JPH08271908A - Display panel - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To make it possible to easily maintain a spacing uniform over the entire part of a wide display surface by disposing plural spacers between a. transistor substrate and a counter substrate. CONSTITUTION: Thin-film transistors for driving are composed of gate lines (row electrodes) 1a, 1a',..., source lines (column electrodes) 3,..., drain electrodes (display electrodes) 4, 4',..., etc., formed on a substrate S. Liquid crystals are disposed between the transistor substrate S and a counter substrate 7. The surface of the counter substrate 7 is provided with spacer members 6, 6',... via non-light transparent members 12 and the thicknesses determine the layer thickness of the liquid crystal layer. The pattern shapes of the non-light transparent members 12 may be necessitated to exist along at least the lines of the row electrodes 1a or the column electrodes 3. The spacer members 6, 6' are fixed via insulating layers 5 onto the row electrodes 1a, 1a' or the column electrodes 3, 3'.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a matrix type display panel, and more particularly to a matrix type liquid crystal display panel using a matrix substrate in which driving semiconductor arrays are integrated.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A liquid crystal display panel has the following advantages. That is, 1. 1. Light receiving (passive) display with low power consumption; Operable at low voltage; 3. Easy to make a panel type structure; Large display is also possible; These advantages are not found in emissive displays. Among such liquid crystal display panels, JP-A-50-1759
The method of matrix driving a large number of pixels, which is disclosed in Japanese Patent No. 9, has received particular attention.

A liquid crystal display panel of this type is shown in FIG.
The configuration is as shown in. That is, the number of substrates (glass, plastic film, etc.) constituting the display panel is 2 to 1.
The driving thin film transistor (T
An FT (Thin Film Transistor) is arranged in a matrix. Although there are several structures of the TFT, a stagger structure in which a gate electrode as shown in FIG. 1 is formed on the substrate side will be described here as an example. The TFT is a gate line 1 formed on the substrate S.
a, la ′, 1a ″, ... (Row electrodes), and the gate electrodes 1, 1 ′, 1 ″, 1 ″ ′, provided on the gate lines.
..., an insulating layer 5 laminated on the gate electrode, a thin-film semiconductor layer 2 formed on the gate electrode via an insulating layer 2,
2 ′, 2 ″, 2 ′ ″, ..., Source lines 3, 3 ′, ... (Column electrodes) provided in contact with one end of the semiconductor, and drain electrodes 4, 4 provided in contact with the other end of the semiconductor ', 4'',
4 ''', ... (Display electrodes) and the like, and the row electrodes and the column electrodes are formed of a transparent or metal thin film conductive layer. Another structure of the TFT, namely, a stagger structure and a coplanar structure in which the gate electrode is formed on the side opposite to the substrate.
There are similar constituent elements for the types, and only the layer composition order is different. FIG. 2 is a plan view seen from the direction of the arrow OB in FIG. 1, showing a part of the matrix drive circuit. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of FIG. 2 cut along the line segment AA ′. In FIG. 3, 7 and S are glass,
Substrates such as a plastic film, 4 ″ and 4 ′ ″ are drain electrodes described above, and 8 is a counter electrode. 4 '',
A transparent conductive film of SnO2, In2O3, ITO or the like or a metal thin film of Au, Al, Pd or the like is used for 4 '''and8'. 1 ″, 1 ′ ″ and 3 ″, 3 ′ ″ are a gate electrode and a source electrode, respectively, and are Al, Au, A
A metal thin film such as g or Pd is used. Reference numerals 5 and 9 are insulating layers, 2 ″ and 2 ′ ″ are thin film semiconductors such as amorphous silicon, polysilicon, CdS and CdSe, 10 is a seal member, and 11 is a liquid crystal layer.

