JP6244121B2 - Method for manufacturing an electrical device having a transparent electrode - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a method for manufacturing an electrical device having a transparent electrode.

  A method of patterning a transparent electrode of a liquid crystal display element with a laser beam has been proposed (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Patterning of the transparent electrode with laser light has advantages such as a simple apparatus configuration, no photomask, and no drainage treatment, compared to patterning by photolithography and wet etching, for example. However, patterning with laser light has a problem that it takes time to process, and is difficult to use for mass production.

Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 8-33993

  An object of the present invention is to provide a technique capable of shortening a patterning process using laser light of a transparent electrode.

  Another object of the present invention is to provide a novel patterning technique using laser light of a transparent electrode.

According to one aspect of the present invention,
(A) The first transparent electrode layer and the second transparent electrode layer are opposed to the first transparent substrate on which the first transparent electrode layer is formed and the second transparent substrate on which the second transparent electrode layer is formed. Forming a laminated substrate structure including a first laminated substrate stacked in such a manner;
(B) The laminated substrate structure is irradiated with laser light, and the first transparent electrode layer and the second transparent electrode layer in the region irradiated with the laser light are replaced with the first transparent substrate and the second transparent substrate. A step of peeling from
(C) The peeled portion of the first transparent electrode layer is removed by washing to form a first electrode pattern, and the peeled portion of the second transparent electrode layer is removed by washing to remove the second electrode pattern. And a method of manufacturing an electrical device having a transparent electrode.

  Since the opposing first and second transparent electrode layers can be simultaneously patterned by laser light irradiation, the transparent electrode layer can be shortened as compared with the method of patterning the transparent electrode layers one by one by laser light irradiation. Moreover, since the laser light irradiation is performed in a state where the first and second transparent electrode layers are sandwiched between the first and second transparent substrates, scattering of the electrode material is prevented.

1A to 1E are schematic cross-sectional views illustrating a manufacturing process of a liquid crystal display device according to the first embodiment. 1F and 1G are schematic cross-sectional views illustrating the manufacturing process of the liquid crystal display element according to the first embodiment. 2A and 2B are photographs showing a glass substrate after laser light irradiation and a glass substrate after cleaning in the manufacturing process of the liquid crystal display element according to the first embodiment, respectively. FIG. 3A and FIG. 3B are schematic plan views of the substrate schematically showing the cell forming process according to the embodiment. 3C to 3E are schematic plan views of the substrate schematically showing the cell forming process according to the embodiment. FIG. 4A is a schematic cross-sectional view of a sample whose electrode pattern shape was measured, and FIG. 4B is a graph showing the surface shape of the electrode pattern according to the example. 4C and 4D are graphs showing the surface shape of the electrode pattern according to the first comparative example. 5A and 5B are schematic plan views of a substrate schematically showing a cell forming process according to a modification. FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device according to the second embodiment. 7A and 7B are photographs showing a film substrate after laser light irradiation and a film substrate after cleaning in the manufacturing process of the liquid crystal display device according to the second embodiment, respectively. It is the flowchart which put together the flow of the manufacturing process of the liquid crystal display element by 1st, 2nd Example.

  A method of manufacturing the liquid crystal display device according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described. 1A to 1G are schematic cross-sectional views illustrating a manufacturing process of a liquid crystal display element according to the first embodiment.

  Reference is made to FIG. 1A. A transparent substrate 1a with an electrode layer in which a transparent electrode layer 2 is formed on a transparent insulating substrate 1 is prepared. The transparent insulating substrate 1 is, for example, a glass substrate, and the transparent electrode layer 2 is, for example, an indium tin oxide (ITO) layer. Moreover, the transparent substrate 11a with an electrode layer similar to the transparent substrate 1a with an electrode layer in which the transparent electrode layer 12 is formed on the transparent insulating substrate 11 is prepared.

  Refer to FIG. 1B. The laminated substrate structure LAM is formed by stacking the transparent insulating substrate 1 and the transparent insulating substrate 11 so that the transparent electrode layer 2 and the transparent electrode layer 12 face each other.

