KR20050087460A - Liquid crystal display device and method for manufacturing the same - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display device capable of preventing gravity defects and touch unevenness. A column spacer in which a ball spacer formed between a first substrate and a second substrate facing each other and the first and second substrates are mixed. And a liquid crystal layer formed between the first and second substrates.

Description

Liquid crystal display device and method for manufacturing the same

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display, and more particularly, to a liquid crystal display and a manufacturing method capable of preventing uneven touch and gravity failure.

As the information society develops, the demand for display devices is increasing in various forms, and in recent years, liquid crystal display devices (LCDs), plasma display panels (PDPs), electro luminescent displays (ELD), and vacuum fluorescent (VFD) Various flat panel display devices such as displays have been studied, and some of them are already used as display devices in various devices.

Among them, LCD is the most widely used as the substitute for CRT (Cathode Ray Tube) for mobile image display device because of its excellent image quality, light weight, thinness, and low power consumption. In addition to the use of the present invention has been developed in various ways such as a television and a computer monitor for receiving and displaying broadcast signals.

In order to use such a liquid crystal display as a general screen display device in various parts, it is a matter of how high quality images such as high definition, high brightness and large area can be realized while maintaining the characteristics of light weight, thinness and low power consumption. Can be.

Hereinafter, a conventional liquid crystal display device and a spacer holding a cell gap of the liquid crystal display device will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is an exploded perspective view showing a general liquid crystal display.

As shown in FIG. 1, a liquid crystal display device includes a liquid crystal injected between a first substrate 1 and a second substrate 2 bonded to each other with a predetermined space, and between the first substrate 1 and the second substrate 2. It consists of layer (3).

In more detail, the first substrate 1 may have a plurality of gate lines 4 in one direction and constant in a direction perpendicular to the gate lines 4 at regular intervals to define the pixel region P. FIG. A plurality of data lines 5 are arranged at intervals. In addition, a pixel electrode 6 is formed in each pixel region P, and a thin film transistor T is formed at a portion where each of the gate lines 4 and the data lines 5 intersect with each other so that the thin film transistors are formed. The data signal of the data line is applied to each pixel electrode according to the signal of the gate line.

In addition, a black matrix layer 7 is formed on the second substrate 2 to block light in portions other than the pixel region P, and portions R corresponding to the respective pixel regions are formed to express colors. A, G, B color filter layer 8 is formed, and a common electrode 9 for realizing an image is formed on the color filter layer 8.

In the liquid crystal display as described above, the liquid crystal layer 3 formed between the first and second substrates is aligned by an electric field between the pixel electrode 6 and the common electrode 9, and the liquid crystal layer 3 of the liquid crystal layer 3 is aligned. The amount of light passing through the liquid crystal layer 3 can be adjusted according to the degree of alignment to express the image.

Such a liquid crystal display device is referred to as a TN mode liquid crystal display device. The TN mode liquid crystal display device has a disadvantage of having a narrow viewing angle, and an IPS mode liquid crystal display device has been developed to overcome the disadvantages of the TN mode.

In the IPS mode liquid crystal display, a pixel electrode and a common electrode are formed parallel to each other at a predetermined distance in a pixel area of the first substrate so that a lateral electric field (horizontal electric field) is generated between the pixel electrode and the common electrode and the lateral electric field is generated. This is to align the liquid crystal layer.

Hereinafter, the manufacturing method of the liquid crystal display of the conventional IPS mode will be described.

The manufacturing method of a general liquid crystal display device can be classified into a liquid crystal injection method manufacturing method and a liquid crystal drop method manufacturing method according to the method of forming a liquid crystal layer between the first and second substrates.

First, the manufacturing method of the liquid crystal display device of the liquid crystal injection method is as follows.

2 is a flowchart of a method of manufacturing a liquid crystal display device of a general liquid crystal injection method.

Liquid crystal displays are largely classified into an array process, a cell process, a module process, and the like.

In the array process, as described above, a thin film formed at a portion where the gate line and the data line formed in the direction perpendicular to each other on the TFT substrate, the common line formed parallel to the gate line, and the gate line and the data line cross each other. Forming a TFT array including a transistor, common electrodes extending from the common line to a pixel region, and a pixel electrode connected to the drain electrode of the thin film transistor and formed in parallel with the common electrode between the common electrodes; And a color filter array including a black matrix layer, a color filter layer, an overcoat layer and the like on a color filter substrate.

In this case, the array process does not form one liquid crystal panel on one substrate, but designs a plurality of liquid crystal panels on one large glass substrate to form a TFT array and a color filter array in each liquid crystal panel region.

 In this way, the TFT substrate on which the TFT array is formed and the color filter substrate on which the color filter array is formed are moved to the cell processing line.

Subsequently, an alignment process (rubbing process) S10 is applied to apply the alignment material on the TFT substrate and the color filter substrate and to make the liquid crystal molecules have uniform orientation.

