KR20220105665A - Display panels, flexible displays, electronic devices and methods of manufacturing display panels - Google Patents

Abstract

A display panel, a flexible display, an electronic device, and a method of manufacturing the display panel are provided. The display panel includes a substrate, a thin film transistor layer, a pixel defining layer 412 , at least two encapsulation structures, and at least two pixel units. The at least two encapsulation structures encapsulate at least two pixel units. A substrate, a thin film transistor layer and a pixel defining layer are stacked. The pixel defining layer has a pixel region 4121 and a side encapsulation region 4122 disposed around the pixel unit encapsulated by the encapsulation structure. An OLED light emitting component of the pixel unit is disposed in the pixel area 4121 . A first encapsulation layer 410 of the encapsulation structure is disposed on the side of the OLED light emitting component and proximate to the thin film transistor layer. A second encapsulation layer 420 of the encapsulation structure is disposed on the side of the OLED light emitting component and away from the thin film transistor layer, and is in sealing contact with the first encapsulation layer 410 in the side encapsulation region 4121 . Since at least two encapsulation structures are disposed to encapsulate the pixel unit, the encapsulation structure may be prevented from being cracked during the bending process to implement a water-oxygen barrier.

Description

Display panels, flexible displays, electronic devices and methods of manufacturing display panels

This application is filed with the Chinese Intellectual Property Office on November 29, 2019 and claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 201911205774.7 entitled "Display Panel, Flexible Display, Electronic Device and Method for Manufacturing Display Panel" and the contents of these documents are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

The present application relates to the field of display technology, and more particularly, to a display panel, a flexible display, an electronic device, and a method of manufacturing a display panel.

Organic light-emitting diode (OLED) display devices are thin, lightweight, wide viewing angles, active luminescence, continuously adjustable luminous colors, low cost, fast response, low energy consumption, low driving voltage, wide operating temperature. It is characterized by range, simple manufacturing process, high luminous efficiency, flexible display, etc., and thus has been listed as a promising next-generation display technology.

The OLED light emitting component of an OLED display device requires a lower cathode work function as it must inject electrons from the cathode during working. However, the cathode is generally made of a metal material such as aluminum, magnesium, or calcium, which has relatively active chemical properties and is easy to react with permeated water vapor and oxygen. As a result, water vapor, oxygen, etc. in the air have a great impact on the lifetime of OLED light emitting components. Further, water vapor and oxygen further react with the hole transport layer and electron transport layer of the OLED light emitting component, which reaction can cause failure of the OLED light emitting component. Therefore, strict water-oxygen seal encapsulation must be performed on the OLED light emitting component to ensure that each functional layer of the OLED light emitting component is completely separated from atmospheric water vapor, oxygen, etc. This greatly extends the lifetime of the OLED light emitting component and extends the lifetime of the OLED display device.

Currently, display panels of OLED display devices are generally encapsulated using thin film encapsulation (TFE) technology during manufacturing. Display panels that use TFE for whole-surface encapsulation are prone to cracking when subjected to pressure or impact. In this case, water vapor and oxygen enter the cathode (the cathode material is typically MgAl) and along the cracks into another deposited layer of the OLED light emitting component. As a result, the cathode loses the electrode function, and the luminous efficiency of the light emitting layer of the OLED light emitting component gradually decreases until the light emitting layer ceases to emit light. As a result, dark dots or black spots are generated to affect the display effect of the OLED display device.

The technical solution of the present application provides a display panel, a flexible display, an electronic device, and a method of manufacturing the display panel for improving the encapsulation feature of the display panel.

According to a first aspect, the technical solution of the present application provides a display panel. The display panel includes a substrate used as a substrate, a thin film transistor layer disposed on the substrate, a pixel definition layer, at least two encapsulation structures, and at least two pixels. includes units. The at least two encapsulation structures are configured to encapsulate the at least two pixel units. the thin film transistor layer is disposed on the substrate, the pixel defining layer is disposed on the thin film transistor layer, the pixel unit having a pixel area and a side encapsulation area, wherein the side encapsulation area is encapsulated by the encapsulation structure disposed around, and the pixel region and the side encapsulation region are through holes disposed on the pixel defining layer. A pixel unit may have an OLED light emitting component disposed partially or completely in said pixel area.

When the encapsulation structure is specifically disposed, the encapsulation structure includes a first encapsulation layer and a second encapsulation layer. The first encapsulation layer is disposed on a side of the OLED light emitting component and proximal to the thin film transistor layer, the first encapsulation layer being further exposed from the side encapsulation region. The second encapsulation layer is disposed on a side of the OLED light emitting component and away from the thin film transistor layer, the second encapsulation layer being in sealing contact with the first encapsulation layer in the side encapsulation region. area can be penetrated. By encapsulating at least two pixel units using at least two encapsulation structures, it is possible to prevent a large encapsulation layer from being formed on the display panel, so that the flexible display including the display panel can be bent, rolled, or freely bent. It can effectively prevent water-oxygen infiltration, which occurs when the encapsulation layer cracks in a deformed scenario.