  Reference is made to FIG. 1C. For example, the transparent electrode layers 2 and 12 formed of ITO can be peeled and removed by ablation or evaporation by heat by laser light irradiation under appropriate conditions. The portion REM unnecessary for the electrode pattern of the transparent electrode layers 2 and 12 is irradiated with the laser beam LB via one transparent substrate (for example, the substrate 11) of the laminated substrate LAM, and the unnecessary portion REM is removed from the transparent substrates 1 and 11. Peel and remove.

  FIG. 1C also schematically illustrates a laser light irradiation optical system 201. The irradiation optical system 201 includes a laser light source 202 and a scanning optical system 203. As the laser light source 202, for example, a YAG laser light source, a YVO laser light source, or the like is used, and the wavelength is, for example, a fundamental wave of 1064 nm, a second harmonic wave of 532 nm, a third harmonic wave of 355 nm, or the like. Laser irradiation conditions such as wavelength, laser output, and repetitive pulse width can be selected so that the transparent electrode layers 2 and 12 can be completely removed in the laser light irradiation region. Through experiments, it was confirmed that patterning was possible without problems at wavelengths of 1064 nm, 532 nm, and 355 nm. Although there is no restriction | limiting in particular in a wavelength, For example, the range of 350 nm-1500 nm will be preferable.

  For example, the scanning optical system 203 scans the laser beam while changing the traveling direction of the laser beam LB. For example, a galvanometer mirror or a digital micromirror device (DMD) can be used. By scanning with the laser beam LB, the desired region REM can be selectively irradiated with the laser beam. Scanning may be performed by fixing the traveling direction of the laser light and moving the laminated substrate LAM with an XY table. If the relative position between the laminated substrate LAM and the laser beam can be changed, scanning can be performed.

  Reference is made to FIG. 1D. After the laser beam irradiation, the transparent substrate 1 and the transparent substrate 11 are separated. The unnecessary portion REM irradiated with the laser light of the transparent electrode layer 2 is removed by cleaning, and the transparent electrode pattern 2p is formed on the transparent substrate 1.

  Reference is made to FIG. 1E. Further, the unnecessary portion REM irradiated with the laser light of the transparent electrode layer 12 is removed by cleaning, and the transparent electrode pattern 12 p is formed on the transparent substrate 11.

  Since the laser beam irradiation was performed in a state where the transparent electrode layer 2 and the transparent electrode layer 12 face each other, the transparent electrode pattern 2p and the transparent electrode pattern 12p do not have the same shape but are inverted from each other (mirror symmetrical shape). Formed.

  Reference is made to FIG. 1F. Hereinafter, formation of the cell using the transparent substrate 1 will be exemplified. An alignment film 3 is formed on the transparent substrate 1 so as to cover the transparent electrode pattern 2p, and an alignment process is performed by rubbing or the like.

  Reference is made to FIG. 1G. A transparent insulating substrate 21 having a transparent electrode pattern 22p on the opposite side is prepared. An alignment film 23 is formed on the transparent substrate 21 so as to cover the transparent electrode pattern 22p, and an alignment process is performed by rubbing or the like.

  The transparent substrates 1 and 21 face each other so that the alignment films 3 and 23 face each other, thereby forming an empty cell. Liquid crystal is injected into the empty cell to form the liquid crystal layer 4 to form a liquid crystal cell. The polarizing plates 5 and 25 are bonded to both surfaces of the substrate of the liquid crystal cell. In this way, the liquid crystal display element according to the first embodiment is formed.

  Next, a more specific manufacturing example of the liquid crystal display element according to the first embodiment will be described. As a substrate with an electrode layer, a glass substrate on which an ITO layer was formed was prepared. The glass substrate has a size of 35 cm × 36 cm, a thickness of 0.7 mm, and is made of blue plate glass. The ITO layer is 200 nm thick. A pair of substrates with electrode layers were stacked with the ITO layers facing each other.

  The electrode layer removal area for forming the electrode pattern, that is, the laser beam irradiation area, is set using the ITO wiring pattern design data (CAD data) for a simple matrix liquid crystal display (LCD) that is used in normal mass production. did. By controlling scanning of a galvanometer mirror or the like based on the CAD data, it is possible to irradiate a desired region with laser light.