[0004]

In such a conventional liquid crystal display panel, the alignment state of liquid crystal molecules depends on which of the dynamic scattering mode (DSM) and the twisted nematic (TN) display mode is used. Is decided. Further, depending on whether the device is a transmission type or a reflection type, it is necessary to appropriately provide an optical detection means such as a polarizing plate, a λ / 4 plate, and a reflection plate. In such a display panel, the operating characteristics of the cell are highly dependent on the thickness of the liquid crystal layer, and the display characteristics of the entire display panel tend to deteriorate. Therefore, in order to obtain good gradation or high-speed response, the thickness of the liquid crystal layer is as thin as possible (for example, several μm to 10 μm) and uniform over a certain area (for example, 10 cm ² or more). Need to From the above-mentioned point, there is known a method of mixing an inactive member having a constant particle diameter in the liquid crystal layer in order to keep the thickness of the liquid crystal layer constant. It is difficult to mix the active member, and the alignment state of the liquid crystal molecules may be disturbed in the image display portion, which is not a practical method.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a liquid crystal display panel which can easily maintain a uniform gap over a wide display surface. Another object of the present invention is to provide a display cell excellent in gradation and responsiveness of display by maintaining a constant gap between minute substrates and disturbing the alignment of liquid crystal molecules on the image display surface. Without
An object is to provide a liquid crystal display panel having excellent display characteristics.

[0006]

The object of the present invention is to:
A transistor substrate having a plurality of row electrodes, a plurality of column electrodes, a plurality of transistors, and a pixel electrode provided for each transistor, a counter substrate having a counter electrode facing the drain electrode, and the transistor substrate and the counter substrate. A liquid crystal display panel having a liquid crystal disposed between the substrate and a substrate, the liquid crystal display panel having a plurality of spacers disposed between the transistor substrate and the counter substrate. In addition, the display panel of the present invention includes a transistor substrate having a plurality of row electrodes, a plurality of column electrodes, a plurality of transistors, and a pixel electrode provided for each transistor, and a counter substrate having a counter electrode facing the drain electrode. In a display panel having a substrate, a liquid crystal disposed between the transistor substrate and the counter substrate, and a color filter including a color element formed corresponding to each drain electrode, Multiple spacers are arranged between the board and
The display panel includes a non-translucent film provided on the inner surface of the counter substrate at a position facing at least one of the column electrode or the row electrode, and at least one of the column electrode or the row electrode. , And has a region in which the spacer exists.