In a possible implementation of the present application, the quantity of encapsulation structures may be equal to the quantity of pixel units, and each encapsulation structure is configured to encapsulate one pixel unit. This realizes independent encapsulation of each pixel unit, and improves the bending characteristics of the display panel.

In addition, the first encapsulation layer may have a single-layer structure formed by an inorganic material layer, or the first encapsulation layer may have an inorganic material layer and an organic material layer alternately stacked. may be a multi-layer structure; The second encapsulation layer may be a single-layer structure formed by an inorganic material layer, but is not limited thereto, or the second encapsulation layer may be a multi-layer structure in which an inorganic material layer and an organic material layer are alternately stacked. The inorganic material layer may be formed using silicon dioxide, silicon nitride, aluminum oxide, or the like to obtain a relatively good water-oxygen barrier effect.

In a possible implementation of the present application, the display panel may further include a metal line, the metal line being disposed on a side of the pixel defining layer and away from the substrate; or the metal line is disposed on the first encapsulation layer; or the metal line is disposed on a layer structure of the substrate. Since the cathode of the OLED light emitting component is connected to the metal line, all OLED light emitting components can be associated with each other. This facilitates display control of the entire display panel.

In a possible implementation of the present application, a photo spacer is further disposed on a side of the pixel defining layer and away from the substrate. In the process of forming an OLED light emitting component through vapor deposition, the photo spacer effectively prevents the deposition mask for forming each functional layer of the OLED light emitting component through vapor deposition from contacting the display panel, thereby improving the product yield of the display panel .

In a possible embodiment of the present application, a planarization layer may be further disposed on a side surface of the second encapsulation layer and a side away from the thin film transistor layer. The planarization layer may be arranged to provide a flat machining surface for subsequent processing. In addition, the planarization layer may also cover the foreign material to prevent the foreign material from penetrating into another film layer disposed on the planarization layer.

In addition, a third encapsulation layer may be further disposed on the planarization layer, and the third encapsulation layer is an entire surface structure capable of covering at least two encapsulation structures. This enhances the water-oxygen barrier encapsulation effect of the display panel. The third encapsulation layer may be a single-layer structure formed by an inorganic material layer, or a multi-layer structure in which an inorganic material layer and an organic material layer are alternately stacked.

According to the second aspect, the technical solution of the present application further provides a flexible display. The flexible display may include a protective cover, a polarizer, a touch panel, and the display panel according to the first aspect. the polarizing plate is fastened to the protective cover, and the touch panel is disposed between the polarizing plate and the protective cover; Alternatively, the touch panel is fixed to the protective cover, and the polarizer is disposed between the touch panel and the display panel. In addition, a heat dissipation layer may be further disposed on a side surface of the display panel and separated from the touch panel, and a protective layer may be disposed on the heat dissipation layer.

Since at least two pixel units on the display panel of the flexible display are encapsulated by the at least two encapsulation structures, it is possible to prevent a large encapsulation layer from being formed on the display panel, so that the flexible display can be bent, curled, or freely It is possible to effectively prevent the penetration of water-oxygen that occurs when the encapsulation layer is cracked in a scenario such as deformation, and prevent the display defect problem of the flexible display.

According to a third aspect, the technical solution of the present application further provides an electronic device. The electronic device comprises a middle frame, a rear housing, a printed circuit board and a flexible display according to the second aspect. The intermediate frame is configured to bear the printed circuit board and the flexible display. The printed circuit board and the flexible display are positioned on both sides of the intermediate frame. The rear housing is located on a side of the printed circuit board and away from the intermediate frame.

In the present application, the flexible display of the electronic device has relatively excellent bending characteristics. In the process of folding or bending the flexible display, since the risk of cracking of the encapsulation layer of the display panel of the flexible display is relatively low, the problem of display defects of the flexible display of the electronic device that occurs when water and oxygen penetrate through the encapsulation layer is eliminated. can be prevented

According to a fourth aspect, the technical solution of the present application further provides a method of manufacturing a display panel. The display panel includes a substrate, a thin film transistor layer, a pixel defining layer, at least two encapsulation structures, and at least two pixel units. The at least two encapsulation structures are configured to encapsulate the at least two pixel units, the encapsulation structures comprising a first encapsulation layer and a second encapsulation layer, and the pixel units comprising an OLED light emitting component. The method is

manufacturing the substrate;

forming a thin film transistor layer on the substrate and providing a first via on the thin film transistor layer, the first via extending to a drain of the thin film transistor layer;

forming an entire-surface first encapsulation structure layer on the thin film transistor layer, and patterning the entire-surface first encapsulation structure layer to obtain a plurality of independent first encapsulation layers;

forming the pixel defining layer and patterning the pixel defining layer to form a pixel region and a side encapsulation region on each first encapsulation layer, the side encapsulation region being used to expose the first encapsulation layer;

forming the OLED light emitting component in the pixel region, the OLED light emitting component coupled to the drain through the first via; and

Forming a full-surface second encapsulation structure layer corresponding to the thin-film transistor layer on a side surface of the OLED light emitting component and away from the thin-film transistor layer, and patterning the full-surface second encapsulation structure layer, obtaining an independent second encapsulation layer of , wherein the second encapsulation layer and the first encapsulation layer are in sealing contact in the side encapsulation region.

