KR102408904B1 - Organic Light Emitting Display Device - Google Patents

Abstract

In the organic light emitting diode display of the present invention, a specific structure is applied to connect the second electrode power voltage line and the second electrode positioned in the active region in order to prevent a drop in the power voltage supplied to the second electrode, so that even through low energy It is possible to connect the second electrode power voltage line and the second electrode, and it is possible to prevent the effect of laser irradiation that transfers energy during the connection process, thereby improving the reliability of the device.

Description

Organic Light Emitting Display Device

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an organic light emitting diode display, and more particularly, to an organic light emitting diode display including a structure for preventing a voltage drop of a second electrode in a sub-pixel.

Display devices are increasing in various forms, and recently, a liquid crystal display (LCD), a plasma display panel (PDP), an organic light emitting display device (OLED: Organic Light Emitting Display Device, or an organic electric field) A variety of display devices such as a light emitting display device) are being used. Such various display devices include a display panel suitable therefor.

Among them, the organic light emitting display device is a self-luminous device and does not require a separate light source unit, so it is advantageous to be applied to a slimming or flexible display device, and also has good color purity.

Such an organic light emitting display device emits light including an organic light emitting diode. The organic light emitting diode (OLED) includes two electrodes spaced apart from each other and a light emitting layer therebetween. When electrons generated from one electrode and holes generated from the other electrode are injected into the light emitting layer, the injected Electrons and holes combine to generate excitons, and as the generated excitons fall from an excited state to a ground state, light is emitted.

Among these organic light emitting diode displays, an active type organic light emitting diode display includes an organic light emitting diode individually in a plurality of sub pixels on a matrix defined on a substrate, and a driving thin film transistor in each sub pixel to control the organic light emitting diodes. It is called a display device.

In the active organic light emitting diode display, the organic light emitting diode includes first and second electrodes facing each other and an organic light emitting layer therebetween, wherein the first electrode is patterned for each pixel, and the second electrode includes a plurality of sub-electrodes. It is integrally formed in a shape to cover the pixel. The first electrode is positioned on the lower side with respect to the organic emission layer, the second electrode is positioned on the upper side, and in other terms, each first electrode is called an anode, and the second electrode is called a cathode.

To the integrally formed second electrode, a voltage signal is applied from a pad portion positioned outside the sub-pixels, and display is performed through the second electrode. In this case, the second electrode is made of a transparent electrode or a thin transflective metal electrode. Since the second electrode is a transparent electrode or a thin metal electrode, the resistivity of the second electrode is high, and it is formed in an integrated large area to cover all sub-pixels. Since the portion to which the voltage is applied is limited to the outside, the voltage drop occurs in the second electrode as it moves away from the outside to which the voltage signal is directly applied.

The present invention has been devised to solve the above problems, and provides an organic light emitting display device having as a problem solving problems such as luminance non-uniformity caused by a voltage drop in the device by changing the sub-pixel structure.

The organic light emitting diode display device of the present invention has a specific structure for connecting a second electrode power voltage line and a second electrode positioned in an active region in order to prevent a drop in the power voltage supplied to the second electrode. By applying , it is possible to connect the second electrode power voltage line and the second electrode even through low energy, thereby preventing the effect of laser irradiation that transfers energy during the connection process, thereby improving the reliability of the device.

An organic light emitting diode display according to an exemplary embodiment includes a substrate having an active region including a plurality of sub-pixels each having a light emitting unit, a substrate having an outer area including a pad unit on one side, and a first light emitting unit provided for each sub pixel. an electrode; a second electrode provided to fill the active area; a second electrode power voltage line disposed in the active area in one direction and extending to the pad part to receive a power voltage; A first auxiliary electrode pattern provided to be spaced apart from the first electrode, a bank pattern provided on the first auxiliary electrode auxiliary pattern, a connection part between the first auxiliary electrode pattern and the second electrode, and a connection part around the bank pattern, and the An organic layer is included between the first electrode and the second electrode.

Also, the bank pattern may be positioned on a portion of the first auxiliary electrode pattern.

In addition, it is preferable that the bank pattern is in contact with an upper portion of the first auxiliary electrode pattern.

Here, the first electrode auxiliary pattern may be in contact with the second electrode power voltage line.

Also, a connection portion between the first auxiliary electrode pattern and the second electrode may be positioned on the first auxiliary electrode auxiliary pattern around the bank pattern.

A connection portion between the first electrode auxiliary pattern and the second electrode may be regularly provided for at least one or more sub-pixels.

An organic layer on a sidewall portion of the bank pattern adjacent to a connection portion between the first electrode auxiliary pattern and the second electrode may be thinner than an organic layer on the first electrode.

Also, the second electrode may be connected to the second electrode power voltage line in the outer region through an auxiliary bar pattern.

The first electrode, the first electrode auxiliary pattern, and the auxiliary bar pattern may be located on the same layer.

In addition, a bank of the same layer as the bank pattern may be further provided around the light emitting part.

The thin film transistor may further include a thin film transistor connected to the first electrode, and one electrode constituting the thin film transistor may be located on the same layer as the second electrode power voltage line.

In addition, in the vicinity of the bank pattern, the connection portion between the first electrode auxiliary pattern and the second electrode may be formed by a deformation generated by transmitting energy of a predetermined level or more to the second electrode power line from the lower side of the substrate.

The organic light emitting diode display of the present invention has the following effects.

First, the second electrode (cathode), which is the upper electrode of the organic light emitting diode formed in a large area, is connected to the power supply voltage line in the active region to prevent voltage drop of the second electrode.

Second, the connection between the power supply voltage application line and the second electrode is regularly arranged for each single or a plurality of sub-pixels to prevent luminance non-uniformity for each region in the entire second electrode.

Third, a bank pattern is provided on a part of the power supply voltage application line, and the encapsulation process is completed and then laser irradiation is performed, and a connection between the power supply voltage application line and the second electrode is performed. As a result, the power required for laser irradiation and the number of irradiation shots can be reduced. As a result, it is possible to prevent damage to the encapsulation protective film caused by laser irradiation, and through this, impurities that can flow into the thin film transistor through the organic light emitting diode with external air or conductive foreign material generated during the process can be blocked, thereby preventing bright spot defects. have.