Here, the alignment step (S10) proceeds in order of cleaning before the alignment film coating, alignment film printing, alignment film firing, alignment film inspection, rubbing process.

Subsequently, the TFT substrate and the color filter substrate are cleaned (S20), respectively.

Further, a ball spacer for maintaining a cell gap is uniformly distributed on the TFT substrate or the color filter substrate (S30), and the two substrates are bonded to the outer portion of each liquid crystal panel region. Form a seal pattern (seal pattern) for (S40). At this time, the seal pattern is formed to have a liquid crystal injection hole pattern for injecting liquid crystal.

Here, the ball spacer is formed of plastic balls or elastic plastic fine particles.

The two substrates are bonded together to face the TFT substrate and the color filter substrate such that the seal pattern is disposed therebetween, and the seal pattern is cured (S50).

Thereafter, the bonded and cured TFT substrate and the color filter substrate are cut and processed for each unit liquid crystal panel region (S60) to produce a unit liquid crystal panel having a predetermined size.

Thereafter, the liquid crystal is injected through the liquid crystal injection hole of each unit liquid crystal panel, and after completion of the injection, the liquid crystal injection hole is sealed (S70) to form a liquid crystal layer. The liquid crystal display device is manufactured by performing external appearance and electrical defect inspection (S80) of each unit liquid crystal panel.

Here, the liquid crystal injection process will be briefly described as follows.

First, the container containing the liquid crystal material to be injected and the liquid crystal panel to inject the liquid crystal are placed in the chamber, and the pressure in the chamber is maintained in a vacuum state to remove moisture from the liquid crystal material or the inner wall of the container. Then, bubbles are de-included and the inner space of the liquid crystal panel is vacuumed.

The liquid crystal injection hole of the liquid crystal panel is immersed in or contacted with a container containing a liquid crystal material in a desired vacuum state, and then the pressure inside the chamber is changed from a vacuum state to an atmospheric pressure state, and the pressure inside the liquid crystal panel and the pressure of the chamber. By the difference, the liquid crystal material is injected into the liquid crystal panel through the liquid crystal injection hole.

The manufacturing method of the liquid crystal display of the liquid crystal injection method has the following problems.

First, after cutting into a unit panel, the liquid crystal injection hole is immersed in the liquid crystal liquid by maintaining the vacuum state between the two substrates, so that the liquid crystal injection takes a lot of time, the productivity is reduced.

Second, in the case of manufacturing a large-area liquid crystal display device, when the liquid crystal is injected by the liquid crystal injection method, the liquid crystal is not completely injected into the panel, which causes a defect.

Third, since the process is complicated and time-consuming as described above, several liquid crystal injection equipment is required, which requires a lot of space.

Accordingly, in order to overcome the problems of the liquid crystal injection method, a method of manufacturing a liquid crystal drop type liquid crystal display device in which a liquid crystal is dropped on one of two substrates and then the two substrates are bonded to each other has been developed.

3 is a flowchart of a method of manufacturing a liquid crystal drop type liquid crystal display device.

That is, the liquid crystal display device manufacturing method of the liquid crystal dropping method is a method of dropping an appropriate amount of liquid crystal onto any one of the two substrates before bonding the two substrates, and then joining the two substrates together.

Therefore, when the ball spacer is used to maintain the cell gap as in the liquid crystal injection method, when the dropped liquid crystal spreads, the ball spacer is moved in the liquid crystal spreading direction and the spacer is pushed to one side, thereby making it impossible to maintain the accurate cell gap.

Therefore, the liquid crystal dropping method should use a fixed spacer (column spacer or patterned spacer) in which the spacer is fixed to the substrate without using the ball spacer.

That is, as shown in FIG. 3, in the array process, a black matrix layer, a color filter layer, and an overcoat layer are formed on the color filter substrate, and a photosensitive resin is formed on the overcoat layer and selectively removed to overcoat the black matrix layer. Form column spacers on the layers. Of course, the column spacer may be formed by a photo process or an ink-jet process.

Then, an alignment film is applied to the entire TFT substrate including the column spacer and the color filter substrate, and the alignment film is rubbed.

As described above, the TFT substrate and the color filter substrate on which the alignment process is completed are cleaned (S101), and then, a liquid crystal is dropped into a predetermined region on one of the TFT substrate and the color filter substrate (S102), and each liquid crystal of the remaining substrates. A seal pattern is formed at an outer portion of the panel region by using a dispensing apparatus (S103).

At this time, the liquid crystal may also be dropped on one of the two substrates and a seal pattern may be formed.

Then, the substrate on which the liquid crystal is not dropped is inverted (inverted to face each other) (S104), the TFT substrate and the color filter substrate are pressed together, and the seal pattern is cured (S105).

Subsequently, the bonded substrate is cut and processed for each unit liquid crystal panel (S106).