[0007]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION In the display panel of the present invention, for example, (1) a row electrode or a column electrode itself for selectively driving a large number of segments is formed as a non-translucent member. Arranging spacer members along the members;
(2) A non-translucent member can be formed along the row electrode or the column electrode on the counter substrate side of the substrate provided with the semiconductor driving element, and the spacer member can be arranged along the non-translucent member. Further, when forming the spacer member, it is preferable to fix the spacer member to at least one of the two substrates. This aspect will be clarified in FIGS. 4 and 5. FIG. 4 is a perspective view of an example of the display panel of the present invention.
That is, spacer members 6, 6 ′, 6 ″, on the surface of the counter electrode substrate of the liquid crystal display panel via the non-translucent member 12,
6 ″ ′, ... Are provided, and their thickness determines the layer thickness of the liquid crystal layer. Here, the non-translucent member 12 provided
The pattern shape may be any shape similar to that of the spacer member, stripe shape, or mosaic shape as long as it is at least along the line of the row electrode or the column electrode. This non-translucent member 12 is made of Al, Cr,
It may be formed of either a gold thin film such as Mo or a coloring organic substance. At this time, the spacer members 6,
6 ', 6'',6''', ... are row electrodes 1a, 1a '...
(Or column electrodes 3, 3 ', ...) are fixed via an insulating layer 5. FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing another aspect of the display panel of the present invention. In FIG. 5, a non-translucent member 12 is formed on a substrate 7 provided with a counter electrode 8 of a liquid crystal display panel, an insulating layer 9 is coated on the non-translucent member 12, and a spacer member 6 is provided along the non-translucent member 12. , 6 ', 6'',
6 ″ ′, ... Shows a substrate on which the insulating layer 9 is arranged. This substrate is used as a semiconductor driving element 2, 2 ', 2'',
2 ″ ′, ... Row electrodes 1a, 1a ′, ... and Column electrodes 3, 3 ′
When facing the base hill S provided with ..., The above-mentioned non-translucent member 12 has the row electrodes 1a, 1a ′ ,.
3 '...) are arranged along the line. Therefore, at this time, the spacer members 6, 6 ′, 6 ″, 6 ′ ″, ... Can be arranged in the non-translucent area of the display surface.
The same reference numerals as those in FIGS. 1, 2, and 3 in FIGS. 4 and 5 denote the same members. 6 is a plan view of the display panel shown in FIG. 4 or FIG. 5, and FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB ′ of FIG. The spacer member 6,
As 6 ′, 6 ″, 6 ′ ″, ..., any material may be used as long as it is chemically stable and can form a layer with a predetermined thickness. Organic resins are the preferred materials. Examples of the insulating inorganic compound include metal oxides such as silicon oxide, titanium oxide, and cerium oxide; nitrides such as silicon nitride. Examples of the insulating organic resin include silicone resin and rubber resin. The spacer members 6, 6 ′, 6 ″, 6 ′ ″ may have any shape such as a dot shape, a linear shape, or a polygonal shape. Further, the insulating layer 5 may be made of a different material or the same material. A material other than the insulating layer 5 may be formed by vapor deposition, sputtering or the like using a mask having a predetermined pattern, or may be patterned after coating. Alternatively, after the same material as the insulating layer 5 is formed on the substrate surface with the same thickness as the predetermined liquid crystal layer, the insulating layer other than the spacer portion may be partially removed by etching.
Alternatively, in order to obtain a predetermined gap between the substrates, a spacer member may be patterned after applying an organic resin. FIG. 8 shows row electrodes 1a, 1a ', ... And column electrodes 3, 3',
3 ″, ... On the spacer members 6-1, 6′-1,
6 ″ -1 ... and 6-2, 6′-2, 6 ″ -2 ... 6-1, 6'-1, 6 ''-1,
6 ″ ′-1 is a spacer member provided on the row electrode,
6-2, 6'-2, 6 ''-2, 6 '''-2 indicate spacer members provided on the column electrodes. For example, as a typical example, a 0.5 mm glass substrate is used, and 1 cm ² is used.
By providing the individual spacer members, a display panel having a display area of 100 cm ² and having a uniform gap of 4 μm can be obtained. As is clear from FIG. 7, the column electrodes (3, 3 ′,
If a spacer member is formed on 3 ″, 3 ′ ″, etc., it is possible to prevent a short due to contact with the opposing electrode 8 even with an extremely small gap. If the thickness of the liquid crystal layer can be kept constant, it is not always necessary to provide the spacer member for each drain electrode (4, 4 ′, 4 ″, 4 ′ ″, etc.) that constitutes a segment. An equivalent circuit of the semiconductor driving circuit used in the display panel of the present invention is shown in FIG. 9, and as a driving method thereof, for example, scanning signals are sequentially applied to the row electrodes la, la ′ ,. The TFT to which the scanning signal is applied becomes conductive. At this time, the column electrodes 3, which are orthogonal to this,
When an image signal is applied to 3 ', 3'', ..., This voltage is supplied to the drain electrodes 4, 4', 4 '' ,. The scanning signals are sequentially moved to the adjacent row electrodes, and a voltage is supplied to the drain electrode group of each row while the TFTs of each row are turned on, and when the row electrodes are rotated once, an image is displayed for all the picture elements. Signal is supplied. The voltage supplied to the column electrodes is preferably line-sequential scanning instead of dot-sequential scanning in which a signal is sequentially sent to each picture element in order to obtain an effective voltage of the drain electrode group. That is, this is a method in which a signal is applied to all the drain electrodes of the row in the row-on state at one time. Only while the signal is being input to the row electrode in this way, conduction is established between the selected column electrode and the drain electrode at the intersections of these electrode matrices, and a voltage is applied between the drain electrode and the counter electrode 8. Is applied. The applied voltage changes the alignment state of the liquid crystal molecules, and a display is made.

