / transport layers are provided.

In the organic layer, a hole injection / transport layer, an electron injection / transport layer, and the like may be formed of an inorganic material.

For forming the hole injection transport layer, the light emitting layer and the electron injection transport layer, a uniform thin film can be formed.
It is preferable to use a vacuum deposition method. When vacuum deposition is used, the amorphous state or the crystal grain size is 0.2 μm
In particular, a homogeneous thin film of 0.1 μm or less can be obtained. If the crystal grain size exceeds 0.2 μm, especially 0.1 μm, non-uniform light emission occurs, the driving voltage of the element must be increased, and the hole injection efficiency is significantly reduced.

The conditions for vacuum deposition are not particularly limited.
The degree of vacuum is 0 ^-4 Pa or less, and the deposition rate is 0.01 to 1 nm /
It is preferable to set it to about sec. Further, it is preferable to form each layer continuously in a vacuum. If they are formed continuously in a vacuum, impurities can be prevented from adsorbing at the interface between the layers, so that high characteristics can be obtained. Further, the driving voltage of the element can be reduced, and the occurrence and growth of dark spots can be suppressed.

In the case where a plurality of compounds are contained in one layer when a vacuum evaporation method is used for forming each of these layers, it is preferable to co-deposit each boat containing the compounds by individually controlling the temperature.

The emission color may be controlled by using a color filter film, a color conversion film containing a fluorescent substance, or a dielectric reflection film on the substrate. In this case, the underlayer is formed separately from these functional films.

As the color filter film, a color filter used in a liquid crystal display or the like may be used.
The characteristics of the color filter may be adjusted in accordance with the light emitted from the organic EL element to optimize the extraction efficiency and the color purity.

If a color filter capable of cutting off short-wavelength external light that is absorbed by the EL element material or the fluorescence conversion layer is used, the light resistance of the element and the display contrast are improved.

An optical thin film such as a dielectric multilayer film may be used instead of the color filter.

The fluorescence conversion filter film absorbs EL light and emits light from the phosphor in the fluorescence conversion film to convert the color of the emitted light. The composition includes a binder, It is formed from a fluorescent material and a light absorbing material.

As the fluorescent material, basically, a material having a high fluorescence quantum yield may be used, and it is desirable that the fluorescent material has strong absorption in the EL emission wavelength region. In practice, laser dyes and the like are suitable, and rhodamine compounds, perylene compounds, cyanine compounds, phthalocyanine compounds (including subphthalocyanines, etc.) naphthalimide compounds, condensed ring hydrocarbon compounds, condensed heterocyclic compounds A styryl compound, a coumarin compound or the like may be used.

As the binder, basically, a material that does not quench the fluorescence may be selected, and a binder that can be finely patterned by photolithography, printing, or the like is preferable. Further, a material that does not suffer damage during the formation of ITO or IZO is preferable.

The light absorbing material is used when the light absorption of the fluorescent material is insufficient, but may be omitted when unnecessary. As the light absorbing material, a material that does not quench the fluorescence of the fluorescent material may be selected.

The organic EL element is driven by direct current or pulse, and can be driven by alternating current. The applied voltage is usually 2
It is about 30V.

[0107]

EXAMPLES Next, the present invention will be described more specifically with reference to examples. EXAMPLE 1 As shown in FIG. 9, Al (11b) / Cr (11a) were continuously formed as a wiring electrode on a glass substrate to a thickness of 300 nm and 200 nm, respectively, by a sputtering method.
Further, a wiring electrode pattern as shown in FIG. 9 was formed by photolithography. In FIG. 9,
(A) is a plan view, and (B) is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA ′ of (A) (the same applies to FIG. 12 below).

Next, as shown in FIG. 10, an SOG film is formed as an underlayer 1b (insulating film) for forming a groove.
The film was formed to a thickness of μm. By photolithography
A contact hole 13 for connecting an ITO transparent conductive film to be formed later and a wiring electrode was formed. At this time, a groove 2 was also formed at the same time. This etching is performed using Cr (11a)
Dry etching was performed so that the surface was exposed, and SOG was left on the side surface of the wiring electrode 11 where the groove portion was exposed (not shown).