In addition, the liquid crystal display device may be manufactured by performing the external appearance and electrical defect inspection (S107) of the processed unit liquid crystal panel.

This conventional method of forming a column spacer is as follows.

4A-4D are cross-sectional views of a conventional column spacer process.

As shown in FIG. 4A, a black matrix layer 7 is formed by depositing a metal or a block resin capable of blocking light on the color filter substrate 2 and selectively removing a portion corresponding to the pixel region. Then, the process of depositing the pigment-colored resin and patterning so that it remains only in the pixel region is performed to form R, G, and B color filter layers 8 in each pixel region, and over the entire substrate including the color filter layer 8. An over coat layer 11 is formed. In the case of the IPS mode, the overcoat layer is formed, but in the TN mode, the common electrode is formed instead of the overcoat layer.

As shown in FIG. 4B, a negative photosensitive resin 12 for column spacers is deposited on the overcoat layer 11.

As shown in FIG. 4C, the photosensitive resin 12 on the black matrix layer is selectively irradiated with light to coagulate the photosensitive resin 12 by an exposure process using the photomask 13.

As shown in FIG. 4D, the light irradiated portion remains and the non-light irradiated portion is developed to form a column spacer 20.

As described above, an alignment film (not shown) is deposited on the color filter substrate having the column spacer and the TFT substrate on which the thin film transistor array is formed, thereby performing a rubbing process, and then bonding the two substrates together.

 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a conventional liquid crystal display device in which column spacers are formed.

As shown in FIG. 5, the column spacer 20 is formed on the color filter substrate 2 in the illustrated liquid crystal display device, and the liquid crystal is dropped and formed on the TFT substrate.

As can be seen from above, the column spacer is fixed to the color filter substrate and in contact with the TFT substrate. The surface of the column spacer in contact with the TFT substrate is not completely spherical but has a flat surface.

Therefore, the liquid crystal display device manufactured by the liquid crystal injection method uses a spherical ball spacer and the spacer is not fixed to the substrate. Does not occur.

However, the liquid crystal display device using the column spacer has the following problems.

First, since the column spacer is fixed to one substrate and the surface in contact with the other substrate is not spherical, the column spacer has a larger area of contact with the substrate than the ball spacer and thus has a large friction force with the substrate. Therefore, when the screen of the liquid crystal display on which the column spacer is formed is rubbed, staining occurs for a long time.

6A and 6B are plan and cross-sectional views showing a state where a touch spot occurs.

As shown in FIG. 6A, when the liquid crystal panel 10 is swung past while being touched by a finger in a predetermined direction, as shown in FIG. 6B, the upper substrate of the liquid crystal panel is shifted by a predetermined interval in the direction where the finger passes.

At this time, the columnar columnar spacers are in contact with the upper and lower substrates, and the contact area is large and the friction force generated between the column spacers and the opposing substrate is large, so that the liquid crystal between the column spacers does not easily return to the original state. As a result, stains appearing to be opaque continuously are observed. In addition, when a finger passes in a predetermined direction, as shown in Fig. 6B, the liquid crystals are collected at the last contact portion, and a shape in which the portion is bulged is formed. In this case, the areas where the liquid crystals gather and protrude bulge have a higher cell gap h1 than the cell gap h2 of other sites defined by the height of the column spacer, resulting in uneven alignment of the liquid crystals, resulting in light leakage. Therefore, there arises a problem of uneven brightness.

Second, the above-described touch stain can be solved by increasing the amount of liquid crystal dropped, but while the touch stain is eliminated, it causes another problem of relatively poor gravity. That is, the liquid crystal display device is used for a display device such as a monitor, a notebook, a TV, and the like, and in many cases, the panel is vertically standing. At this time, the liquid crystal is concentrated in the direction of gravity.

Third, since the column spacer is inflexible, the uniformity of the cell gap is poor.

These problems are more severe in IPS mode.

The present invention has been made to solve the above problems, by mixing the ball spacer in the photosensitive resin for the column spacer, depositing and selectively removing the mixed photosensitive resin to form a column spacer to increase the flexibility of the column spacer to gravity It is an object of the present invention to provide a liquid crystal display and a manufacturing method which can solve the problem of touch unevenness by eliminating defects and minimizing friction between the column spacer and the substrate.

A liquid crystal display of the present invention for achieving the above object, the first substrate and the second substrate facing each other; A column spacer in which ball spacers formed between the first and second substrates are mixed; The liquid crystal layer is formed between the first and second substrates.

Here, the ball spacer is characterized in that it has a diameter corresponding to 1/2 of the cell gap.

And at least one alignment layer formed on a surface of the first substrate or the second substrate including the column spacer.