1 is a circuit diagram illustrating one sub-pixel in an organic light emitting diode display according to the present invention.
2 is a plan view illustrating an organic light emitting diode display according to the present invention.
3 is an enlarged view illustrating area A of FIG. 2 .
4 is a perspective view illustrating a connection between a second electrode power voltage line and a second electrode of FIG. 2 .
5 is a cross-sectional view showing the line I-I' and the line II-II' of FIG. 3 .
FIG. 6 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a connection process between the first electrode auxiliary pattern and the second electrode in the region on the line II to II' of FIG. 3 .
7 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a dummy part of an organic light emitting diode display according to another exemplary embodiment;
8 is a SEM diagram illustrating a connection portion between the first electrode auxiliary pattern and the second electrode of the organic light emitting diode display according to the present invention from the substrate side.
9 is a SEM diagram illustrating a connection portion between the first electrode auxiliary pattern and the second electrode of the organic light emitting diode display according to the present invention from the opposite substrate side.
10A to 10D are plan views illustrating a state before laser welding of a connection portion between a first electrode auxiliary pattern and a second electrode according to various embodiments of an organic light emitting diode display according to the present invention.
11A to 11D are plan views illustrating a state after laser welding in each of the embodiments of FIGS. 10A to 10D .
12 is a plan view illustrating a state after laser welding according to another embodiment of the present invention.
13 is a process flowchart illustrating a method of manufacturing an organic light emitting diode display according to the present invention.

Advantages and features of the invention, and methods of achieving them, will become apparent with reference to the various embodiments described below in detail in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the various embodiments disclosed below, but will be implemented in various different forms, and only the various embodiments of the present invention make the disclosure of the present invention complete, and in the technical field to which the present invention pertains It is provided to fully inform those of ordinary skill in the scope of the invention. Accordingly, the invention is defined by the scope of the claims.

The shapes, sizes, proportions, angles, numbers, etc. disclosed in the drawings for explaining various embodiments of the present invention are exemplary, and thus the present invention is not limited to the matters shown in the drawings. Like reference numerals refer to like elements throughout. In addition, in describing the present invention, if it is determined that a detailed description of a related known technology may unnecessarily obscure the gist of the present invention, the detailed description thereof will be omitted. When 'including', 'having', 'consisting', etc. mentioned in this specification are used, other parts may be added unless 'only' is used. When a component is expressed in the singular, cases including the plural are included unless otherwise explicitly stated.

In interpreting the components included in various embodiments of the present invention, it is interpreted as including an error range even if there is no separate explicit description.

In describing various embodiments of the present invention, in the case of describing the positional relationship, for example, two When the positional relationship of parts is described, one or more other parts may be positioned between the two parts unless 'directly' or 'directly' is used.

In describing various embodiments of the present invention, in the case of describing a temporal relationship, for example, a temporal precedence relationship such as 'after', 'next to', 'after', 'before', etc. When is described, a case that is not continuous may be included unless 'directly' or 'directly' is used.

In describing various embodiments of the present invention, 'first ~', 'second ~', etc. may be used to describe various components, but these terms are only used to distinguish between the same and similar components. to be. Accordingly, in the present specification, elements modified by 'first to' may be the same as elements modified by 'second to' within the technical spirit of the present invention, unless otherwise specified.

Each feature of the various embodiments of the present invention may be partially or wholly combined or combined with each other, technically various interlocking and driving are possible, and each of the various embodiments may be implemented independently of each other or may be implemented together in a related relationship. may be

Meanwhile, in the present specification, the organic light emitting diode has, for example, a single organic layer between the first and second electrodes, but the organic layer may include an organic light emitting layer and a plurality of hole transporting layers and electron transporting layers on the lower and upper portions thereof. , or may include a plurality of stacks including one or more charge generation layers and divided by a charge generation layer as a boundary. The hole transport layer includes a hole injection layer, a hole transport layer, a hole control layer and an electron blocking layer, and the electron transport layer includes an electron transport layer, an electron injection layer, an electron control layer and a hole control layer. In addition, other organic layers may be included in the organic layer according to the structure or design of the organic light emitting device.

Hereinafter, an organic light emitting display device of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

1 is a circuit diagram illustrating one sub-pixel in an organic light emitting diode display according to the present invention.

The organic light emitting diode display of the present invention may include a plurality of sub-pixels SP based on the circuit configuration shown in FIG. 1 . In addition to the circuit configuration shown in FIG. 1 , a thin film transistor or capacitor may be additionally added for compensation or deterioration prevention, but the circuit configuration of FIG. 1 is basically included in each sub-pixel.

That is, in each sub-pixel SP, the switching thin film transistor S-Tr, the switching thin film transistor S-Tr, and the driving voltage line provided at the intersection of the gate line GL and the data line DL crossing each other. Between the driving thin film transistor D-Tr provided between VDDL, the organic light emitting diode OLED connected to the driving thin film transistor D-Tr, and the gate electrode and the source electrode of the driving thin film transistor D-Tr and an provided storage capacitor (Cst).

Here, the switching thin film transistor S-Tr serves to select a corresponding sub-pixel, and the driving thin film transistor D-Tr is an organic light emitting diode (OLED) of the sub-pixel selected by the switching thin film transistor S-Tr. It functions to drive OLED).

On the other hand, the organic light emitting diode (OLED) is connected to the first node (A) corresponding to the source electrode of the driving thin film transistor (D-Tr), and light is emitted by the driving current supplied through the first node (A). is done Here, the organic light emitting diode (OLED) includes a first electrode (anode electrode), a second electrode (cathode electrode), and an organic layer therebetween, and the first electrode (anode electrode) is connected to the first node (A). and a second electrode (cathode electrode) is connected to the second electrode power voltage line VSSL.