Next, as shown in FIG. 11, ITO (tin-doped indium oxide) was deposited to a thickness of 100 nm as a first electrode layer 3 by sputtering and patterned in an island shape to form a pixel electrode (first electrode). It was set to 3. In this example, the pixel electrodes of the vertical column group are connected via one wiring electrode 11 and are electrically conductive.

Next, as shown in FIG. 12, a polyimide 12 was applied and processed at a temperature (100 to 150 ° C.) at which the polyimide 12 was semi-cured so that it could be etched with a developer. Further, as shown in FIG. 13, the photoresist 13 was patterned so as to fill the groove. FIG. 13 is a sectional view taken along the line CC ′ of FIG.

Subsequently, as shown in FIG.
4 was applied and patterned so as to form an eaves.
At this time, the polyimide 12 is partially etched and is processed for a developing time that slightly remains on the substrate side.
The shape as shown in FIG. Note that FIG.
FIG. 15 is a sectional view taken along the line CC ′ of FIG. 14.

Next, as shown in FIG. 16, an organic layer 5 including a light emitting layer was formed by a vapor deposition method. First, N, N'-bis (m-methylphenyl) -N, N'-diphenyl-1,1'-biphenyl-4,4'-diamine (N, N'-bis) was formed as a hole injection layer and a hole transport layer. (M-methyl pheny
l) -N, N'-diphenyl-1,1'-biphenyl-4,4'-diamine or less T
PD) is used as a light emitting layer and an electron transporting layer.
-Hydroxyquinoline) aluminum (tris (8-hydro
xyquinoline (hereinafter abbreviated as Alq3) was formed while rotating the substrate. The film thickness was 50 nm and 50 nm, respectively.

Further, an Mg / Ag alloy (weight ratio: 10: 1) was continuously deposited as the second electrode 6 without breaking the vacuum. The film thickness was 200 nm. The second electrode 6 was deposited obliquely from a direction substantially perpendicular to the extending direction of the groove without rotating the substrate so as not to completely cover the groove portion.

As is clear from the gist, the present invention is not limited to the organic EL element constituting films used in this experimental example and the order of lamination thereof. Other materials are used for the hole injection layer, the light emitting layer, and the second electrode. Alternatively, a hole injection layer, an electron transport layer, an electron injection layer, and the like may be formed to form a multilayer structure. In other words, the present invention can be applied regardless of the type and structure of the material to be formed. Furthermore, PPV (poly phenylene vinylen)
e) In organic light-emitting materials that can form a film by coating, etc., the depth of the groove is reduced due to the fluidity of the material, but it can be applied if a groove of sufficient depth is formed. It is. Generally, the thickness of this coating type material is 10
Since it is about 0 nm, a groove depth of 500 nm or more is sufficient.

Example 2 After filling the groove with polyimide 12 in Example 1, a 100 nm film of SiO ₂ was formed by sputtering, and then the auxiliary electrode 1 of the second electrode 6 was formed.
As No. 5, an Al film having a thickness of 1500 nm was formed. After forming a pattern with a resist, phosphoric acid, nitric acid, and Al heated to 45 ° C.
Etching was performed with an acetic acid mixture. At this time, the etching time is sufficiently extended to be 2 μm on one side from the resist pattern 14.
I made it smaller. Further, SiO ₂ was etched by dry etching, and ashing was subsequently performed to form a groove with an undercut as in Example 1. In this way, as shown in FIG. 17, a pattern of the Al auxiliary electrode 15 slightly smaller than the pattern of the resist 14 was formed in a self-aligned manner.