In addition, the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention, the first and second substrates facing each other; A black matrix layer and an overcoat layer formed on the first substrate; A column spacer mixed with a ball spacer formed on the overcoat layer; A gate line and a data line intersecting each other on the second substrate to define a pixel area; A common line formed in a direction parallel to the gate line and protruding a plurality of common electrodes in a direction parallel to the data line in the pixel area; A thin film transistor having a semiconductor layer and a source / drain electrode formed at an intersection portion of the gate line and the data line; A protective film formed on the second substrate to have a contact hole in the drain electrode; A pixel electrode connected to the drain electrode of the thin film transistor, the pixel electrode being spaced apart from the common electrode at a predetermined interval in the pixel area on the passivation layer so as to be parallel to the common electrode; In addition, the liquid crystal layer is formed between the first and second substrates.

In addition, the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention, the first and second substrates facing each other; A black matrix layer and a common electrode formed on the first substrate; A column spacer in which ball spacers formed on the common electrode are mixed; A gate line and a data line intersecting each other on the second substrate to define a pixel area; A thin film transistor having a semiconductor layer and a source / drain electrode formed at an intersection portion of the gate line and the data line; A protective film formed on the second substrate to have a contact hole in the drain electrode; A pixel electrode connected to the drain electrode of the thin film transistor and formed in the pixel area on the passivation layer; And a liquid crystal layer formed between the first and second substrates.

On the other hand, the manufacturing method of the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention for achieving the above object comprises the steps of mixing the ball spacer and the photosensitive resin; Coating and selectively removing the photosensitive resin mixed with the ball spacers on the first substrate to form column spacers; Dropping liquid crystal onto the first substrate or the second substrate; Forming a seal pattern on the first substrate or the second substrate; And bonding the first and second substrates so that the cell gap is maintained by the column spacer.

In addition, the manufacturing method of the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention comprises the steps of mixing the ball spacer and the photosensitive resin; Forming a black matrix layer, a color filter layer, and an overcoat layer on the first substrate; Coating and selectively removing the photosensitive resin mixed with the ball spacers on the overcoat layer to form column spacers; Forming a plurality of gate lines having gate electrodes and a common line having common electrodes on the second substrate; Forming a gate insulating film on an entire surface of the second substrate including the gate line and the common line; Forming a semiconductor layer on the gate insulating film above the gate electrode; Forming a data line and source / drain electrodes on both sides of the semiconductor layer in a direction perpendicular to the gate line to define a pixel area; Forming a protective film on the entire surface of the second substrate to have contact holes in the drain electrode; Forming a pixel electrode in a pixel area on the passivation layer and connected to the drain electrode of the thin film transistor in parallel with the common electrode; Dropping liquid crystal onto the first substrate or the second substrate; Forming a seal pattern on the first substrate or the second substrate; And bonding the first and second substrates so that the cell gap is maintained by the column spacers.

In addition, the manufacturing method of the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention comprises the steps of mixing the ball spacer and the photosensitive resin; Forming a black matrix layer, a color filter layer, and a common electrode on the first substrate; Forming a column spacer by applying and selectively removing the photosensitive resin mixed with the ball spacer on the common electrode; Forming a gate line having a gate electrode on the second substrate; Forming a gate insulating film on an entire surface of the second substrate including the gate line; Forming a semiconductor layer on the gate insulating film above the gate electrode; Forming a data line and source / drain electrodes on both sides of the semiconductor layer in a direction perpendicular to the gate line to define a pixel area; Forming a protective film on the entire surface of the second substrate to have contact holes in the drain electrode; Forming a pixel electrode in the pixel area on the passivation layer so as to be connected to the drain electrode of the thin film transistor; Dropping liquid crystal onto the first substrate or the second substrate; Forming a seal pattern on the first substrate or the second substrate; And bonding the first and second substrates so that the cell gap is maintained by the column spacers.

Hereinafter, a liquid crystal display and a manufacturing method of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

7A to 7D are explanatory views of a process of column spacers according to embodiments of the present invention.

First, as shown in FIG. 7A, the photosensitive resin 24 and the ball spacers 25 for forming the column spacers are mixed.

In this case, since the cell gap is changed for each mode of the liquid crystal display device, the ball spacer 25 uses a ball spacer having a diameter corresponding to 1/2 or less of the cell gap of the liquid crystal display device, and the photosensitive resin is a negative photosensitive resin. It is preferred to use.

Then, the photosensitive resin 24 mixed with the ball spacers 25 is coated on the color filter substrate, and exposed and developed to form a column spacer.

That is, as illustrated in FIG. 7B, a black matrix layer 21 is formed by depositing a metal or a block resin that can block light on the glass substrate 60 and selectively removing a portion corresponding to the pixel region. Then, the process of depositing the pigment-colored resin and patterning so that it remains only in the pixel region to form R, G, B color filter layers 22 in each pixel region, and over the entire substrate including the color filter layer 22 An over coat layer 23 is formed. In the case of the IPS mode, the overcoat layer is formed, but in the TN mode, the common electrode is formed instead of the overcoat layer.