The driving thin film transistor (D-Tr) controls a driving current applied to the organic light emitting diode (OLED) with its gate-source voltage (Vgs). To this end, the gate electrode of the driving thin film transistor D-Tr is connected to the data line DL supplying the data voltage Vdata and the switching thin film transistor Tr via the switching thin film transistor Tr, and the drain electrode is the power supply voltage line VDDL. is connected to, and the source electrode is connected to the second electrode power voltage line VSSL with an organic light emitting diode (OLED) interposed therebetween. The second electrode power voltage line VSSL supplies a ground voltage or a low voltage second electrode power voltage VSS signal to the second electrode (cathode electrode) of the organic light emitting diode (OLED), each organic light emitting diode (OLED). ), and the organic light emitting diode (OLED) emits light according to a corresponding gray level by the data voltage Vdata applied to each sub-pixel to the first electrode (anode electrode), which is the other side.

In particular, in the organic light emitting diode display of the present invention, the second electrode power voltage line VSSL (and the first electrode auxiliary pattern) disposed in one direction with the second electrode of the organic light emitting diode (OLED) positioned on different layers ) may be provided for each one or more sub-pixels to reduce the voltage of the second electrode.

The storage capacitor Cst maintains the data voltage Vdata received from the data line DL for one frame so that the driving thin film transistor D-Tr maintains a constant voltage. To this end, the storage capacitor Cst is connected to the gate electrode and the source electrode of the driving thin film transistor D-Tr. In the circuit configuration shown, an auxiliary capacitor (not shown) is additionally connected in parallel with the storage capacitor Cst, and the voltage supplied to the gate electrode of the driving thin film transistor D-Tr operating as a source-follower can increase the efficiency of

Meanwhile, as described above, a multi-layered organic compound layer including the organic light emitting layer may be formed between the first electrode and the second electrode of the organic light emitting diode (OLED). For example, one or more hole transporting layers are provided between the first electrode and the organic light emitting layer, and one or more electron transporting layers are provided between the organic light emitting layer and the second electrode.

Hereinafter, the arrangement of the above-described second electrode power voltage line (VSSL) 120 in the organic light emitting diode display will be described.

FIG. 2 is a plan view illustrating an organic light emitting diode display according to the present invention, and FIG. 3 is an enlarged view illustrating area A of FIG. 2 . And, FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating the connection between the second electrode power voltage line and the second electrode of FIG. 2 .

As shown in FIG. 2 , in the organic light emitting diode display 1000 of the present invention, the substrate 100 includes an active area AA (inside a dotted line area) including a plurality of sub-pixels and an outer portion positioned outside the active area AA. It may be divided into regions, and the pad part PA may be provided on at least one side of the outer region. Also, as shown in FIG. 3 , the second electrode power supply voltage line VSSL is disposed in the active area AA in one direction, passing each sub-pixel, and extends to the outer area to form a pad electrode (not shown) of the pad part PA. city) is connected to In addition, the pad electrode is connected to a data driver (not shown) in the form of a flexible film or a printed circuit board (not shown), and the applied ground voltage or low voltage power voltage (VSS) is connected to the second electrode power supply voltage line (VSSL). transmit

On the other hand, the second electrode power voltage line VSSL covers the active area AA and is directly connected to the second electrode 150 protruding to the outer area in the outer area, or as shown in FIG. 2 , The plurality of second electrode power voltage lines VSSL in the outer region are commonly connected through auxiliary bar patterns 130a and 130b of different layers, and the auxiliary bar patterns 130a and 130b are formed by covering the upper portion. It may be directly connected to the second electrode 150 . Through this connection structure, the power voltage VSS from the pad part PA is supplied to the second electrode 150 outside the active area AA through the second electrode power voltage line VSSL. The provision of auxiliary bar patterns 130a and 130b may be optional, and when provided, auxiliary bar patterns 130a and 130b may be provided on the same layer as the first electrode 130 constituting the organic light emitting diode (OLED), The auxiliary bar patterns 130a and 130b may be positioned between the second electrode power voltage line VSSL and the layer of the second electrode 150 . An inorganic film such as an interlayer insulating film and/or a protective film (125 or 127 in FIG. 5 ) is included between the second electrode power voltage line VSSL and the auxiliary bar patterns 130a and 130b, and a connection hole EC is formed therein. is provided so that the second electrode power voltage line 120 and the auxiliary bar patterns 130a and 130b can be connected through the connection hole EC, and the auxiliary bar patterns 130a and 130b and the second electrode ( 150) can be directly connected without a membrane between layers. This is because, when the auxiliary bar patterns 130a and 130b are formed on the same layer as the first electrode 130 , the organic layer 140 deposited on the first electrode 130 may be located only in the active area AA. This is because the second electrode 150 that covers the entire active area AA and protrudes to the outside can directly contact the auxiliary bar patterns 130a and 130b.

FIG. 2 illustrates bars in which the auxiliary bar patterns 130a and 130b are located above and below the periphery of the active area AA, but in some cases, they may be located only in a portion adjacent to the pad part PA.

However, since the second electrode 150 is formed with an area large enough to cover the entire active area AA and is transparent, in the case of a transflective metal, the thickness of the layer is very thin and the resistance is large, and the second electrode 150 is a transparent metal. In this case, since the resistance is very large due to the oxygen content, when the second electrode 150 receives the second electrode power voltage signal through connection with the auxiliary bar patterns 130a and 130b only in the outer region, the pad part ( PA), the voltage drop of the power supply voltage applied to the second electrode 150 may be severe.

In the organic light emitting diode display of the present invention, in order to prevent the voltage drop of the second electrode 150 , as shown in FIG. 3 , a dummy part RA is regularly provided in addition to the light emitting part EA for each one or more sub-pixels SP. Thus, the dummy part RA may include a connection part CRA having an electrical connection with the second electrode 150 and the second electrode power voltage line 120 .

As shown in FIG. 3 , each sub-pixel SP includes a light emitting part EA through which the organic light emitting diode OLED normally emits light. In addition, a dummy part RA spaced apart from the light emitting part EA is provided in every sub-pixel SP or n sub-pixels SP. In FIG. 3 , the dummy part RA is positioned in each of the four sub-pixels SP, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and the dummy part RA may be positioned along with the light-emitting part EA in each sub-pixel SP. , or a dummy part RA may be positioned for each other number of sub-pixels SP.