In a possible implementation, forming the first encapsulation layer includes, specifically, depositing one or more of SiO ₂ , SiNx, or Al ₂ O ₃ on the thin film transistor layer to form the entire surface first encapsulation structure layer ; and patterning the full-surface first encapsulation structure layer to obtain at least two first encapsulation layers, wherein the patterning comprises one or more of coating, exposing, developing, etching, or stripping. .

In a possible implementation, before the pixel defining layer is formed, the method further comprises: forming an anode on the first encapsulation layer, the anode connected with the drain via the first via. Specifically, the forming of the anode may include sequentially depositing ITO, Ag, and ITO on the first encapsulation layer to form an anode material layer; and patterning the layer of anode material to obtain the anode, wherein the patterning comprises one or more of coating, exposing, developing, etching, or exfoliating.

Also, after forming the pixel defining layer and before forming the OLED light emitting component, the method may further include forming a photo spacer on the pixel defining layer.

In a possible implementation, in order to associate all OLED light emitting components and control the display of the entire display panel, it is possible to further form a metal line on the pixel defining layer, whereby the cathode of each OLED light emitting component is connected to said metal line. do. Alternatively, the metal line may be formed on the first encapsulation layer, or may be formed on a layer structure of the thin film transistor layer. The forming of the metal line may include, in detail, forming a metal layer by sequentially depositing Ti, Al, and Ti after forming the pixel defining layer; and patterning the metal layer to obtain the metal line, wherein the patterning includes one or more of coating, exposing, developing, etching or peeling.

In a possible implementation, the step of forming the second encapsulation layer specifically comprises depositing one or more of SiO ₂ , SiNx, or Al ₂ O ₃ on the pixel defining layer and the OLED light emitting component to deposit the full-surface second encapsulation. forming a structure layer; and patterning the full-surface second encapsulation structure layer to obtain at least two second encapsulation layers, wherein the patterning comprises one or more of coating, exposing, developing, etching, or exfoliating.

After forming the second encapsulation layer, a planarization layer may be further formed on the second encapsulation layer to provide a flat surface for subsequent layer structure processing. In addition, the planarization layer may cover the foreign material to prevent the foreign material from penetrating into another film layer disposed on the planarization layer.

In a possible implementation, the manufacturing method may further comprise forming a third encapsulation layer on the planarization layer, wherein the third encapsulation layer covers the plurality of encapsulation units. In this way, it is possible to improve the water-oxygen barrier effect of the display panel by forming a full-surface encapsulation layer on the display panel.

According to a fifth aspect, the technical solution of the present application further provides a display panel. The display panel includes a substrate used as a substrate, a thin film transistor layer, a pixel defining layer, at least two encapsulation structures, and at least two pixel units. The at least two encapsulation structures are configured to encapsulate the at least two pixel units. the thin film transistor layer is disposed on the substrate; the pixel defining layer is disposed on the thin film transistor layer, the pixel defining layer has a pixel area and a side encapsulation area, the side encapsulation area being disposed around the pixel unit encapsulated by the encapsulation structure, the pixel The region and the side encapsulation region are through holes disposed in the pixel defining layer. The pixel unit includes an OLED light emitting component, the OLED light emitting component being partially or completely disposed in the pixel area. The thin film transistor layer includes an inorganic material layer, and a via is provided at a position corresponding to the side encapsulation region, and the via exposes the inorganic material layer.

Since the thin film transistor layer includes an inorganic material layer, and the inorganic material layer can obtain an excellent water-oxygen barrier effect, the inorganic material layer of the thin film transistor layer can be used as an encapsulation layer for encapsulating a pixel unit.

When the encapsulation structure is specifically disposed, the encapsulation structure is disposed on the side of the OLED light emitting component and away from the thin film transistor layer. The encapsulation structure penetrates the side encapsulation region and the via, and is in sealing contact with the inorganic layer exposed from the via of the thin film transistor layer in the side encapsulation region. In the technical solution of the present application, by encapsulating at least two pixel units using at least two encapsulation structures, it is possible to prevent a large encapsulation layer from being formed, and thus the flexible display including the display panel may be bent or curled. It is possible to effectively prevent water-oxygen permeation that occurs when the encapsulation layer cracks in scenarios such as or freely deforming. In addition, by using the inorganic layer of the thin film transistor layer as an encapsulation layer for encapsulating the encapsulation unit, it is possible to effectively reduce the processing steps of the display panel, thereby improving the bending performance of the display panel, and reducing manufacturing difficulty and manufacturing cost. can be reduced Further, in this embodiment of the present application, in addition to encapsulating the OLED light emitting component, the encapsulation structure includes a planarization layer, a source, a drain, an inter-layer dielectric layer, an inter-metal dielectric layer. ), and structures such as gates. This protects the encapsulated structure.