Then, the photosensitive resin 24 on which the ball spacers 25 are mixed is deposited on the overcoat layer 23.

As shown in FIG. 7C, light is selectively irradiated onto the photosensitive resin 24 mixed with the ball spacers 25 on the black matrix layer in the exposure process using the photomask 26 to solidify the photosensitive resin 24.

As shown in FIG. 7D, the photosensitive resin 24 of the portion to which light is irradiated remains and the photosensitive resin 24 of the portion to which light is not irradiated is developed to form a column spacer 27.

As described above, a rubbing process is performed by depositing an alignment layer (not shown) on a color filter substrate on which a column spacer is formed and a TFT substrate on which a thin film transistor array is formed, as described in the prior art. The two substrates are then bonded together.

The column spacer mixed with the ball spacer according to the present invention can be applied to both the liquid crystal display device of the TN mode or IPS mode.

Therefore, the structure of the liquid crystal display device in which the column spacer is formed of the photosensitive resin mixed with the ball spacer is described as follows.

FIG. 8 is a plan view of an IPS mode liquid crystal display device according to a first exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along line II-II 'of FIG. 8.

In the first embodiment of the present invention, a column spacer is formed of a photosensitive resin mixed with a ball spacer in a liquid crystal display of IPS mode. That is, since the cell gap of the liquid crystal display of the IPS mode is about 3 to 4 μm, when the column spacer is formed of a photosensitive resin mixed with a ball spacer in the liquid crystal display of the IPS mode, 2 μm of a diameter of 1/2 or less of the cell gap is used. The following ball spacers are used.

8 and 9, the color filter substrate 100 and the TFT substrate 200 bonded to each other with a predetermined space and the liquid crystal layer 55 injected between the color filter substrate 100 and the TFT substrate 200. It consists of.

More specifically, the color filter substrate 100 may include a black matrix layer 21 for blocking light of portions (gate lines and data line regions and thin film transistor regions) except for pixel regions on the glass substrate 60. Are formed, and R, G, and B color filter layers 22 are formed to correspond to the pixel areas to express colors in portions, and overcoats are formed on the entire upper surface of the black matrix layer 21 and the color filter layers 22. Layer 23 is formed. The column spacer 27 is formed of a photosensitive resin in which a ball spacer is mixed in a predetermined portion of the overcoat layer 23 on the black matrix layer 21.

In the TFT substrate 200, a plurality of gate lines 41 and data lines 42 are formed on the glass substrate 70 to vertically intersect to define a pixel region, and are in a direction parallel to the gate lines. The common line 47 is formed, and the common electrode 47a is formed at a predetermined interval by protruding from the common line 47 to each pixel area. Thin film transistors (TFTs) including source / drain electrodes 42a and 42b are formed at portions where the gate lines 41 and the data lines 42 cross each other, and are connected to drain electrodes of the thin film transistors. In each pixel area, pixel electrodes 43 are formed between the common electrodes in parallel with the common electrode 47a. Reference numeral not shown is the semiconductor layer 44.

In the above, the column spacer 27 in which the ball spacers are mixed is formed on the black matrix layer, but is formed at a position corresponding to the gate line 41 or the data line 42 of the TFT substrate 200. 8 illustrates a case in which the column spacer 27 is formed on the gate line 41.

Here, the manufacturing method of the TFT substrate 200 of the liquid crystal display of the IPS mode will be briefly described as follows.

That is, a metal material such as Mo, Al, or Cr is deposited on the glass substrate 70 by sputtering, and the metal material is patterned by a photolithography process to form the gate line 41 and the gate electrode 41a and the common line 47. ) And the common electrode 47a.

Subsequently, an insulating material such as SiNx is deposited on the glass substrate 70 including the gate line 41 and the common line 47 to form a gate insulating film 45, and a semiconductor is formed on the gate insulating film 45. The layer is deposited and patterned to form a semiconductor layer 44 on the gate insulating film 45 above the gate electrode 41a.

The semiconductor layer 44 may be formed by continuously depositing an amorphous silicon layer or a polysilicon layer and a silicon layer heavily doped with impurities, followed by the amorphous silicon layer (or polysilicon layer) and the doped silicon layer. Are formed by patterning at the same time.

In addition, a metal material such as Mo, Al, or Cr is deposited on the entire surface by a sputtering method, and the metal material is patterned by a photolithography process to form a data line 42 in a direction perpendicular to the gate line 41. (44) Source electrodes 42a and drain electrodes 42b are formed on both sides. The source electrode 42a is formed to protrude from the data line 42. In the source / drain electrode patterning process, the doped silicon layer between the source electrode 42a and the drain electrode 42b is removed.