Further, an organic layer 5 including a light emitting layer was formed in the same manner as in Example 1, and a second electrode 6 was formed to a thickness of 70 nm by sputtering. As shown in FIG.
Since the auxiliary electrode 15 formed thereon was formed at a step close to 90 °, the organic layer 5 could not be completely covered, and as a result, the auxiliary electrode 15 and the second electrode 6 were electrically connected.

Although the thickness of the second electrode 6 is small and the resistance is not sufficiently low, the auxiliary electrode 15 prevents a voltage drop, so that a display with less unevenness can be made over the entire screen.

[Embodiment 3] In this embodiment, the conditions for forming the wiring electrodes are the same as those in Embodiment 1 and will not be described. However,
The wiring electrodes formed in the grooves had a pattern with a thickness of 2 to 3 μm. Further, in the drawings, attention is paid to the grooves.

As shown in FIG. 18, on a glass substrate 1,
A yellow color filter 12d having a thickness of 2 μm was applied and patterned so that the groove structure 2 was formed. Next, as shown in FIG. 19, as the first electrode 3, an ITO film was formed and then patterned.

Next, as shown in FIG.
As a, 1 μm of polyimide was applied and dried at 120 ° C. for 1 hour, and further, as shown in FIG. 21, a negative resist was applied as 1 μm as a structure overhang portion 9b,
Dried. When exposure is performed from the substrate 1 side, only the portion of the groove structure 2 is exposed. Therefore, when development is performed, an element isolation structure 9 having an overhang portion 9b in the groove structure 2 as shown in FIG. 22 is formed. At this time, it is desirable to use stray light and expose with a sufficient amount of light so that the negative resist on the wiring electrode is also exposed. In this example, the example in which the exposure is performed from the back surface side of the substrate 1 is shown, but the exposure may be performed from the film surface (front surface) side.

Example 4 The procedure up to the application of the polyimide was carried out in the same manner as in Example 3, and the polyimide was left only in the groove as in Example 1. The remaining polyimide was further cured at 200 ° C. so as not to dissolve in the developer. next,
A positive resist was applied and dried. After exposure with a mask covering the groove structure 2, exposure was also performed from the back surface and development was performed. As shown in FIG. 23, since the tapered portion of the groove structure 2 blocks ultraviolet light, the groove structure 2 having the overhang portion 8 was formed.

[Embodiment 5] This embodiment shows an example in which a display having a diagonal of 2.5 inches and a number of dots of 640 × 480 is manufactured. The size of one dot is as small as 80 μm × 80 μm. If an element isolation structure protruding from the element deposition surface on the substrate is used, the effective light emitting area becomes very small. The present invention is very effective when such high definition is required.

First, as shown in FIG. 24, 1.5 μm of Al—Sc (11c)
(11a) was continuously formed into a film having a thickness of 0.2 μm and patterned by a dry etching method to form a wiring electrode 11. In addition,
In FIG. 24, (A) is a plan view, and (B) is a cross section B-
FIG. 28 is a view taken in the direction of arrow B ′ (the same applies to FIG. 27 hereinafter).

Further, as shown in FIG. 25, the underlayer 1c
A highly transparent photosensitive acrylic resin was formed to a thickness of 3 μm. A contact hole 13 is formed in the base layer 1c, and a first electrode layer 3 to be formed next is formed.
And the wiring electrode 11 are connected.

Next, as shown in FIG. 26, the first electrode 3
As in Example 1, an ITO film was formed. ITO is connected to the wiring electrode 1 through the contact hole 13 as described above.
1 was connected. The ITO of each pixel was patterned in an island shape as shown in FIG.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 27 and 28, SiO ₂ was formed as the insulating layer 4 to a thickness of 300 nm by sputtering.
Patterning was performed so as to remain on both sides of the contact hole portion and the portion where the groove is to be formed. 28 is the same as FIG.
(A) is a sectional view taken along the line CC ′. Etching of SiO ₂ was performed by a dry etching method, and etching was performed so that the pattern edge had a taper angle of 10 to 30 ° as shown in FIGS. Etching conditions were RF power of 2 W / cm ² , CF ₄ / O ₂ = 80/20 sccm, gas pressure of 100 mTorr (13.3 Pa), and treatment was performed for 2 minutes.
The surface of the ITO and the surface of the acrylic resin film were exposed in the pixel portion.