In a possible implementation of the present application, the quantity of encapsulation structures may be equal to the quantity of pixel units, and each encapsulation structure is configured to encapsulate one pixel unit. This realizes independent encapsulation of each pixel unit and improves the bending characteristics of the display panel.

In addition, the encapsulation structure may be a single-layer structure formed by an inorganic material layer or a multi-layer structure in which an inorganic material layer and an organic material layer are alternately stacked. The inorganic material layer may be formed using silicon dioxide, silicon nitride, aluminum oxide, or the like to obtain a relatively good water-oxygen barrier effect.

In a possible implementation of the present application, the display panel may further include a metal line, the metal line being disposed on a side of the pixel defining layer and away from the substrate; Alternatively, the metal line is disposed on the layer structure of the thin film transistor layer. The cathode of the OLED light emitting component is connected to a metal line, so that all OLED light emitting components can be associated with each other. This facilitates display control of the entire display panel.

In a possible implementation of the present application, a photo spacer is further disposed on a side of the pixel defining layer and away from the substrate. In the process of forming an OLED light emitting component through vapor deposition, the photo spacer effectively prevents the deposition mask for forming each functional layer of the OLED light emitting component through vapor deposition from contacting the display panel, thereby improving the product yield of the display panel .

In a possible implementation of the present application, a planarization layer may be further disposed on a side surface of the encapsulation layer and a side away from the thin film transistor layer. The planarization layer may be arranged to provide a flat working surface for subsequent processing. In addition, the planarization layer may also cover foreign substances to prevent foreign substances from penetrating into other film layers disposed on the planarization layer.

In addition, a third encapsulation layer may be further disposed on the planarization layer, and the third encapsulation layer is an entire surface structure capable of covering at least two encapsulation structures. This enhances the water-oxygen barrier encapsulation effect of the display panel. The third encapsulation layer may be a single-layer structure formed by an inorganic material layer, or a multi-layer structure in which an inorganic material layer and an organic material layer are alternately stacked.

According to a sixth aspect, the technical solution of the present application further provides a flexible display. The flexible display may include a protective cover, a polarizing plate, a touch panel, and a display panel according to the fifth aspect. the polarizing plate is fixed to the protective cover, and the touch panel is disposed between the polarizing plate and the display panel; Alternatively, the touch panel is fixed to the protective cover, and the polarizer is disposed between the touch panel and the display panel. In addition, a heat dissipation layer may be further disposed on a side surface of the display panel and away from the touch panel, and a protective layer may be disposed on the heat dissipation layer.

Since at least two pixel units on the display panel of the flexible display are encapsulated by the at least two encapsulation structures, it is possible to prevent a large encapsulation layer from being formed on the display panel, so that the flexible display can be bent, curled, or freely It is possible to effectively prevent the penetration of water-oxygen that occurs when the encapsulation layer is cracked in a scenario such as deformation, and prevent the display defect problem of the flexible display.

According to a seventh aspect, the technical solution of the present application further provides an electronic device. The electronic device includes an intermediate frame, a rear housing, a printed circuit board, and a flexible display according to the sixth aspect. The intermediate frame is configured to support the printed circuit board and the flexible display. The printed circuit board and the flexible display are positioned on both sides of the intermediate frame. The rear housing is located on a side of the printed circuit board and away from the intermediate frame.

In the present application, the flexible display of the electronic device has relatively excellent bending characteristics. In the process of folding or bending the flexible display, since the risk of cracking of the encapsulation layer of the display panel of the flexible display is relatively low, the problem of display defects of the flexible display of the electronic device that occurs when water and oxygen penetrate through the encapsulation layer is eliminated. can be prevented

According to an eighth aspect, the technical solution of the present application further provides a method of manufacturing a display panel. The display panel includes a substrate, a thin film transistor layer, a pixel defining layer, at least two encapsulation structures, and at least two pixel units. The at least two encapsulation structures are configured to encapsulate the at least two pixel units, wherein the pixel units include an OLED light emitting component. The method is

manufacturing the substrate;

forming a thin film transistor layer on the substrate and providing a first via on the thin film transistor layer, the first via extending to a drain of the thin film transistor layer;

providing a second via on the thin film transistor layer, the second via extending to the inorganic layer of the thin film transistor layer;

forming the pixel defining layer and patterning the pixel defining layer to form a pixel region and a side encapsulation region on each first encapsulation layer, the side encapsulation region being used to expose the inorganic layer of the thin film transistor layer -;

forming the OLED light emitting component in the pixel region, the OLED light emitting component coupled to the drain through the first via; and

A full-surface encapsulation structure layer corresponding to the thin-film transistor layer is formed on a side surface of the OLED light emitting component and away from the thin-film transistor layer, and the full-surface encapsulation structure layer is patterned to form at least two independent obtaining an encapsulation structure, wherein the encapsulation structure and the inorganic layer of the thin film transistor layer are in sealing contact in the side encapsulation region.