3 illustrates a state in which red, green, blue, and white sub-pixels SP are gathered to define one pixel. In addition, although the red (R), green (G), blue (B), and white (W) sub-pixels SP are shown to have the same size, the present invention is not limited thereto. The size of the diode OLED may be adjusted according to the efficiency of the corresponding emission color. In addition, although the combination of sub-pixels included in one pixel consists of red, green, blue, and white sub-pixels, a combination of three colors is possible other than the four-color combination, and combinations of five or more different colors are also possible.

In the organic light emitting diode display of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 4 , in the sub-pixel including the dummy part RA in addition to the light emitting part EA, the second electrode (laser welding) is performed on the dummy part RA. 150), the lower second electrode power voltage line 120 (VSSL), and additional connections CRA1, CRA2, ..., CRAn are created. Through the electrical connection between the second electrode 150 and the second electrode power voltage line 120 in the active area AA, a source to which a voltage is applied even in the active area of the second electrode 150 is provided, thereby reducing the voltage. can be prevented. In FIG. 4, the connection portions CRA1, CRA2, ... CRAn between the second electrode power voltage line 120 and the second electrode 150 to which a voltage is substantially applied are located, but a metal that additionally adds an electrical connection therebetween A pattern or a transparent metal pattern may be further added. For example, since the organic light emitting diode OLED further includes the first electrode 130 that is opposite to the second electrode 150 under the second electrode 150 , as shown in FIG. 3 , the region where the dummy portion RA is located. The first electrode 130 and the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 in a floating state is placed on the dummy portion RA by energy transfer such as laser irradiation to generate the connection portion CRA in the light emitting portion ( It can be done without affecting EA).

Here, the second electrode 150 may be a transparent electrode such as Indium Zinc Oxide (IZO), Indium Tin Oxide (ITO), Indium Tin Zinc Oxide (ITZO), or a transflective metal including AgMg. In addition, the second electrode power supply voltage line 120 is made of a metal on the same layer as at least one electrode constituting the thin film transistor, for example, a source electrode and a drain electrode, and a second electrode having a conductivity such as Cu or MoTi. When the connection portion CRA of the second electrode 150 and the second electrode power voltage line 120 is formed in the active area AA with a metal higher than 150, the resistance of the active area AA is increased due to this. As a result, a voltage drop at the second electrode 150 may be prevented.

On the other hand, the dummy part RA is provided to be spaced apart from the light emitting part EA. This is to prevent the laser irradiation from affecting the light emitting part EA when the dummy part RA is irradiated with laser. to be. That is, the first electrode 130, the organic layer 140, and the second electrode 150 are sequentially overlapped in the light emitting part EA to form an organic light emitting diode OLED, and in the connection part RA, as shown in FIG. 3 , A first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 electrically spaced apart from the first electrode 130 is provided. Here, since laser irradiation is performed on the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 located in the dummy part RA, it is also referred to as a 'laser welding pad'.

The organic light emitting diode display of the present invention is suitable for preventing a voltage drop of the second electrode 150 in a structure in which the second electrode 150 fills the entire active area AA. Specifically, an inner cross section before and after laser welding explain about

5 is a cross-sectional view showing the line I to I' and the line II to II' of FIG. 3, and FIG. 6 is a first electrode auxiliary pattern in the region on the line II to II' of FIG. 3 after the connection process with the second electrode is a cross-sectional view showing That is, FIG. 5 shows the configuration of the dummy part RA, which is formed together during the organic light emitting diode (OLED) forming process, and FIG. 6 shows that the dummy part RA is irradiated with laser after the encapsulation process is completed. It shows after the state in which the connection part CRA between the 1st electrode auxiliary pattern and the 2nd electrode is formed.

2 to 4 , the organic light emitting diode display of the present invention includes an active area AA including a plurality of sub-pixels SP each having a light emitting part EA, and an outer area including a pad part PA on one side. A substrate 100 having an area, a first electrode 130 provided in the light emitting unit for each sub-pixel SP as shown in FIG. 5 , and a second electrode 150 provided to fill the active area AA; An organic light emitting diode (OLED) including an organic layer 140 including an organic light emitting layer between the first electrode 130 and the second electrode 150, and the pad disposed in one direction in the active area AA It includes a second electrode power voltage line 120 extending to the part (refer to PA of FIG. 2 ) to which the power voltage VSS is applied. The second electrode power supply voltage line 120 is also referred to as an auxiliary wiring because a voltage is applied to the second electrode 150 from the dummy portion RA in the active area AA.

In addition, in the dummy part RA, at least one sub-pixel SP has a first auxiliary electrode pattern 131 provided to be spaced apart from the first electrode 130 , and on the first auxiliary electrode pattern 131 . It includes the provided bank pattern 161 . Here, the organic layer 140 and the second electrode 150 are provided in common at least in the active area AA. Accordingly, the organic layer 140 and the second electrode 150 are also provided in the dummy part RA. . In this case, the organic layer 140 may be deposited relatively thinly on the side of the bank pattern 160 due to poor coverage characteristics in a region having a relatively large taper during vapor deposition as an organic component having a high molecular weight. On the other hand, the second electrode 150 is deposited by a sputtering method having good coverage characteristics or is thinly deposited with a metal component to have an almost uniform thickness over the entire area.

Meanwhile, the thin film transistor TFT connected to the first electrode 130 of the organic light emitting diode (OLED) is the driving thin film transistor D-Tr described in FIG. 1 , and on the substrate 100 , the semiconductor layer 111 is ), a gate electrode 114 provided on a portion of the upper portion of the semiconductor layer 111 , and a drain electrode 115a and a source electrode 115b respectively connected to both ends of the semiconductor layer 111 . In addition, the source electrode 115b is connected to the first electrode 130 of the organic light emitting diode (OLED).

The semiconductor layer 111 may include at least one of polysilicon, amorphous silicon, and a transparent oxide semiconductor including IGZO as a main component.

In addition, the semiconductor layer 111 and the gate electrode 114 may be positioned on different layers, and a gate insulating layer 112 may be interposed therebetween.