  The electrode pattern of this production example is a two-sided reversible substrate. Two substrates, which are reversible substrates having the same electrode pattern, are arranged so that electrode pattern portions forming each cell face each other, and two cells are formed simultaneously.

  A YVO laser with a wavelength of 1064 nm was used as the laser light source, the laser output was 10 W, the LD power was 60%, and the repetition pulse period was 40 kHz. The laser spot size was 100 μm in diameter. Laser light scanning was performed with a galvanometer mirror, and the scanning speed was 300 mm / sec. For example, by scanning 10 times while shifting the laser spot position in the direction orthogonal to the scanning direction, the belt-shaped region having a width of about 1 mm was irradiated with the laser beam.

  The laser beam irradiation conditions can be set as appropriate according to each processing. For example, the laser output can be set within a range of 10 W to 100 W, the repetitive pulse period is 10 kHz to 100 kHz, and the laser spot size is about 10 μm to 200 μm in diameter. In addition, although a strip-shaped process is illustrated, an electrode pattern having an arbitrary shape can be formed by changing the scanning direction as necessary.

  When the laminated substrate after laser light irradiation was visually observed, it was in a state where a cloudy mark was seen in a predetermined shape irradiated with the laser light.

  FIG. 2A shows an enlarged photograph of one glass substrate separated from the laminated substrate. A dark belt-like region extending in the left-right direction at the center is a laser light irradiation region. Innumerable powdery foreign substances are attached to the laser light irradiation region, which is considered to be a state where ITO particles peeled off from the substrate by laser light irradiation are deposited. It has been found that such foreign matters can be easily removed by washing with water or the like.

  The actual cleaning was performed using a cleaning machine. The cleaning method was performed in the order of brush cleaning using alkali cleaning, pure water cleaning, air blow, UV irradiation, and IR drying. The cleaning method is not limited to this, and high-pressure spray cleaning, plasma cleaning, or the like may be performed.

  FIG. 2B shows an enlarged photograph of the glass substrate after cleaning. It turns out that the powdery foreign material seen before the washing | cleaning of FIG. 2A is lose | eliminated. Further, no white turbidity was observed by visual observation, and it appeared transparent.

  Thus, it was found that two transparent electrode layers sandwiched between transparent substrates can be simultaneously patterned. On the laser emission side substrate of the multilayer substrate, an electrode pattern having the same shape as that obtained by patterning using photolithography and etching as in the prior art was obtained. In the laser incident side substrate, an inverted electrode pattern was obtained.

  Other laminated substrates were processed so as to have the same electrode pattern to form a laser emission side substrate and a laser incident side substrate. Since it is a reversible substrate, a cell is formed by pairing laser emission side substrates having the same electrode pattern. Further, a cell is formed by pairing laser incident side substrates having the same electrode pattern (having an inverted shape with respect to the electrode pattern of the laser emission side substrate).

  The alignment film is formed, for example, with a thickness of 50 nm to 80 nm by flexographic printing or the like, for example, SE-410 manufactured by Nissan Chemical. An alignment process such as rubbing was performed so that the alignment direction between the upper and lower substrates was shifted by 90 °.

  A main sealant (made by Mitsui Chemicals Co., Ltd.) with a gap control agent (Sekisui Chemical Co., Ltd., Micropearl 5 microns, etc.) sprayed on one substrate forming the cell and plastic fiber (diameter 5 μm) added to the other substrate. ES-7500 etc.) was applied with a dispenser.

  After baking both substrates in a stacked and pressed state, the glass was divided to separate each cell from the two-chamfered substrate, and liquid crystal was vacuum injected. Here, nematic liquid crystal having a positive Δε was used. After injection, the injection port was end-sealed, the cell was washed, and then a polarizing plate was pasted so as to be crossed Nicol, thereby completing a liquid crystal display element.

  The first liquid crystal display element formed by the laser emission side substrate had the same display appearance as the conventional liquid crystal display element manufactured by the substrate on which the electrode pattern was formed by photolithography and etching. On the other hand, the second liquid crystal display element formed by the laser incident side substrate has a display appearance that is reversed left and right with respect to the conventional liquid crystal display element.