In a possible implementation, before the pixel defining layer is formed, the method further comprises: forming an anode on the first encapsulation layer, the anode connected with the drain via the first via. Specifically, the forming of the anode may include sequentially depositing ITO, Ag, and ITO on the first encapsulation layer to form an anode material layer; and patterning the layer of anode material to obtain the anode, wherein the patterning comprises one or more of coating, exposing, developing, etching, or exfoliating.

Also, after forming the pixel defining layer and before forming the OLED light emitting component, the method may further include forming a photo spacer on the pixel defining layer.

In a possible implementation, in order to associate all OLED light emitting components and to control the display of the entire display panel, it is possible to further form a metal line on the pixel defining layer, so that the cathode of each OLED light emitting component is connected to said metal line. Connected. Alternatively, the metal line may be formed on the first encapsulation layer, or may be formed on a layer structure of the thin film transistor layer. The forming of the metal line may include, in detail, forming a metal layer by sequentially depositing Ti, Al, and Ti after forming the pixel defining layer; and patterning the metal layer to obtain the metal line, wherein the patterning includes one or more of coating, exposing, developing, etching or peeling.

In a possible implementation, the step of forming the encapsulation structure specifically comprises depositing one or more of SiO ₂ , SiNx, or Al ₂ O ₃ on the pixel defining layer and the OLED light emitting component to form the full surface encapsulation structure layer. to do; and patterning the full-side encapsulation structure layer to obtain at least two independent encapsulation structures, wherein the patterning comprises one or more of coating, exposing, developing, etching, or exfoliating.

After forming the encapsulation structure, a planarization layer may be additionally formed on the encapsulation structure to provide a flat surface for subsequent layer structure processing. In addition, the planarization layer may cover the foreign material to prevent the foreign material from penetrating into another film layer disposed on the planarization layer.

In a possible implementation, the manufacturing method may further comprise forming a third encapsulation layer on the planarization layer, wherein the third encapsulation layer covers the plurality of encapsulation units. In this way, it is possible to improve the water-oxygen barrier effect of the display panel by forming a full-surface encapsulation layer on the display panel.

According to a ninth aspect, the technical solution of the present application further provides a display panel. The display panel includes a substrate used as a substrate, a thin film transistor layer, a pixel defining layer, at least two encapsulation structures, and at least two pixel units. The at least two encapsulation structures are configured to encapsulate the at least two pixel units. the thin film transistor layer is disposed on the substrate; the pixel defining layer is disposed on the thin film transistor layer, the pixel defining layer has a pixel area and a side encapsulation area, the side encapsulation area being disposed around the pixel unit encapsulated by the encapsulation structure, the pixel The region and the side encapsulation region are through holes disposed in the pixel defining layer. The pixel unit includes an OLED light emitting component, the OLED light emitting component being partially or completely disposed in the pixel area. The substrate includes an inorganic material layer, and a via is provided at a position corresponding to the side encapsulation region, and the via exposes the inorganic material layer.

Since the inorganic layer can obtain an excellent water-oxygen barrier effect, the inorganic layer of the substrate can be used as an encapsulation layer for encapsulating the pixel unit.

When the encapsulation structure is specifically disposed, the encapsulation structure is disposed on the side of the OLED light emitting component and away from the thin film transistor layer. The encapsulation structure penetrates the side encapsulation region and the via, and is in sealing contact with the inorganic material layer exposed from the via of the substrate in the side encapsulation region.

In the technical solution of the present application, by encapsulating at least two pixel units using at least two encapsulation structures, it is possible to prevent a large encapsulation layer from being formed, and thus the flexible display including the display panel may be bent or curled. It is possible to effectively prevent water-oxygen permeation that occurs when the encapsulation layer cracks in scenarios such as or freely deforming. In addition, by using the inorganic layer of the substrate as an encapsulation layer for encapsulating the encapsulation unit, it is possible to effectively reduce the processing steps of the display panel, thereby improving the bending performance of the display panel, and reducing manufacturing difficulty and manufacturing cost. have. Also, in this embodiment of the present application, in addition to encapsulating the OLED light emitting component, the encapsulation structure further encapsulates one or more of a structure such as a planarization layer, a source, a drain, an interlayer dielectric layer, an intermetallic dielectric layer, and a gate. can do. This protects the encapsulated structure.