Subsequently, without breaking the vacuum, the RF power 2
W / cm ² , O ₂ = 100 sccm, gas pressure 500 mTorr (6
Ashing was performed at 6.7 Pa) for 2 minutes. At this time, the exposed underlying layer 1c was ashed together with the photoresist, as shown in FIG. 29, to form not only a groove but also a groove structure 2 having an undercut under the insulating layer 4. By forming the undercut in this manner, adjacent second electrodes 6 can be electrically separated from each other irrespective of the incident direction of the second electrode material or wiring material to be formed later on the substrate. It is now possible. Here, a structure in which the step portion of the ITO is covered with the insulating layer 4 was simultaneously employed in order to reduce the leak failure at the step portion of the ITO. This eliminates the need to provide a new step of covering the ITO step with an insulating film.

A light-emitting element was formed by forming the following material into a film in order to emit white light. In this embodiment, an EL material which emits yellow light and blue light is used.

As a hole injection layer, poly (thiophene-
2,5 diyl) was formed to a thickness of 10 nm, and a film of TPD doped with rubrene at a ratio of 1 wt% as a hole transport layer and a yellow light emitting layer was formed to a thickness of 5 nm by co-evaporation. The concentration of rubrene is preferably about 0.1 to 10% by weight, and light is emitted with high efficiency at this concentration. The concentration may be determined from the color balance of the luminescent color, and depends on the light intensity and the wavelength spectrum of the blue luminescent layer to be formed thereafter. Further, as a blue light emitting layer,
'-Bis [(1,1,2-triphenyl) ethenyl] biphenyl is 50 nm, and Alq3 is 10 nm as an electron transport layer.
This was formed into an organic layer 5.

Next, an Al.Li alloy and Al were formed as the second electrode 6 by sputtering without breaking vacuum. As shown in FIG. 30, the second electrode 6 could be separated when an undercut was formed in the groove structure 2 even when a method having relatively good step coverage such as a sputtering method was used.

Finally, a glass plate was bonded and sealed in a dry N ₂ atmosphere to complete a display panel.

It was confirmed that the display thus manufactured had high reliability because the display was bright and the film was formed without breaking the vacuum. According to this structure and method,
Not only can the second electrode be separated in a stripe shape, but also the second electrode having a meandering structure can be separated.

[Embodiment 6] In the embodiment 5, the SiO ₂
After the formation of the insulating layer 4, an Al film having a thickness of 1500 nm was successively formed as the auxiliary electrode 15 of the second electrode. A pattern was formed on the resist, and Al was etched with a mixed solution of phosphoric acid, nitric acid and acetic acid heated to 45 ° C. At this time, make the etching time sufficiently long, and set 2 μm on one side from the resist pattern.
I made it smaller. SiO ₂ was etched in the same manner as in Example 5, and undercut grooves 2 were formed by ashing. Thus, as shown in FIG. 31, an Al auxiliary electrode 15 pattern slightly smaller than the SiO ₂ pattern was formed in a self-aligned manner.

Further, an organic layer 5 including a light emitting layer was formed in the same manner as in Example 5, and a second electrode 6 was formed to a thickness of 70 nm by sputtering. As shown in FIG. 31, the insulating layer (Si
Since the auxiliary electrode 15 formed on O ₂ ) 4 was formed at a step close to 90 °, the organic layer 5 could not be completely covered, and as a result, the auxiliary electrode 15 and the second electrode 6 were electrically connected.

Although the thickness of the second electrode 6 is thin and the resistance is not sufficiently low, the auxiliary electrode 15 prevents a voltage drop, so that display with less unevenness over the entire screen becomes possible.