  However, the same display appearance as that of the conventional liquid crystal display element was obtained by observing the second liquid crystal display element by inverting it upside down. An element obtained by inverting the second liquid crystal display element formed by the laser incident side substrate can obtain the same display appearance as the first liquid crystal display element formed by the laser emission side substrate, but is taken out to be connected to the drive circuit. The position to attach the terminal is upside down. There was no difference in use except that the terminal positions were reversed. Such a situation will be described below with reference to schematic diagrams.

  3A to 3E are schematic plan views of the substrate. 3A and 3B show a pair of laser emission side substrates and a pair of laser incident side substrates, respectively. The relationship forming a pair of cells is indicated by double arrows. An electrode pattern is formed on the front side of the paper. One substrate has a two-sided pattern in which a region marked with A and a region marked with B are partitioned. The A region and the B region are overlapped to form one cell. For the convenience of indicating the direction, a black circle is attached to the lower left corner of the letter A, and a black circle is attached to the lower edge of the letter B. The hatched portions indicate the extraction electrode portions to which the extraction terminals are attached in the electrode pattern.

  3C and 3D respectively show a cell in which the A region and the B region of the pair of laser emission side substrates are overlapped and a cell in which the A region and the B region of the pair of laser incident side substrates are overlapped. The A region and the terminal region are arranged on the front side (upper side) substrate, and the letter A and the hatching of the extraction electrode portion are indicated by solid lines. The B region is arranged on the back side (lower side) substrate, and the letter B is indicated by a broken line.

  As can be seen from the arrangement of the letters AB, the display appearance (FIG. 3D) of the cell formed on the laser incident side substrate is reversed with respect to the display appearance (FIG. 3C) of the cell formed on the laser emission side substrate. (Mirror symmetrical shape).

  FIG. 3E shows the cell (FIG. 3D) formed on the laser incident side substrate inverted upside down. B area | region is arrange | positioned at the front side (upper side) board | substrate, and the character of B is shown as a continuous line. The A region and the terminal region are arranged on the back side (lower side) substrate, and the letter A and the hatching of the extraction electrode portion are indicated by broken lines.

  A cell (FIG. 3C) formed on the laser emission side substrate and a cell (FIG. 3E) obtained by inverting the cell formed on the laser incident side substrate upside down (up and down) can obtain the same display appearance. However, in both cells, the terminal positions are upside down.

  As described above, in the manufacture of the liquid crystal display element using the substrate simultaneously formed by the electrode patterning method of the embodiment, the arrangement of the electrode patterns is reversed (upside down) even in the same model that can obtain the same display appearance. Thus, there are two types of electrodes, that is, the electrode on the front (upper) side of the display and the electrode on the lower (back) side. The difference between the front and back electrodes (up and down) does not particularly hinder the liquid crystal display device product.

  As described above, according to the method of the embodiment, two electrode layers that are stacked opposite to each other can be simultaneously patterned by laser light irradiation. Thereby, for example, the electrode patterning process can be shortened as compared with a method of patterning an electrode layer by irradiating a laser beam from the electrode layer side by one substrate (this is referred to as a first comparative example).

  In the electrode patterning method of the embodiment, laser light irradiation is performed with two electrode layers sandwiched between upper and lower substrates. Thereby, the electrode material peeled off from the substrate is not scattered around. On the other hand, in the first comparative example, the electrode material peeled off from the substrate is scattered. It is desirable that the fine powder of the electrode material should not be scattered due to concerns about adverse effects on the human body (nano risk). As described below, the electrode patterns of the example and the first comparative example were found to have different edge cross-sectional shapes.

  FIG. 4A is a schematic cross-sectional view of a sample obtained by measuring an electrode pattern cross-sectional shape. An electrode pattern 102 made of ITO is formed on the glass substrate 101. The shape of the electrode pattern 102 having a width of about 1 mm was measured.

  4B to 4D are graphs showing the surface shape of the electrode pattern. 4B is an electrode pattern (laser emission side substrate) formed by the method of the first embodiment, and FIGS. 4C and 4D are electrode patterns (laser light irradiation from the electrode layer side) formed by the method of the first comparative example. . The horizontal axis indicates the position in the width direction, and the vertical axis indicates the thickness.