1 is a schematic diagram of a structure of an electronic device according to an embodiment of the present application.
2 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a flexible display according to an embodiment of the present application.
3 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a display panel according to an embodiment of the present application.
4 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a display panel according to an embodiment of the present application.
5 is a schematic diagram of the structure of an OLED light emitting component according to an embodiment of the present application.
6 is a schematic diagram of a structure of an encapsulation structure according to an embodiment of the present application.
7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line AA of FIG. 6 .
FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB of FIG. 6 .
9 is a schematic diagram of a structure of an LTPS-TFT substrate according to an embodiment of the present application.
10 is a plan view of a display panel on which a first encapsulation layer is formed according to an embodiment of the present application.
11 is a cross-sectional view of a display panel on which a first encapsulation layer is formed according to an embodiment of the present application.
12 is a cross-sectional view of a display panel on which an anode is formed according to an embodiment of the present application.
13 is a cross-sectional view of a display panel on which a pixel defining layer is formed according to an embodiment of the present application.
14 is a schematic diagram of a connection structure between a third metal grid line and a cathode according to an embodiment of the present application.
15 is a cross-sectional view taken along line CC of FIG. 14 .
16 is a DD cross-sectional view of FIG. 14 .
17 is a cross-sectional view of a display panel on which a photo spacer is formed according to an embodiment of the present application.
18 is a cross-sectional view of a display panel on which an OLED is formed according to an embodiment of the present application.
19 is a cross-sectional view of a display panel on which a second encapsulation layer is formed according to an embodiment of the present application.
20 is a cross-sectional view of a display panel having a second encapsulation layer formed thereon according to another exemplary embodiment of the present application.
21 is a cross-sectional view of a display panel on which a second planarization layer is formed according to an embodiment of the present application.
22 is a cross-sectional view of a display panel on which a third encapsulation layer is formed according to an embodiment of the present application.
23 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a display panel according to another embodiment of the present application.
Reference number:
101 - display; 102 - middle frame; 103 - rear housing; 104-PCB; 1041 - component; 301 - top encapsulation layer;
3011 - first inorganic layer; 3012 - second inorganic layer; 3013 - flexible sandwich layer; 302 - lower encapsulation layer; 201 - protective cover;
202 - polarizer; 203 - touch panel; 204 - display panel; 205 - heat dissipation layer; 206 - protective layer; 401-bearer layer;
3021 - barrier layer; 402 - barrier layer; 403 - buffer layer; 404 - active layer; 405 - gate insulating layer; 406 - intermetallic dielectric layer;
407 - metal capacitor; 408 - interlayer dielectric layer; 409 - a first planarization layer; 4081-via; 4091-via;
PI 1 - first substrate material layer; PI 2 - second layer of substrate material; G-gate; M1 - first metal grid line;
M2 - second metal grid line; M3 - third metal grid line; S-source; D-drain; 410 - first encapsulation layer;
411 - anode; 412-pixel definition layer; 4121-pixel area; 4122 - side encapsulation area; 413-photo spacer;
414 - hole injection layer; 415 - hole transport layer; 416 - emissive layer; 417 - electron transport layer; 418 - cathode;
419 - capping layer; 420-second encapsulation layer; 421 - a second planarization layer; 422-third encapsulation layer; and 43-pixel units.

In order to facilitate understanding of the display panel provided in the embodiments of the present application, the following will first describe an application scenario of the display panel provided in the embodiments of the present application. The display panel may be disposed in an electronic device such as a mobile phone, a tablet computer, a wearable device, and a personal digital assistant (PDA). As shown in FIG. 1 , an electronic device may generally include a display 101 , an intermediate frame 102 , a rear housing 103 , and a printed circuit board (PCB) 104 . The intermediate frame 102 may be configured to support a printed circuit board and display 101 . The display 101 and the printed circuit board are positioned on both sides of the intermediate frame 102 . The rear housing 103 is located on the side of the printed circuit board and away from the intermediate frame 102 . Further, the electronic device may further include a component 1041 disposed on the PCB 104 . The component 1041 may be disposed on the side of the PCB 104 and also on the side facing the intermediate frame 102 , but is not limited thereto. The display panel provided in the embodiment of the present application is particularly disposed on a display of an electronic device. The display may be a flexible display or a rigid display. The flexible display may be an OLED flexible display or a quantum dot light emitting diode (QLED) flexible display. In the following embodiments of the present application, a case in which the display is an OLED flexible display will be described as an example, and a method of disposing an OLED flexible display is similar to a method of disposing other types of displays.

As shown in FIG. 2 , in this embodiment of the present application, the OLED flexible display has a protective cover 201 , a polarizing plate 202 , a touch panel 203 , a display panel 204 , a heat dissipation layer 205 and a protective layer. (206), but is not limited thereto. For a specific arrangement of the OLED flexible display, refer to FIG. 2 . A polarizing plate 202 is fastened to the protective cover 201 , and a touch panel 203 is disposed between the polarizing plate 202 and the display panel 204 . Alternatively, the touch panel 203 may be fixed to the protective cover 201 , and then the polarizing plate 202 may be disposed between the touch panel 203 and the display panel 204 .