In addition, an interlayer insulating layer 113 is disposed between the gate electrode 114 and the drain electrode 115a and the source electrode 115b except for the connection portion between the drain electrode 115a and the source electrode 115b and the semiconductor layer 111 . ) is located.

Although the example of the illustrated thin film transistor (TFT) illustrates a top gate structure in which the gate electrode 114 is disposed on the semiconductor layer 111 , the present invention is not limited thereto, and the gate electrode 114 is disposed below the semiconductor layer 111 . It can also be changed to a bottom gate structure located in .

Meanwhile, in the illustrated example, the second electrode power voltage line 120 is located on the same layer as the source electrode 115b and the drain electrode 115a, which is a data line integrally formed with the drain electrode 115a (Fig. This is because it is formed in the same direction as DL of 1), so that electrical separation between the two lines is easy. It is also possible to form the second electrode power voltage line 120 on the same layer as the gate electrode 140 . In this case, the arrangement direction of the second electrode power voltage line 120 is the gate electrode 140 and the gate electrode. It can be changed so that it does not intersect the gate line (GL of FIG. 1) integrated with 140. The gate electrode 140 protrudes from the gate line GL and is integrally formed, and the drain electrode 115a protrudes from the data line DL and is integrally formed.

In addition, a passivation layer may be further provided between the thin film transistor TFT and the organic light emitting diode OLED except for a portion where they are connected to each other. In some cases, as illustrated, the inorganic passivation layer 125 and the organic passivation layer 127 of an inorganic layer component may be sequentially deposited and provided, but only one of the passivation layers may be positioned. The protective layers 125 and 127 on the source electrode 115b are selectively removed, and the first electrode 130 and the source electrode 115b are connected.

On the other hand, in the organic light emitting diode display of the present invention, as shown in FIG. 6 , the connection part CRA positioned on the second electrode power voltage line 120 irradiates a laser to the lower side of the substrate 100 and then the applied energy The second electrode power voltage line 120 is raised, and the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 in contact is raised together, penetrates the thin organic layer 140, and is directly connected to the second electrode 150 and is defined. .

Here, the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 is formed in the same process as the first electrode 130 , and they may be formed of a single reflective electrode or may be provided as a stack of a reflective electrode and a transparent electrode. can In the organic light emitting diode display of the present invention, in a top emission type, the second electrode 150 includes a transparent electrode or a transflective metal, and the first electrode 130 itself is a reflective electrode or a separate reflective plate is provided thereunder. can be provided

Meanwhile, the dummy part RA is defined to be spaced apart from the light emitting part EA, and the bank 160 is spaced apart from the bank pattern 161 on the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 in an area surrounding the light emitting part EA. can be provided.

Here, the bank pattern 161 is positioned on a portion of the first auxiliary electrode pattern 131 , and the first auxiliary electrode pattern 131 and the second electrode 150 around the bank pattern 161 are connected to each other. It can be advantageous from the point of view of That is, the bank pattern 161 is an organic material having a thickness of 2 μm or more, and does not directly react to laser irradiation, and then has a structural function so that the deposition material of the deposited organic layer 140 is thinly stacked on the sidewall of the bank pattern 161 . do As a function of the bank pattern 161 , after the deposition of the organic layer 140 and the second electrode 150 is completed, the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 and the second electrode 150 are irradiated with a laser beam from the lower side of the substrate 100 . When performing the connection, the elevation of the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 is easily made with low energy.

In addition, the bank pattern 161 is positioned in contact with the first auxiliary electrode pattern 131 , and the organic layer 140 deposited on the first auxiliary electrode pattern 131 including the bank pattern 161 is thereafter. It is formed along the surface irregularities of the pattern 161 and the first auxiliary electrode pattern 131 , and it is advantageous in that it can be formed relatively thinly in a portion having a large taper, such as the side of the bank pattern 161 . That is, structurally, since the thin region of the organic layer 140 is provided around the bank pattern 161 , the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 penetrates the thin organic layer 140 and rises to the second electrode 150 . There is an advantage that the energy of laser irradiation required for connection is low compared to the energy of laser irradiation required to pierce the organic layer 140 formed to a predetermined thickness in a flat region.

In particular, the above-described connection between the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 and the second electrode 150 is performed after an encapsulation process for protecting the organic light emitting diode (OLED) of the active area AA from external moisture or external air is performed. It is made from the lower side of the substrate 100 . If the bank pattern 161 is not provided on the second electrode power voltage line 120, the first electrode auxiliary pattern, the organic layer, and the second electrode are respectively flat on the second electrode power voltage line. , in this case, high energy is required for laser welding by irradiating a laser from the lower side of the substrate 100, and thus it may damage the encapsulation protective film on the upper side of the organic light emitting diode (OLED). Residual components such as hydrogen may enter, and in severe cases, components such as hydrogen affect the thin film transistor under the organic light emitting diode (OLED), resulting in negative shift of the thin film transistor, and in the OFF state A luminescent point may occur due to abnormal driving of the transistor.

In the organic light emitting diode display of the present invention, the connection between the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 and the second electrode 150 is possible with low energy irradiation, thereby preventing damage to the encapsulation protective film, thereby preventing the above-described negative shift and bright spot of the thin film transistor. occurrence can be prevented.

Here, the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 is formed in direct contact with the second electrode power voltage line 120 , and is located on the lower side when energy by laser irradiation is transferred from the lower side of the substrate 100 . Deformation of the second electrode power voltage line 120 may be projected onto the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 as it is.

In addition, although the gate insulating film 112 and the interlayer insulating film 113 on the substrate 100 are located below the second electrode power voltage line 120, laser irradiation with an inorganic film such as a silicon nitride film or a silicon oxide film having excellent film stability Even under the substrate 100 , the laser at the time of irradiation passes through the gate insulating film 112 and the interlayer insulating film 113 as it is, and does not affect these inorganic insulating films. In addition, the energy of the laser passing through the gate insulating layer 112 and the interlayer insulating layer 113 affects only the second electrode power voltage line 120 and the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 made of a metal component, so that the thin organic layer 140 ) causes the elevations of these 120 and 131 to form a connection portion CRA in which the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 is directly connected to the second electrode 150 .