  The electrode pattern of the first comparative example was found to have prominent protrusions in the thickness direction at both edges in the width direction. The height of the protruding portion of the first comparative example is about 10% to 40% with respect to an average film thickness of about 150 nm (1500 mm).

  Compared to the first comparative example, it was found that the electrode pattern of the first example has high flatness because protrusion at both edges in the width direction is suppressed. Note that when an electrode pattern formed by wet etching is considered as the second comparative example, both edge portions in the width direction of the electrode pattern have a shape in which the protruding portion is not formed but rather the film thickness is reduced. It can be said that the electrode pattern formed by the method of the example is characterized in that the protruding portion formed at the edge portion has a height from the average film thickness of less than 10% with respect to the average film thickness.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where a reversible substrate is used has been described. However, cells other than the reversible substrate can be formed. 5A and 5B are schematic plan views showing a cell forming method according to a modification that does not use a reversible substrate.

  5A and 5B each show a pair of substrates forming a cell. A substrate with A and a substrate with B are a pair. In the electrode patterning method of the embodiment, electrode patterns having inverted shapes (mirror symmetry shapes) are formed in pairs. The substrate denoted by A in FIG. 5A and the substrate denoted by A in FIG. 5B are a pair of substrates in which the electrode pattern is inverted, which are simultaneously formed by the method of the embodiment. 5B and the substrate shown in FIG. 5B are also formed at the same time by the method of the embodiment, and a pair of inverted electrode patterns. It is a substrate.

  Similar to the case of the reversible substrate with reference to FIGS. 3A to 3E, the display appearance of the cell formed by the pair of substrates shown in FIG. 5A and the display appearance of the cell formed by the pair of substrates shown in FIG. 5B Is an inverted shape as it is. By reversing one side upside down (up and down), the display appearance can be made the same. However, the front and back (upper and lower) of the electrode pattern arrangement are reversed in both cells.

  When a reversible substrate is used, two pairs of one type of laminated substrate are processed so that a first substrate having a certain electrode pattern (the substrate on the left side in FIG. 3A) and an electrode having a shape reversed from the first substrate (mirror symmetrical shape) A second substrate having a pattern (a left substrate in FIG. 3B), a third substrate having the same electrode pattern as the first substrate and forming a cell with the first substrate (a right substrate in FIG. 3A), and a third substrate; A fourth substrate (a substrate on the right side of FIG. 3B) having an inverted electrode pattern (mirror symmetry shape) and forming a cell with the second substrate can be obtained.

  When the substrate is not a reversible substrate, two types of laminated substrates are processed one by one, whereby a first substrate having a certain electrode pattern (the substrate on the left side in FIG. 5A) and an electrode having a shape reversed from the first substrate (mirror symmetrical shape). A second substrate having a pattern (a left substrate in FIG. 5B), a third substrate (a right substrate in FIG. 5A) forming a cell with the first substrate, and an electrode pattern having a shape reversed from the third substrate (a mirror symmetrical shape) And a fourth substrate (a substrate on the right side of FIG. 5B) that forms a cell with the second substrate.

  Next, a method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device according to the second embodiment will be described. In the first example, the transparent electrode layer on the glass substrate was patterned. In the second embodiment, a flexible film substrate is used as the transparent substrate, and the transparent electrode layer on the film substrate is patterned.

  In the first example, the transparent electrode layers of two (a pair of) glass substrates were simultaneously processed. In the second embodiment, the transparent electrode layers on a plurality of pairs of film substrates are simultaneously processed by utilizing the fact that the film substrate is thinner than the glass substrate.

  FIG. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device according to the second embodiment. Transparent electrode layers 32 to 82 are formed on the transparent insulating substrates 31 to 81, respectively. The transparent insulating substrate of the second embodiment is a film substrate, and an organic polymer film such as polycarbonate or polyethylene terephthalate (PET) can be used. As the transparent electrode layer, a metal oxide film such as an ITO layer or an indium zinc oxide (IZO) layer can be used. As a method for forming the transparent electrode layer, for example, sputtering or vacuum deposition can be used.