Subsequently, a passivation film 46 made of SiNx is deposited on the entire surface of the substrate including the source electrode 42a and the drain electrode 42b by chemical vapor deposition (CVD). An inorganic material such as SiNx is mainly used as a material of the protective film 46. In order to improve the opening ratio of a liquid crystal cell, an organic material having a low dielectric constant such as BCB (BenzoCycloButene), Spin On Glass (SOG), or Acryl is used. have.

A portion of the passivation layer 46 on the drain electrode 42b is selectively etched to form a contact hole exposing a portion of the drain electrode 42b and electrically connected to the drain electrode 42b through the contact hole. Sputtering and depositing a transparent conductive film on the passivation layer 46 so as to be selectively removed to be connected to the drain electrode 42b and positioned between the common electrode in parallel with the common electrode 47a. The pixel electrode 43 is formed.

In the above description, the column spacer 27 is formed on the color filter substrate 100. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the column spacer may be formed on the TFT substrate.

When the color filter substrate 100 and the TFT substrate 200 are manufactured as described above, although not shown in the drawing, the color filter substrate 100 and the TFT substrate 200 having the column spacers 27 mixed with the ball spacers are formed. First and second alignment films are formed on the entire surface, and rubbing is performed. Here, rubbing refers to a process of determining the initial alignment direction of the liquid crystal by rubbing the cloth with the surface of the alignment film at a uniform pressure and speed so that the polymer chains on the surface of the alignment film are aligned in a predetermined direction.

In addition, a seal pattern is formed around the display area of the color filter substrate 100 or the TFT substrate 200, and a liquid crystal is dropped on the central portion of the display area of the color filter substrate 100 or the TFT substrate 200. After the two substrates are bonded, the seal pattern is cured.

The column spacers in which the ball spacers are mixed in this way can be applied to the liquid crystal display of the TN mode.

FIG. 10 is a plan view of a TN mode liquid crystal display device according to a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view taken along line III-III 'of FIG. 10.

According to a second exemplary embodiment of the present invention, a column spacer is formed of a photosensitive resin mixed with a ball spacer in a TN mode liquid crystal display device. That is, since the cell gap of the TN mode liquid crystal display device is about 5 μm or less, when the column spacer is formed of photosensitive resin mixed with ball spacers in the liquid crystal display device of the TN mode, the diameter is 2.5 μm or less that is 1/2 or less of the cell gap. Ball spacers are used.

10 and 11, the color filter substrate 100 and the TFT substrate 200 bonded to each other with a predetermined space and the liquid crystal layer 55 injected between the color filter substrate 100 and the TFT substrate 200. It consists of.

More specifically, the color filter substrate 100 may include a black matrix layer 21 for blocking light of portions (gate lines and data line regions and thin film transistor regions) except for pixel regions on the glass substrate 60. Are formed, and R, G, and B color filter layers 22 are formed to correspond to each pixel area to express color in portions, and a common electrode is formed on the entire upper surface of the black matrix layer 21 and the color filter layer 22. 34 is formed. The column spacer 27 is formed of a photosensitive resin in which a ball spacer is mixed with a predetermined portion of the common electrode 34 on the black matrix layer 21.

In the TFT substrate 200, a plurality of gate lines 41 and data lines 42 are formed on the glass substrate 70 to vertically cross each other to define pixel regions. A thin film transistor (TFT) having source / drain electrodes 42a and 42b is formed at an intersection portion of the data line 42, and is connected to a drain electrode of the thin film transistor so that each pixel area includes a pixel electrode 43. Are formed. Reference numeral not shown is the semiconductor layer 44.

In the above, the column spacer 27 in which the ball spacers are mixed is formed on the black matrix layer, but is formed at a position corresponding to the gate line 41 or the data line 42 of the TFT substrate 200. In FIG. 10, the column spacer 27 is formed on the gate line 41.

Here, the manufacturing method of the TFT substrate 200 of the liquid crystal display of the TN mode will be briefly described as follows.

After depositing a metal material such as Mo, Al or Cr on the glass substrate 70 by the sputtering method, and then patterning the metal material by a photolithography process in a plurality of gate lines 41 and the gate line 41 The gate electrode 41a is formed to protrude.

Subsequently, an insulating material such as SiNx is deposited on the glass substrate 70 including the gate lines 41 to form a gate insulating layer 45, and a semiconductor layer is deposited and patterned on the gate insulating layer 45. The semiconductor layer 44 is formed on the gate insulating layer 45 on the gate electrode 41a.

The semiconductor layer 44 is formed by continuously depositing an amorphous silicon layer and a silicon layer doped with phosphorus (P) at a high concentration, and then simultaneously patterning the amorphous silicon layer and the doped silicon layer.

In addition, a metal material such as Mo, Al, or Cr is deposited on the entire surface by a sputtering method, and the metal material is patterned by a photolithography process to form a data line 42 in a direction perpendicular to the gate line 41. (44) Source electrodes 42a and drain electrodes 42b are formed on both sides. The source electrode 42a is formed to protrude from the data line 42. In the source / drain electrode patterning process, the doped silicon layer between the source electrode 42a and the drain electrode 42b is removed.