[0008]

The effects of the present invention can be roughly classified into the following three types. 1. The spacer member used in the present invention can maintain the gap between the substrates over a large area as compared with the conventional method in which the sealing member is provided only on the peripheral portion of the substrate. 2. Since the spacer member used in the present invention is provided on the non-translucent portion of the display surface, the arrangement of liquid crystal molecules can be prevented from being disturbed on the image display surface. 3. In the present invention, since the spacer members are provided scattered in the display surface, either or both of the display substrate provided with the semiconductor driving element and the counter electrode substrate, or both, is a flexible film, The effects described in the above items 1 and 2 can be achieved. According to the conventional method, the first item is A seal part provided only on the peripheral part (reference numeral 1 in FIG. 3)
0) has to function as a spacer member for keeping the gap between the substrates constant, and at the same time has a function of a seal member for filling the liquid crystal, so that the material selection of the seal member is easily restricted. 2. When the substrates are made thin, the substrates are likely to be deformed, and it is almost impossible to maintain a minute gap between the substrates of, for example, 4 to 10 μm. 3. Since the seal member is easily deformed, the gap between the substrates is partially non-uniform in the substrate surface of one cell, and the display characteristics are likely to be uneven. Although there are drawbacks such as easyness, according to the present invention, any of the above drawbacks can be solved at the same time. In the conventional method, in contrast to the above item 2, the spacer member provided on the display surface may cause some disorder in the alignment of the liquid crystal molecules in the portion where the spacer is provided, and the image on the display surface may be slightly unsightly. It was The present invention can eliminate the above-mentioned drawbacks. In the third item, that is, in the case where one or both of the display substrate provided with the semiconductor driving element and the counter substrate is a flexible film, the disadvantage of the conventional method can be solved. Further, the present invention has an advantage that a display excellent in gradation and response can be obtained. Moreover,
In the display panel of the present invention, particularly in the case of color display in which a color filter is formed on the drain electrode, the pixels are separated by the non-translucent member, so that a sharp appearance can be obtained. The display panel of the present invention may be of any type of projection type, transmission type and reflection type. Regarding the display mode, dynamic scattering mode (DSM), twisted nematic (TN), phase transition type, vertical-horizontal alignment effect type (DAP), hybrid nematic (HAN)
Any of these types may be selected. Depending on which type of display is used, an appropriate initial alignment state of liquid crystal molecules and an optical detection means (polarizer, λ / 4)
Plates, reflectors, etc.) are appropriately provided. INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The display panel of the present invention can be suitably applied to various panel displays as thin and compact display panels; for example, display boards for clocks and calculators, small televisions, monitors for video cameras, and finders.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a substrate used in a conventional display panel.

FIG. 2 is a plan view seen from a direction of an arrow OB in FIG.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of FIG. 2 taken along line AA ′.

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of a display panel of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing another aspect of the display panel of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a plan view of a display panel of the present invention.

7 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line B-B 'in FIG.

FIG. 8 is a plan view showing another aspect of the display panel of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram showing an equivalent circuit of a semiconductor drive circuit used in the display panel of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

la, la ',: Gate line (row electrode) 1, 1', 1 '', 1 ''', ...: Gate electrode 2, 2', 2 '', 2 ''', ...: Thin film semiconductor 3 , 3 ′, 3 ″, 3 ′ ″, ...: Source line (column electrode) 4, 4 ′, 4 ″, 4 ′ ″, ...: Drain electrode 5, 9: Insulating layer 6, 6 ′, 6 ", 6 '", ... 6-1, 6'-1, 6 "-1, 6'"-1, ..., 6-2, 6'-
2, 6 ''-2, 6 '''-2, ...: Spacer member 7, S: Substrate 8: Counter electrode 10: Sealing member 11: Liquid crystal layer 12: Non-translucent member

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A transistor substrate having a plurality of row electrodes, a plurality of column electrodes, a plurality of transistors, and a pixel electrode provided for each transistor; a counter substrate having a counter electrode facing the drain electrode; A liquid crystal display panel comprising: a liquid crystal disposed between a transistor substrate and the counter substrate; wherein a plurality of spacers are disposed between the transistor substrate and the counter substrate. 2. A transistor substrate having a plurality of row electrodes, a plurality of column electrodes, a plurality of transistors, and a pixel electrode provided for each transistor, and a counter substrate having a counter electrode facing the drain electrode, In a display panel having a liquid crystal disposed between a transistor substrate and the counter substrate, and a color filter including a color element formed corresponding to each drain electrode, between the transistor substrate and the counter substrate. A plurality of spacers are disposed on the display panel, and the display panel includes a non-translucent film provided on the inner surface of the counter substrate at a position facing at least one of the column electrode and the row electrode, and the column electrode or A display panel having a region where the spacer exists between at least one of the row electrodes.