As is clear from the above-described embodiments, the present invention makes it possible to manufacture a highly reliable organic EL display device having a large light emitting area. Further, as shown in Example 5, the number of manufacturing steps can be reduced, and the cost can be reduced.

[0137]

As described above, according to the present invention, the ratio of the light emitting region is wide, the reliability is high, a large substrate can be used, and a large number of displays are arranged on one substrate. Thus, an organic EL display device and a method for manufacturing the same that can reduce the manufacturing cost can be provided.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a basic configuration example of an organic EL display device of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line A-A 'in FIG.

FIG. 3 is a partial sectional view showing a first configuration example of the organic EL display device of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a film formation state of a second electrode when the direction of incidence of film-forming particles on a substrate changes in FIG.

FIG. 5 is a partial sectional view showing a second configuration example of the organic EL display device of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a partial sectional view showing a third configuration example of the organic EL display device of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a partial sectional view showing a fourth configuration example of the organic EL display device of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a partial sectional view showing a fifth configuration example of the organic EL display device of the present invention.

FIG. 9A is a plan view showing a manufacturing process according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 9B is a sectional view taken along the line BB ′ of FIG.

FIG. 10A is a plan view showing a manufacturing process according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 10B is a sectional view taken along the line BB ′ of FIG.

FIG. 11A is a plan view showing a manufacturing process according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 11B is a sectional view taken along the line BB ′ of FIG.

FIG. 12A is a plan view illustrating a manufacturing process according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 12B is a sectional view taken along the line BB ′ of FIG.

FIG. 13 shows a manufacturing process of the first embodiment of the present invention.
5 is a sectional view taken along the line CC ′ in FIG.

FIG. 14 is a plan view showing a manufacturing step according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 15 shows a manufacturing process of the first embodiment of the present invention.
5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line CC ′ of FIG.

FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view showing a manufacturing step of the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 17 is a cross-sectional view showing a manufacturing step according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 18 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a manufacturing process according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 19 is a cross-sectional view showing a manufacturing step of the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 20 is a cross-sectional view showing a manufacturing process according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 21 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a manufacturing process according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 22 is a cross-sectional view showing a manufacturing step according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 23 is a cross-sectional view showing a manufacturing step according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 24A is a plan view showing a manufacturing step of the fifth embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 24B is a sectional view taken along the line BB ′ of FIG.

FIG. 25 (A) is a plan view showing a manufacturing step in Example 5 of the present invention, and FIG. 25 (B) is a sectional view taken along the line BB ′ of FIG.

26 (A) is a plan view showing a manufacturing step in Example 5 of the present invention, and FIG. 26 (B) is a sectional view taken along the line BB ′ of FIG.

FIG. 27A is a plan view showing a manufacturing step of the fifth embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 27B is a sectional view taken along the line BB ′ of FIG.

FIG. 28 is a diagram showing a manufacturing process according to the fifth embodiment of the present invention.
5 is a sectional view taken along the line CC ′ in FIG.

FIG. 29 is a cross-sectional view showing a manufacturing step in Example 5 of the present invention.

FIG. 30 is a cross-sectional view showing a manufacturing step in Example 5 of the present invention.

FIG. 31 is a cross-sectional view showing a manufacturing step in Example 6 of the present invention.

FIG. 32 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a conventional method for manufacturing an organic EL display having barrier ribs.

FIG. 33 is a schematic view showing a state of conventional oblique deposition.

FIG. 34 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a film formation state in a portion A of FIG. 34.