A connection part CRA between the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 and the second electrode 150 is located on the second electrode power voltage line 120 around the bank pattern 161 , and the connection part Looking at the electrical connection relationship in the CRA, an electrical triple connection of the second electrode power voltage line 120 , the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 , and the second electrode 150 occurs from the lower side.

Here, the connection part CRA between the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 and the second electrode 150 is connected to each of at least one sub-pixel for equal potential in the active area AA of the second electrode 150 . It is desirable to be provided regularly. Although FIG. 3 shows a state in which the red sub-pixels R are selectively provided with the dummy parts RA, the connection parts CRA may be formed in each sub-pixel by including the dummy parts RA in all sub-pixels. In some cases, by selecting at least one of red, green and blue or white sub-pixels, each sub-pixel of the corresponding color includes a dummy part RA to form the connection part CRA by laser welding. have.

In addition, a bank 160 of the same layer as the bank pattern 161 may be further provided around the light emitting part to define the light emitting part EA. Here, the light emitting part EA may be an area (bank open part) in which the bank 160 is not formed. In the organic light emitting display device of the present invention, even without adding a process, the banks 160 spaced apart or partially connected to each other and the bank patterns 161 are formed together in the bank 160 forming process, and after the encapsulation process, by laser irradiation, the bank Since the connection portion CRA is defined around the pattern 161 , it is possible to form a stable equal potential of the second electrode without increasing the mask.

With or without bank pattern Laser conditions (power/number of shots) Resistance (Ω) bank pattern radish (1)1064nm (20%/3 times) 2900000 (2)1064nm (25%/3 times) 15000000 (3)1064nm (25%/10 times) 13000 bank pattern (4)1064nm (20%/3 times) 6000 (5)1064nm (25%/3 times) 8000 (6)1064nm (25%/10 times) 7000

Table 1 shows the second electrode power voltage line 120 by controlling the power and the number of shots with a laser having a wavelength of 1064 nm under the condition in which the bank pattern 161 is provided on the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 and the condition in which the bank pattern 161 is not provided. An experimental result of measuring a resistance value between and the second electrode 150 is shown.

First, when 20% of the total power of laser irradiation equipment for performing a laser is applied to the dummy part RA and the number of shots is 3, in the structure of (1) where the bank pattern 161 is not provided, the resistance is 2900000 In the structure of Ω or (4) having the bank pattern 161, the resistance is reduced to 6000Ω, and in the latter case having the bank pattern 161, it is confirmed that the resistance of the second electrode 150 can be lowered. .

And, secondly, the number of laser shots is set to 3 as in the first case, but with 25% of the total power of the laser irradiation equipment, even when the power is relatively increased compared to the previous case, the bank pattern 161 is provided In the structure of (2) which is not, the resistance is 15000000 Ω, but in the structure of (5) with the bank pattern 161, the resistance is reduced to 8000 Ω, and in the latter case having the bank pattern 161, the second electrode ( 150), it was confirmed that the resistance can be lowered.

In addition, thirdly, even when the number of laser shots is increased to 10 by setting the energy of 25% of the total power of the laser irradiation equipment, in the structure of (6) having the bank pattern 161, the second electrode 150 It can be seen that the resistance is low. And, in the structure with the bank pattern 161, through these first to third experiments, without using the total power of the laser irradiation equipment as it is, as in the case of (4), 20% of the total power of the laser irradiation equipment , and it can be seen that the resistance of the second electrode 150 can be lowered without increasing the number of irradiation shots to three or more. In contrast, in the structure without the bank pattern 161, as in the case of (3), the resistance of the second electrode is reduced only when the power of the laser irradiation equipment is increased to 25% or more and the number of irradiation shots is increased to 10 or more It can be seen that it works.

That is, it was confirmed through the above experiment that, as in the organic light emitting display device of the present invention, when the bank pattern 161 is provided in the dummy portion RA, the energy required for laser irradiation and the number of irradiation shots can be reduced.

The laser irradiation performed in FIG. 6 is made including the bank pattern 161 and its periphery. This may be done so that the laser irradiation range for one time includes both the bank pattern 161 and its periphery, or when the laser irradiation range is small, a plurality of laser shots are moved and irradiated within the dummy part RA to form the bank pattern Laser irradiation may be made across 161 and its periphery.

In this case, when energy is transferred by laser irradiation, the lower second electrode power voltage line 120 and the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 are located in the region having the thin organic layer 140 or in the region having little or no organic layer 140 . ) is easy to uplift. Accordingly, the connection portion CRA between the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 raised by laser irradiation and the second electrode 150 on the upper portion has a large taper, so that there is little or a thin organic layer 140 remaining. It may be located on the lower side of the bank pattern 161 .

And, as shown in FIG. 6 , when the laser irradiation range includes the bank pattern 161 and its periphery, the connection portion CRA between the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 and the second electrode 150 is It may have a shape surrounding the bank pattern 161 .

Hereinafter, a connection portion generated by laser irradiation of another type will be described.

7 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a dummy part of an organic light emitting diode display according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 7 , in the organic light emitting diode display according to another exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a connection part CRA between the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 and the second electrode 150 is connected to one of the bank patterns 161 . It has the side and the outside of the bank pattern 161 .

This is because when the laser irradiation is performed on the dummy portion RA, the irradiation is biased toward one side with respect to the center of the bank pattern 161 . The laser irradiation is irradiated from the lower side of the substrate 100, and the metallic second electrode power voltage line 120 is located below the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 and the bank pattern 161, and when the laser is irradiated, the bank pattern ( 161) may not be observed. Accordingly, the laser irradiation region is formed to deviate from the center of the bank pattern 161 to a certain extent and span only a portion of the bank pattern 161 , so that the connection portion CRA may be provided on the main surface of the bank pattern 161 . In this case, even if the organic layer 140 remains between the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 and the second electrode 150 before laser irradiation, the organic layer 140 is applied to the pattern formed by the photo method such as the bank pattern 161 . Compared to the vapor deposition, the deposition density is low and the thickness is small, so the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 and the upper second electrode ( 150) and the connection unit CRA may be created.