The protective cover 201 may be a transparent glass cover or a cover made of an organic material such as polyimide in order to implement a protective function and reduce the influence on the display effect of the display. Polarizer 202 may be a circular polarizer to avoid anode light reflection. The touch panel 203 may be independently disposed or may be integrated into a structure integrated with the display panel 204 . The heat dissipation layer 205 may be formed of heat dissipation copper foil. The protective layer 206 may be a protective foam. The layer structure of the flexible display may be bonded to each other using an optically clear adhesive or an opaque pressure-sensitive adhesive (not shown). In addition, a plurality of pixel units (not shown) are disposed on the display panel 204 , and the plurality of pixel units may have any shape, and the method of disposing the plurality of pixel units is not limited in the present application. Water vapor, oxygen, etc. in the air greatly affect the lifetime of the OLED light emitting component of the pixel unit. Therefore, strict water-oxygen sealing encapsulation must be performed for the pixel unit of the display panel so that all functional layers of the OLED light emitting component can be completely separated from water vapor, oxygen, etc. in the air.

3 shows a display panel of a typical OLED flexible display. The display panel has an upper encapsulation layer 301 and a lower encapsulation layer 302 . The "top" of the display panel in this embodiment means the side closer to the user when using the display panel. The upper encapsulation layer 301 is an integrated structure covering the entire display panel, and is disposed between the first inorganic layer 3011 , the second inorganic layer 3012 , and between the first inorganic layer 3011 and the second inorganic layer 3012 . and a disposed flexible sandwich layer 3013 . The first inorganic layer 3011 and the second inorganic layer 3012 may be a SiO ₂ layer or a SiNx layer manufactured by chemical vapor deposition (CVD). The flexible sandwich layer 3013 may be a cured polyester polymer organic layer formed using polyimide (PI) or ink jet print (IJP) technology. The SiO ₂ or SiNx layer is mainly configured to implement a water-oxygen barrier, and the flexible sandwich layer 3013 can implement a water-oxygen buffer to some extent, thereby releasing stress, improving flexibility, and reducing encapsulation defects caused by foreign substances. have. The upper encapsulation layer 301 is an entire-surface structure, and the structure is a rigid structure. When the upper encapsulation layer is bent, the stress applied to the upper encapsulation layer is relatively large, and cracks are likely to occur. In this case, when a crack occurs in the first inorganic layer 3011 or the second inorganic layer 3012 , regardless of whether the organic layer between the two inorganic layers is cracked, water and oxygen are absorbed into the OLED light emitting component of the pixel unit and the display panel. introduced into the cathode layer. As a result, the OLED light emitting component fails or the cathode loses electrical characteristics, and black spots occur in the OLED flexible display. In addition, since the upper encapsulation layer 301 is a full-surface structure, water and oxygen introduced into the display panel through cracks are diffused between adjacent pixel units. As a result, the plurality of OLED light emitting components fail or the cathodes of the plurality of OLED light emitting components lose electrical characteristics, and severely the entire OLED flexible display fails in display.

Further, the lower encapsulation layer 302 is generally a first substrate material layer PI1 and a second substrate material layer PI2 (first substrate material layer PI1 and second substrate material layer PI1) on the substrate of the display panel. Both PI2) may be polyimide polymer organic layers), and a barrier layer 3021 disposed between the first substrate material layer PI1 and the second substrate material layer PI2 is an integral structure. The barrier layer 3021 is typically a SiO ₂ or SiNx layer. The lower encapsulation layer 302 is a full-surface structure, and this structure is also a rigid structure. When the lower encapsulation layer is bent, cracks are also likely to occur. When a crack occurs in the lower encapsulation layer 302, water and oxygen also enter the OLED light emitting component along the crack. As a result, block spots occur in OLED flexible displays. In addition, since the lower encapsulation layer 302 is a full-surface structure, water and oxygen introduced into the display panel through cracks are diffused between adjacent pixel units. As a result, the plurality of OLED light emitting components fail or the cathodes of the plurality of OLED light emitting components lose electrical characteristics, and severely the entire OLED flexible display fails in display.

Thus, in the case of bending or folding the OLED flexible display, water and oxygen enter through the cracks and corrode the OLED light emitting components. As a result, the OLED light emitting component does not turn on or deteriorates, resulting in no light emission.

In order to solve the above problems, embodiments of the present application solve the water-oxygen penetration that occurs when the encapsulation layer is cracked in scenarios such as the display panel is bent, curled, or freely deformed, and black spots of the flexible display In order to alleviate the defect problem, a display panel is provided. Hereinafter, the structure of the display panel will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As shown in FIG. 4 , an embodiment of the present application provides a display panel. The display panel includes a substrate, a thin film transistor layer, a pixel defining layer 412 , a pixel unit, and an encapsulation structure. The thin film transistor layer is disposed on the substrate. The pixel defining layer is disposed on the thin film transistor layer. As shown in FIG. 4 , in this embodiment of the present application, the substrate may provide a flexible bearer for each upper layer such as a thin film transistor layer. The substrate may include, but is not limited to, a first substrate material layer PI1, a barrier layer 402, and a second substrate material layer PI2 sequentially stacked from bottom to top (in this embodiment, "top" means the side closer to the user when using the display panel). Specifically, the material of the first substrate material layer PI1 may be a flexible polyimide substrate material, or a flexible material such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET), paper, metal, or ultra-thin glass; barrier layer 402 may be configured to perform a water and oxygen barrier; The material of the second substrate material layer PI2 may also be a flexible polyimide substrate material, or a flexible material such as polyethylene terephthalate (PET), paper, metal or ultra-thin glass. In some embodiments of the present application, the barrier layer 402 or the second substrate material layer PI2 of the substrate may be otherwise omitted to simplify the structure of the substrate.