FIG. 35 is a partial cross-sectional view showing a film formation state in a portion B of FIG. 34B.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Substrate 1a, 1b, 1c Underlayer 2 Groove structure 3 First electrode 4 Insulating layer 5 Organic layer 6 Second electrode 7 Film-forming particle 11 Wiring electrode 13 Contact hole

──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continuation of the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ identification code FI H05B 33/26 H05B 33/26 Z (58) Fields investigated (Int. Cl. ⁷ , DB name) H05B 33/00-33 / 28 G09F 9/30

Claims (19)

(57) [Claims] 1. A wiring electrode, a first electrode connected to the wiring electrode via a contact hole, one or more organic layers involved in a light emitting function, and a second electrode. Having a plurality of organic EL element structures capable of independently emitting light electrically, and having adjacent organic EL elements at a boundary between adjacent organic EL element structures
A groove structure for separating a second electrode of an element structure, wherein the wiring electrode is formed at least in an area other than a light emitting area functioning as a pixel between adjacent first electrodes; EL display device. 2. The organic EL display device according to claim 1, wherein a part of the first electrode is formed on the contact hole, and an insulating layer is formed between the first electrode and an organic layer thereover. 3. The contact hole is disposed in contact with at least one side of a first electrode having a substantially polygonal shape, and the first electrode is electrically connected to a wiring electrode via the contact hole. The organic EL display device according to claim 1. 4. The method according to claim 1, wherein the depth of the groove structure is determined by an organic layer and a second layer.
2 to 20 times the total thickness of the electrode layers of
3. The organic EL display device according to any one of 3. 5. An overhang portion is formed near at least one opening of the groove structure in a direction substantially parallel to the substrate and protruding toward a center of the groove structure. Any organic EL display device. 6. The organic EL display device according to claim 5, wherein the overhang portions are formed near both openings of the groove structure. 7. The bottom of the groove structure has a three-dimensional structure protruding in a direction perpendicular to a substrate surface and having a height equal to or lower than a second electrode layer in the light emitting region.
The organic EL display device according to any one of the above. 8. The organic EL display device according to claim 7, wherein the three-dimensional structure has a larger width at the upper end side than at the bottom side of the groove structure. 9. The overhang portion is formed of an insulating material, and a portion of the overhang portion is formed on a substrate or a base layer and is formed so as to cover a portion of the first electrode. Item 9. The organic EL display device according to any one of Items 5 to 8. 10. The organic EL display device according to claim 5, wherein the overhang portion is formed at a height of 10 nm to 5 μm from an opening end of the groove structure. 11. A method according to claim 5, wherein the overhang portion formed on the substrate or the underlayer has a step portion or an end portion having a taper angle of 45 degrees or less with respect to a film formation surface. Any organic EL display device. 12. The organic EL display device according to claim 5, wherein a conductive film having a thickness of 2 μm or less is formed on at least a part of the overhang portion. 13. A step of forming a wiring electrode on an insulating substrate, a step of forming a base layer on the substrate on which the wiring electrode is formed, and a step of forming a groove structure in the base layer formed on the substrate. A step of forming a first electrode, a step of forming at least an organic layer involved in a light-emitting function, and a step of forming a second electrode. When forming the second electrode, A method of manufacturing an organic EL display device in which the second electrode is separated at a formed groove structure portion using a method with low step coverage. 14. The method for manufacturing an organic EL display device according to claim 13, wherein a part of the first electrode is formed on the contact hole and an insulating layer is formed between the first electrode and the organic layer on the first electrode. 15. The method according to claim 13, wherein the first electrode, the organic layer, and the second electrode are formed by a vapor deposition method. 16. The method for manufacturing an organic EL display device according to claim 13, wherein said second electrode is formed by oblique evaporation. 17. When forming the groove structure or after forming the groove structure, the groove structure protrudes near at least one opening of the groove structure in a direction substantially parallel to the substrate and in the center direction of the groove structure. 17. The method of manufacturing an organic EL display device according to claim 13, further comprising a step of forming an overhang portion. 18. When forming the groove structure, a three-dimensional structure is formed which protrudes from the bottom of the groove structure in a direction perpendicular to the substrate surface and has a height equal to or lower than the second electrode layer in the light emitting region. The method for manufacturing an organic EL display device according to claim 13. 19. The method according to claim 19, wherein when forming the overhang portion, an insulating material is used, and a part thereof is formed on a substrate or a base layer so as to cover a part of the first electrode. A method for manufacturing an organic EL display device according to item 17 or 18.