7 shows an example in which the connection portion CRA is formed corresponding to the left side of the bank pattern 161, but the present invention is not limited thereto, and the connection portion CRA is formed corresponding to only one of the upper side, the right side, and the lower side. it might be

8 is a SEM diagram illustrating a connection portion between the first electrode auxiliary pattern and the second electrode of the organic light emitting diode display of the present invention from the substrate side, and FIG. 9 is a first electrode auxiliary pattern and second electrode auxiliary pattern of the organic light emitting display of the present invention. It is an SEM diagram which shows the connection part between electrodes from the opposing board|substrate side.

When the laser welding is performed and the connection portion CRA between the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 and the second electrode 150 is generated, as shown in FIG. 8 , when observed from the substrate 100 side, the bank pattern 161 is At the edge, it was confirmed that the organic layer 140 was cut off and the second electrode 150 and the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 were connected.

And, as shown in FIG. 9 , when viewed from the opposite substrate side on which the organic light emitting diode (OLED) is formed, an encapsulation film in the form of alternating the inorganic encapsulation film PAS3 and the organic encapsulation film Resin is stacked above the organic light emitting diode (OLED). It can be confirmed that the portion RA remains without damage, the lower inorganic encapsulation film PAS3 of the encapsulation film is in contact with the second electrode 150, and it can be confirmed that the lower first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 is connected. have. That is, it can be confirmed that the connection portion CRA between the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 and the second electrode 150 is normally formed by laser welding without causing damage to the upper configuration.

In the above experiment, in a state where two bank patterns 161 are spaced apart, a laser is irradiated over a part of the bank patterns 161 around the bank patterns 161 spaced apart from each other, and then the shape of the connection part CRA will look into

Hereinafter, various embodiments of the organic light emitting diode display of the present invention will be described.

10A to 10D are plan views illustrating a state before laser welding of a connection portion between a first electrode auxiliary pattern and a second electrode according to various embodiments of an organic light emitting diode display according to the present invention, and FIGS. 11A to 11D are FIGS. 9A to 9A to In each of the embodiments of FIG. 9D, it is a plan view showing a state after laser welding.

10A to 10D , the embodiments described below are obtained by changing the shape of the bank pattern 161 .

It is formed in an island shape at the center of the dummy part RA of the bank pattern 161 of FIG. 10A , and after laser irradiation on the lower side of the substrate 100, around the bank pattern 161 as shown in FIG. A connection portion CRA is formed between the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 and the second electrode 150 .

In addition, a plurality of island-like bank patterns 161 of FIG. 10A of the bank pattern 161 of FIG. 10B are provided spaced apart, and after laser irradiation, as shown in FIG. A connection portion CRA is formed between the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 and the second electrode 150 .

In addition, a plurality of bank patterns 161 of FIG. 10C are provided to be spaced apart in a stripe shape in the dummy part RA, and after laser irradiation, as shown in FIG. 10C , the first electrode auxiliary around each bank pattern 161 . A connection portion CRA is formed between the pattern 131 and the second electrode 150 .

And, the bank pattern 161 of FIG. 10D is provided with the bank pattern 161 in a grid shape in the dummy part RA. After laser irradiation, as shown in FIG. 11D , each of the bank patterns 161 in the grid shape is provided. A connection portion CRA between the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 and the second electrode 150 is formed along the periphery.

Here, in the embodiments of FIGS. 10C and 10D , the bank pattern 161 and the bank 160 around the light emitting part EA may be integrally provided.

In order to prevent damage to the light emitting part EA by laser irradiation of the dummy part RA, as shown in FIG. 3 , it is preferable that the first electrode 130 and the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 of the same layer be spaced apart from each other. .

The first electrode 130 and the first auxiliary electrode pattern 131 and the auxiliary bar patterns 130a and 130b shown in FIG. 2 may be located on the same layer.

As described above, in the organic light emitting diode display of the present invention, the bank pattern 161 is provided on an upper portion of the first auxiliary electrode pattern 131 , the bank pattern 161 is included, and the active region ( When the organic layer 140 formed entirely on AA) is thinly deposited on the side of the bank pattern 161, which has a larger taper than other regions, and then corresponds to the connection portion RA and is irradiated with a laser beam to the lower side of the substrate 100 , the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 penetrates the thin organic layer 141 adjacent to the side of the bank pattern 161 to easily connect to the second electrode 150 .

That is, in the connection part RA, the second electrode 150 and the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 spaced apart with the organic layer 140 (or multi-layered organic layer) interposed therebetween are irradiated from the lower side of the substrate 100 . The second electrode power voltage line 120 is raised by receiving energy through it has become Through this laser irradiation process, the second electrode power voltage line 120 through which the second electrode power voltage VSS is directly transmitted to the second electrode 150 for each portion of the active area AA where the connection part RA is provided. : VSSL) is connected, so that a voltage drop that may occur in the second electrode 150 far from the pad portion in the active area AA can be prevented.

Here, in the vicinity of the bank pattern 161 , the connection CRA between the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 and the second electrode 150 generates a certain amount or more of energy from the lower side of the substrate 100 . It may be made of a deformation generated by being transmitted to the electrode power voltage line 120 .

12 is a plan view illustrating a state after laser welding according to another embodiment of the present invention.

The first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 over one side of the bank pattern 161 is not limited to the bar where the connection portion CRA is formed around the bank pattern 161 shown in FIGS. 11A to 11D , as shown in FIG. 12 . A connection portion CRA between the second electrode 150 and the second electrode 150 may be formed.

The example shown in FIG. 12 shows an example in which the connection part CRA is formed corresponding to the left side of the bank pattern 161, but is not limited thereto, and the connection part ( CRA) may also be formed. In addition, by extension, when the bank pattern 161 has a quadrangular shape, the connection portions CRA may be formed over two or three sides.