Subsequently, a passivation film 46 made of SiNx is deposited on the entire surface of the substrate including the source electrode 42a and the drain electrode 42b by chemical vapor deposition (CVD). An inorganic material such as SiNx is mainly used as a material of the protective film 46. In order to improve the opening ratio of a liquid crystal cell, an organic material having a low dielectric constant such as BCB (BenzoCycloButene), Spin On Glass (SOG), or Acryl is used. have.

A portion of the passivation layer 46 on the drain electrode 42b is selectively etched to form a contact hole exposing a portion of the drain electrode 42b and electrically connected to the drain electrode 42b through the contact hole. The transparent conductive film is sputtered and deposited on the passivation layer 46 as much as possible, and then selectively removed to remain only in the pixel region to form the pixel electrode 43 in the pixel region.

In the above description, the column spacer 27 is formed on the color filter substrate 100. However, the present invention is not limited thereto, and the column spacer may be formed on the TFT substrate.

When the color filter substrate 100 and the TFT substrate 200 are manufactured as described above, although not shown in the drawing, the color filter substrate 100 and the TFT substrate 200 having the column spacers 27 mixed with the ball spacers are formed. First and second alignment films are formed on the entire surface, and rubbing is performed. Here, rubbing refers to a process of determining the initial alignment direction of the liquid crystal by rubbing the cloth with the surface of the alignment film at a uniform pressure and speed so that the polymer chains on the surface of the alignment film are aligned in a predetermined direction.

In addition, a seal pattern is formed around the display area of the color filter substrate 100 or the TFT substrate 200, and a liquid crystal is dropped on the central portion of the display area of the color filter substrate 100 or the TFT substrate 200. After the two substrates are bonded, the seal pattern is cured.

In the liquid crystal display and the manufacturing method of the present invention as described above has the following effects.

That is, since the ball spacers are mixed with the photosensitive resin and then deposited, the ball spacers are patterned to form the column spacers. Thus, the column spacers are formed in a form in which the cohesion force of the column spacers and the elasticity of the ball spacers are combined.

Therefore, due to the flexibility of the ball spacer, the pressure inside the cell responds smoothly to the change in the external pressure, thereby preventing gravity failure.

In addition, since the ball spacer is formed on the surface of the column spacer of the portion in contact with the substrate to be replaced with the column spacer, frictional force between the column spacer and the substrate to be reduced compared to the conventional can improve the touch failure.

Therefore, even if the surface of the liquid crystal panel is rubbed in a predetermined direction, the friction between the column spacer and the substrate facing the surface is lowered so that the restoration of the liquid crystal proceeds quickly, thereby preventing touch unevenness, and improving the luminance unevenness generated by the touch unevenness. Produce panels.

1 is an exploded perspective view showing a general liquid crystal display device

2 is a flowchart of a manufacturing method of a liquid crystal injection type liquid crystal display device.

3 is a flowchart of a manufacturing method of a liquid crystal drop type liquid crystal display device;

4A to 4D are cross-sectional views illustrating a process of manufacturing a conventional column spacer.

5 is a schematic cross-sectional view showing a liquid crystal display device in which a conventional column spacer is formed.

6a and 6b are a plan view and a cross-sectional view showing the appearance of the site where a conventional touch stain occurs;

7a to 7d is a process chart for explaining the manufacturing process of the column spacer according to the present invention

8 is a plan view of an IPS mode liquid crystal display according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

9 is a cross-sectional view taken along line II-II 'of FIG. 8;

10 is a plan view of a liquid crystal display of TN mode according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view taken along line III-III ′ of FIG. 10.

* Description of symbols on the main parts of the drawings *

21; Black Matrix Layer 22: Color Filter Layer

23: overcoat layer 24: photosensitive resin

25: ball spacer 26: photo mask

27 column spacer 34 common electrode

41: gate line 41a: gate electrode

42: data line 42a: source electrode

42b: drain electrode 43: pixel electrode

44 semiconductor layer 45 gate insulating film

46: protective film 55: liquid crystal layer

60: glass substrate 100: color filter substrate

200: TFT substrate

Claims (19)