  The film substrates 31 and 41 are laminated so that the transparent electrode layers 32 and 42 face each other to form a pair of laminated substrates LAM1. Similarly, the film substrates 51 and 61, 71 and 81 are laminated so that the transparent electrode layers 52 and 62, and 72 and 82 face each other, thereby forming laminated substrates LAM2 and LAM3. A plurality of pairs of laminated substrates LAM1 to LAM3 are laminated to form a laminated substrate structure LAM.

  The laminated substrate structure LAM is irradiated with the laser beam LB, and the transparent electrode layers 32 to 82 are simultaneously patterned. Thereafter, a cell is formed by a film substrate on which an electrode pattern is formed, liquid crystal is injected, and the liquid crystal display element according to the second embodiment is formed.

  Next, a more specific manufacturing example of the liquid crystal display element according to the second embodiment will be described. As the transparent film substrate, a polycarbonate film having a thickness of 80 μm was used. As the transparent electrode layer, an IZO layer having a thickness of 20 nm was formed by sputtering. The sheet resistance of the IZO layer was 200Ω. Eight film substrates with electrode layers were prepared, and four pairs of laminated substrates that were stacked with the IZO layers facing each other were laminated.

  Using the same CAD data as in the first example, an electrode pattern (laser light irradiation region where the electrode layer is to be removed) was defined. A YVO laser with a wavelength of 1064 nm was used as the laser light source, the laser output was 10 W, the LD power was 60%, and the repetition pulse period was 40 kHz. The laser spot size was 100 μm in diameter. The focal depth of the laser beam is about 0.5 mm. Laser light scanning was performed with a galvanometer mirror, and the scanning speed was 300 mm / sec. For example, by scanning 10 times while shifting the laser spot position in the direction orthogonal to the scanning direction, the belt-shaped region having a width of about 1 mm was irradiated with the laser beam.

  The laser beam irradiation conditions can be set as appropriate according to each processing. For example, the laser output can be set within a range of 10 W to 100 W, the repetitive pulse period is 10 kHz to 100 kHz, and the laser spot size is about 10 μm to 200 μm in diameter. In addition, although a strip-shaped process is illustrated, an electrode pattern having an arbitrary shape can be formed by changing the scanning direction as necessary.

  When the laminated substrate after laser light irradiation was visually observed, it was in a state where a cloudy mark was seen in a predetermined shape irradiated with the laser light.

  FIG. 7A shows an enlarged photograph of one film substrate separated from the laminated substrate. The region that looks slightly dark and extends in the horizontal direction on the lower side is the laser light irradiation region. Innumerable powdery foreign substances are attached to the laser light irradiation region, which is considered to be a state in which IZO particles peeled from the substrate by laser light irradiation are deposited. It has been found that such foreign matters can be easily removed by washing with water or the like.

  The actual cleaning was performed using an ultrasonic machine. The cleaning was performed by immersing the film substrate in a solution obtained by adding neutral cleaning to pure water and performing ultrasonic cleaning, followed by ultrasonic cleaning with pure water, air blowing, UV irradiation, and IR drying in this order. The cleaning method is not limited to this, and spray cleaning, atmospheric pressure plasma cleaning, or the like may be performed.

  FIG. 7B shows an enlarged photograph of the film substrate after cleaning. It turns out that the powdery foreign material seen before the washing | cleaning of FIG. 7A is lose | eliminated. Further, no white turbidity was observed by visual observation, and it appeared transparent. The same was true for the other film substrates. The size of the formed electrode pattern was the same regardless of the arrangement position in the laminated substrate structure. As described above, it was found that a plurality of, for example, 8 film-layered film substrates can be patterned simultaneously.

  In the laser emission side substrate in each pair of laminated substrates, an electrode pattern having the same shape as that obtained by patterning using photolithography and etching as in the past was obtained. On the laser incident side substrate in each pair of laminated substrates, an inverted electrode pattern was obtained. Since it is a reversible substrate, a cell was formed with a pair of laser emission side substrates and a pair of laser emission side substrates, respectively.