In addition, the bank pattern 161 is not limited to a quadrangle, and may have other polygonal and circular shapes, and a connection portion CRA may be formed over only a portion of the polygonal or circular bank pattern 161, As described above, the connection portion CRA may be formed over the periphery of the provided bank pattern 161 . The shape of the connection part CRA may be adjusted according to the laser irradiation range.

Hereinafter, an organic light emitting diode display of the present invention will be briefly described.

13 is a process flowchart illustrating a method of manufacturing an organic light emitting diode display according to the present invention. Reference is made to FIGS. 5 and 6 for process cross-sectional views.

5 and 13 , first, a thin film transistor (a TFT including a D-Tr) is formed on the substrate 100 and passes through every sub-pixel in the same process of forming at least one electrode constituting the thin film transistor. A second electrode power supply voltage line in one direction is formed in one direction (10S).

Next, a first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 spaced apart from the first electrode 130 is formed for each sub-pixel or n (plural) sub-pixels. The first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 is provided in the dummy part (refer to RA of FIG. 3 ) separated from the light emitting part EA.

Here, the light emitting part EA may be defined by forming the bank 160 in a region surrounding the first electrode 130 , and in the same process, a bank pattern 161 on a part of the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 . ) to form

Next, one or more organic layers 140 including an organic emission layer and a second electrode 150 are formed. The organic layer 140 and the second electrode 150 are formed without a separate mask, and are both formed on the substrate 100 on which the sub-pixel SP is provided.

Here, the stacked configuration of the first electrode 130 , the organic layer 140 , and the second electrode 150 is referred to as an organic light emitting diode (OLED). In the dummy part RA, the first electrode 130 is absent and the first electrode auxiliary patterns 131 are provided to be spaced apart from each other in a floating state. have. In this way, in the process of forming the organic light emitting diode (OLED), the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 is also formed ( 20S).

Next, the inorganic encapsulation film and the organic encapsulation film are alternately formed to cover the organic light emitting diode (OLED) to form an encapsulation film having at least one pair. In some cases, the upper substrate including the color filter layer may be bonded to the substrate 100 including the organic light emitting diode (OLED) with an adhesive layer (not shown) interposed therebetween. This process is called the encapsulation process (30S).

Next, only the dummy portion RA under the substrate 100 is irradiated with a laser to form a connection portion CRA between the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 and the second electrode 150 ( 40S).

As described above, in the organic light emitting diode display of the present invention, the connection portion CRA between the first electrode auxiliary pattern 131 and the second electrode 150 in the sub-pixel is formed in the encapsulation process, and the connection portion CRA is formed in the sub-pixel. For this purpose, the voltage drop of the second electrode 150 (cathode) in the sub-pixel may be prevented without adding a separate mask.

On the other hand, the present invention described above is not limited to the above-described embodiment and the accompanying drawings, and various substitutions, modifications and changes are possible within the scope without departing from the technical spirit of the present invention. It will be clear to those of ordinary skill in the art.

100: substrate 120: second electrode power voltage line
130: first electrode 131: first electrode auxiliary pattern
130a, 130b: auxiliary bar pattern 140: organic layer
150: second electrode 160: bank
161: bank pattern AA: active area
CRA: connection part RA: dummy part
PA: pad part

Claims (15)

A substrate comprising: a substrate having an active region including a plurality of sub-pixels each having a light emitting part, and an outer region including a pad part on one side thereof;
a first electrode provided in the light emitting unit for each sub-pixel;
a bank positioned around the light emitting unit and exposing the first electrode provided in the light emitting unit;
a second electrode provided to fill the active region;
a second electrode power voltage line disposed in one direction in the active region and extending to the pad part to receive a power voltage;
a first electrode auxiliary pattern provided in at least one sub-pixel to be spaced apart from the first electrode;
a bank pattern provided on the first electrode auxiliary pattern and positioned on the same layer as the bank;
Around the bank pattern, the first electrode auxiliary pattern has a raised portion, the connection portion connected to the second electrode; and
and an organic layer disposed between the first electrode and the second electrode and having a through portion corresponding to the connection portion. The method of claim 1,
The bank pattern is located in a portion of the first electrode auxiliary pattern. 3. The method of claim 2,
The bank pattern is in contact with an upper portion of the first auxiliary electrode pattern. 4. The method of claim 3,
The first electrode auxiliary pattern is in contact with the second electrode power voltage line. The method of claim 1,
The organic light emitting diode display device, wherein the connecting portion of the first electrode auxiliary pattern and the second electrode is positioned below the bank pattern. The method of claim 1,
An organic light emitting diode display having a shape surrounding the bank pattern, wherein the protruding portion of the first electrode auxiliary pattern and the connecting portion of the second electrode surround the bank pattern. The method of claim 1,
The organic light emitting diode display device, wherein the protrusion of the first electrode auxiliary pattern and the connection portion of the second electrode are disposed over one side of the bank pattern and the outside of the bank pattern. The method of claim 1,
The organic light emitting diode display is regularly provided with the protrusion of the first electrode auxiliary pattern and the connecting portion of the second electrode for at least one or more sub-pixels. 8. The method according to any one of claims 5 to 7,
The raised portion of the first auxiliary pattern is thinner than the organic layer on the first electrode positioned on the light emitting portion. The method of claim 1,
The second electrode is connected to the second electrode power voltage line in the outer region through an auxiliary bar pattern. 11. The method of claim 10,
The first electrode, the first electrode auxiliary pattern, and the auxiliary bar pattern are located on the same layer. delete The method of claim 1,
Further comprising a thin film transistor connected to the first electrode,
One electrode constituting the thin film transistor is positioned on the same layer as the second electrode power voltage line. 5. The method of claim 4,
The raised portion of the first electrode auxiliary pattern is a deformation generated when a certain amount or more of energy is transmitted to the second electrode power voltage line from the lower side of the substrate, and when the line raised portion is generated on the upper surface of the second electrode power voltage line, generated together along the upper surface of the line ridge,
The protrusion of the first auxiliary electrode pattern penetrates the organic layer around the bank pattern and is directly connected to the second electrode through the through portion. The method of claim 1,
The bank pattern has a positive taper on the first auxiliary electrode pattern.

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