A first substrate and a second substrate facing each other; A column spacer in which ball spacers formed between the first and second substrates are mixed; And And a liquid crystal layer formed between the first and second substrates. The method of claim 1, And the ball spacer has a diameter less than 1/2 of a cell gap of the liquid crystal display. The method of claim 1, And the column spacer is fixed to the first substrate and in contact with the second substrate. The method of claim 3, wherein And at least one alignment layer formed on a surface of the first substrate or the second substrate on which the column spacer is fixed. First and second substrates facing each other; A black matrix layer and an overcoat layer formed on the first substrate; A column spacer mixed with a ball spacer formed on the overcoat layer; A gate line and a data line intersecting each other on the second substrate to define a pixel area; A common line formed in a direction parallel to the gate line and protruding a plurality of common electrodes in a direction parallel to the data line in the pixel area; A thin film transistor having a semiconductor layer and a source / drain electrode formed at an intersection portion of the gate line and the data line; A protective film formed on the second substrate to have a contact hole in the drain electrode; A pixel electrode connected to the drain electrode of the thin film transistor, the pixel electrode being spaced apart from the common electrode at a predetermined interval in the pixel area on the passivation layer so as to be parallel to the common electrode; And And a liquid crystal layer formed between the first and second substrates. The method of claim 5, The size of the ball spacer is a liquid crystal display, characterized in that the diameter of the ball spacer is less than 1/2 of the cell gap. The method of claim 5, And at least one alignment layer formed on a surface of the first substrate having the column spacer or the second substrate having the pixel electrode formed thereon. First and second substrates facing each other; A black matrix layer and a common electrode formed on the first substrate; A column spacer in which ball spacers formed on the common electrode are mixed; A gate line and a data line intersecting each other on the second substrate to define a pixel area; A thin film transistor having a semiconductor layer and a source / drain electrode formed at an intersection portion of the gate line and the data line; A protective film formed on the second substrate to have a contact hole in the drain electrode; A pixel electrode connected to the drain electrode of the thin film transistor and formed in the pixel area on the passivation layer; And And a liquid crystal layer formed between the first and second substrates. The method of claim 8, The size of the ball spacer is a liquid crystal display, characterized in that the diameter of the ball spacer is less than 1/2 of the cell gap. The method of claim 8, And at least one alignment layer formed on a surface of the first substrate having the column spacer or the second substrate having the pixel electrode formed thereon. Mixing the ball spacer and the photosensitive resin; Coating and selectively removing the photosensitive resin mixed with the ball spacers on the first substrate to form column spacers; Dropping liquid crystal onto the first substrate or the second substrate; Forming a seal pattern on the first substrate or the second substrate; And And bonding the first and second substrates to maintain the cell gap by the column spacers. The method of claim 11, The size of the ball spacer is a manufacturing method of the liquid crystal display device, characterized in that the diameter of the ball spacer is less than 1/2 of the cell gap. The method of claim 11, And forming at least one alignment layer on a surface of the first substrate or the second substrate on which the column spacer is formed. Mixing the ball spacer and the photosensitive resin; Forming a black matrix layer, a color filter layer, and an overcoat layer on the first substrate; Coating and selectively removing the photosensitive resin mixed with the ball spacers on the overcoat layer to form column spacers; Forming a plurality of gate lines having gate electrodes and a common line having common electrodes on the second substrate; Forming a gate insulating film on an entire surface of the second substrate including the gate line and the common line; Forming a semiconductor layer on the gate insulating film above the gate electrode; Forming a data line and source / drain electrodes on both sides of the semiconductor layer in a direction perpendicular to the gate line to define a pixel area; Forming a protective film on the entire surface of the second substrate to have contact holes in the drain electrode; Forming a pixel electrode in a pixel area on the passivation layer and connected to the drain electrode of the thin film transistor in parallel with the common electrode; Dropping liquid crystal onto the first substrate or the second substrate; Forming a seal pattern on the first substrate or the second substrate; And And bonding the first and second substrates to maintain the cell gap by the column spacers. The method of claim 14, The size of the ball spacer is a manufacturing method of the liquid crystal display device, characterized in that the diameter of the ball spacer is less than 1/2 of the cell gap. The method of claim 14, And forming at least one alignment layer on a surface of the first substrate having the column spacer or the second substrate having the pixel electrode formed thereon. Mixing the ball spacer and the photosensitive resin; Forming a black matrix layer, a color filter layer, and a common electrode on the first substrate; Forming a column spacer by applying and selectively removing the photosensitive resin mixed with the ball spacer on the common electrode; Forming a gate line having a gate electrode on the second substrate; Forming a gate insulating film on an entire surface of the second substrate including the gate line; Forming a semiconductor layer on the gate insulating film above the gate electrode; Forming a data line and source / drain electrodes on both sides of the semiconductor layer in a direction perpendicular to the gate line to define a pixel area; Forming a protective film on the entire surface of the second substrate to have contact holes in the drain electrode; Forming a pixel electrode in the pixel area on the passivation layer so as to be connected to the drain electrode of the thin film transistor; Dropping liquid crystal onto the first substrate or the second substrate; Forming a seal pattern on the first substrate or the second substrate; And And bonding the first and second substrates to maintain the cell gap by the column spacers. The method of claim 17, The size of the ball spacer is a manufacturing method of the liquid crystal display device, characterized in that the diameter of the ball spacer is less than 1/2 of the cell gap. The method of claim 17, And forming at least one alignment layer on a surface of the first substrate having the column spacer or the second substrate having the pixel electrode formed thereon.