  As the alignment film, SE-410 made by Nissan Chemical Co., Ltd. was formed by flexographic printing to a thickness of 80 nm and baked on a hot plate at 120 ° C. for 5 minutes. The firing conditions are not limited to these. The alignment film forming method may be ink jet, spin coating, slit coating, or slit & spin coating. A rubbing treatment was performed after firing. The alignment treatment may be photo-alignment.

  A main sealant containing 2 wt% to 5 wt% of a gap control agent was formed on one substrate forming the cell (formation method: screen printing or dispenser). As the gap control agent, a plastic ball (manufactured by Sekisui Chemical) having a diameter of 5 μm was selected. This gap control agent was added to the UV curable sealant in an amount of 2 wt% to 3 wt% to form a main sealant.

  On the other substrate, a plastic ball of about 5 μm was spread as a gap control agent using a dry gap spreader. The gap agent at this time desirably has adhesiveness. After spraying, the adhesive can be temporarily cured by performing heat treatment at several tens of degrees (for example, 90 ° C., 5 minutes).

These film substrates were overlapped with a laminator or the like, and the main sealant was cured by irradiating with ultraviolet rays in a state where the films were overlapped and a constant pressure was applied between the films. Although the ultraviolet irradiation amount is 1.5 J / cm ² here, the ultraviolet irradiation amount can be appropriately selected to such an extent that the main sealant is cured.

  Thus, an empty cell having a cell thickness of 5 μm was produced. Nematic liquid crystal with positive Δε was injected into the empty cell. As the injection method, vacuum injection, an injection method using a capillary phenomenon, or the like can be used. After the injection, an end sealant was applied to the injection port (two or more in the case of capillary injection) and sealed. After the cell was washed, a polarizing plate was pasted so as to be crossed Nicol, thereby completing a liquid crystal display element.

  Even when a film substrate is used as in the second embodiment, patterning of the opposing electrode layers is performed in the same manner as in the first embodiment, so that the formation is performed as described with reference to FIGS. 3A to 3E. Even if the liquid crystal display element is the same model, there are two types, one with the take-out electrode on the front (upper) side of the display and the other with the lower (back) side. The difference between the front and back electrodes (up and down) does not particularly hinder the liquid crystal display device product. Further, as described with reference to FIGS. 5A and 5B, a cell that does not use a reversible substrate can be formed as in the first embodiment.

  In the second example, four pairs (8 electrode layers) of laminated film substrates with electrode layers (film thickness of each film substrate 80 μm, film thickness of each IZO layer 20 nm) with a laser beam having a focal depth of 0.5 mm. Were processed at the same time. If the pattern accuracy may be somewhat deteriorated, a larger number of processing is possible. Further, if the depth of focus of the laser processing machine is further increased, the total thickness of the laminated substrate structure can be processed to about 3 mm. If the total thickness is within about 3 mm, two or more pairs of laminated glass substrates with electrode layers could be processed.

  As described above in connection with the first and second embodiments, two (a pair of) transparent layers facing each other are irradiated with laser light in a state where the transparent electrode layers are opposed to each other and the transparent substrate is laminated. The electrode layer can be patterned simultaneously. If the laminated substrate is thin, a plurality of pairs of laminated substrates can be stacked and a plurality of pairs of transparent electrode layers can be patterned simultaneously. The transparent electrode material peeled off by the laser beam can be easily removed by cleaning. The electrode patterning process can be shortened by the method of the embodiment. Further, scattering of the electrode material can be prevented. FIG. 8 collectively shows the flow of the manufacturing process of the liquid crystal display device according to the first and second embodiments.

  A method of laminating a plurality of substrates with the transparent electrode layer in the same direction (upward facing toward the laser incident side) for any substrate and performing electrode patterning with laser light is a third comparative example. In the method of the third comparative example, the uppermost electrode layer (ITO layer, IZO layer) could be finely patterned, but damage may remain on the back surface of the upper substrate in contact with the electrode layer to be removed after the second layer. there were. In particular, in the case of a film substrate, the back surface of the portion in contact with the IZO layer may appear a little cloudy, or in severe cases it may appear to be burnt. Further, in the method of the third comparative example, a fine powder of the electrode layer material was suspended in the air.

  In the above embodiment, ITO and IZO are exemplified as the transparent electrode material. As the transparent electrode, for example, various metal oxides such as ZnO and various metal thin films may be used. The method of the above embodiment is particularly effective for materials that are difficult to be etched by normal etching (wet etching or dry etching) and can be removed by laser. In general, most transparent conductive films can be etched by a laser, not only ITO and IZO.

  In terms of manufacturing tact, it is desirable to design the electrode pattern so that the portion where the transparent electrode layer is removed is minimized.

  In the above embodiment, the production of the liquid crystal display element has been exemplified. However, the transparent electrode pattern forming method according to the embodiment can be applied to other electric devices having a transparent electrode. For example, it can be applied to various display devices such as organic EL, electrochromic, electrochemical luminescence, plasma display, electrophoretic display, and electrowetting display. Further, for example, it can be applied to various electric circuits such as various optical elements (liquid crystal lens, diffractive optical element for DVD pickup, etc.), touch panel, transparent heater, transparent antenna, antistatic circuit, and electromagnetic field preventing circuit.

  Although the present invention has been described with reference to the embodiments, the present invention is not limited thereto. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications, improvements, combinations, and the like can be made.

1, 11, 21, 31, 41, 51, 61, 71, 81 Transparent substrate 1a, 11a Transparent substrate with electrode layer 2, 12, 22, 32, 42, 52, 62, 72, 82 Transparent electrode layer 2p, 12p , 22p Electrode pattern REM Transparent electrode layer removal portion LAM1, LAM2, LAM3 Laminated substrate LAM Laminated substrate structure 3, 23 Alignment film 4 Liquid crystal layer 5, 25 Polarizing plate 101 Glass substrate 102 ITO layer 201 Laser light irradiation optical system 202 Laser light source 203 Scanning optical system LB Laser light

Claims (4)

(A) The first transparent electrode layer and the second transparent electrode layer are opposed to the first transparent substrate on which the first transparent electrode layer is formed and the second transparent substrate on which the second transparent electrode layer is formed. Forming a laminated substrate structure including a first laminated substrate stacked in such a manner;
(B) The laminated substrate structure is irradiated with laser light, and the first transparent electrode layer and the second transparent electrode layer in the region irradiated with the laser light are replaced with the first transparent substrate and the second transparent substrate. A step of peeling from
(C) The peeled portion of the first transparent electrode layer is removed by washing to form a first electrode pattern, and the peeled portion of the second transparent electrode layer is removed by washing to remove the second electrode pattern. The manufacturing method of the electric apparatus which has a transparent electrode which has a process to form. further,
Forming a first cell from the first transparent substrate on which the first electrode pattern is formed and a transparent substrate on which a counter electrode pattern is formed to form a first liquid crystal display element;
A second liquid crystal display element is formed by forming a second cell from the second transparent substrate on which the second electrode pattern is formed and a transparent substrate on which an electrode pattern having a mirror symmetrical shape with respect to the counter electrode pattern is formed. Forming a step,
2. The electric device having a transparent electrode according to claim 1, wherein the first liquid crystal display element and the second liquid crystal display element have the same display appearance, and the arrangement of electrode patterns is reversed on the front and back sides. Device manufacturing method. In the step (a), a third transparent substrate on which a third transparent electrode layer is formed and a fourth transparent substrate on which a fourth transparent electrode layer is formed include the third transparent electrode layer and the fourth transparent electrode layer. And the second laminated substrate stacked so as to face each other is superimposed on the first laminated substrate to form the laminated substrate structure,
In the step (b), the third transparent electrode layer and the fourth transparent electrode layer in the region irradiated with the laser light are peeled from the third transparent substrate and the fourth transparent substrate,
In the step (c), the peeled portion of the third transparent electrode layer is removed by washing to form a third electrode pattern, and the peeled portion of the fourth transparent electrode layer is removed by washing. The manufacturing method of the electric apparatus which has a transparent electrode of Claim 1 or 2 of forming 4 electrode patterns. The method for manufacturing an electric device having a transparent electrode according to claim 3, wherein the first to fourth transparent substrates are film substrates.