When the thin film transistor layer is specifically disposed, the thin film transistor layer includes a buffer layer 403 , an active layer, a gate insulator layer 405 , a gate G, and a first metal grid line. (M1), intermetallic dielectric layer 406, metal capacitor 407, interlayer dielectric layer 408, source (S), drain (D), second metal grid line (M2), and first planarization layer (409) may include one or more of This is not limited in this embodiment of the present application.

Optionally, in this embodiment of the present application, a low temperature poly-silicon (LTPS) thin film transistor (TFT) is used as an example. The thin film transistor layer may include a gate insulating layer 405 , an intermetallic dielectric layer 406 , an interlayer dielectric layer 408 , and a first planarization layer 409 . Optionally, the thin film transistor layer may include a buffer layer 403 , a gate insulating layer 405 , an intermetallic dielectric layer 406 , an interlayer dielectric layer 408 , and a first planarization layer 409 . Optionally, the thin film transistor layer comprises a buffer layer 403, an active layer, a gate insulating layer 405, a gate (G), an intermetallic dielectric layer 406, an interlayer dielectric layer 408, a source (S), a drain (D), and A first planarization layer 409 may be included. In this embodiment of the present application, the thin film transistor layer includes a buffer layer 403, an active layer, a gate insulating layer 405, a gate G, a first metal grid line M1, an intermetallic dielectric layer 406, a metal capacitor ( 407 , an interlayer dielectric layer 408 , a source S, a drain D, a second metal grid line M2 , and a first planarization layer 409 . See FIG. 4 . Next, each layer structure of the thin film transistor layer in this embodiment of the present application will be described in detail.

The buffer layer 403 may be configured to prevent impurity ions from affecting the characteristics of the thin film transistor layer disposed on the substrate, and further perform a water-oxygen barrier.

The active layer is mainly composed of P-Si and LTPS. The active layer is a TFT semiconductor layer, and the semiconductor switch and the conductive line may be formed by different doping. As shown in Fig. 4, P-Si in the middle of the active layer in Fig. 4 is used to represent a semiconductor switch, and the two parts on both sides of P-Si connect the source (S) and drain (D) to P-Si. A conductor that serves as a conductive line for connection.

The gate insulator layer 405 may insulate and separate the active layer from the gate G.

A gate G is formed on the gate insulating layer 405 and used as a TFT component switch. For example, in the case of a P-type TFT, when a negative voltage is applied to the gate, there is a relatively large current in the source and drain, and the TFT presents an on state; or when a positive voltage is applied to the gate, there is only a weak leakage current in the source and drain and the TFT presents an off state; And in the case of an N-type TFT, when a negative voltage is applied to the gate, only a weak leakage current exists in the source and drain, and the TFT presents an OFF state; Alternatively, a relatively large current is present in the source and drain when a positive voltage is applied to the gate and the TFT presents an on state.

The first metal grid line M1 is formed on the gate insulating layer 405 and may be formed together with the gate G serving as a scanning line. Since the screen display is a progressive scanning display, the scanning line connects the TFT switch gates of all rows to turn on the TFT gate switches row by row, so that the data line signal and the power line signal refresh the information of each row make it fixable

The inner metal dielectric (IMD) layer 406 may be used as an insulating layer between the first metal grid line M1 and the metal capacitor (MC) 407 and as a dielectric layer of the metal capacitor 407 . have.

The metal capacitor 407 is used as a capacitance power-on plate and other driving lines, and the first metal grid line M1 may also be used as a capacitance power-down plate.

An inner layer dielectric (ILD) layer 408 is used as an insulating layer between the gate G and both the source and drain.

A source S is formed on the interlayer dielectric layer 408 and is coupled to the active layer. After connecting the source S to the active layer, an ohmic contact is formed to implement a circuit connection.

A drain D is formed on the interlayer dielectric layer 408 and is connected to the active layer. After connecting the drain D and the active layer, an ohmic contact is formed to realize circuit connection.

A second metal grid line M2 is connected to the metal capacitor 407 through a via 4081 in the interlayer dielectric layer 408 . Interlayer dielectric layer 408 may be used as an insulating layer between M2 and a structure such as metal capacitor 407 . In addition, the second metal grid line M2 may be formed alternately with the source S and the drain D, and is used as a driving line for the source S and the drain D to transmit a data signal, a power signal, and the like. send. Specifically, the data signal and the power signal are provided through an integrated circuit chip (IC), and are typically transmitted through the second metal grid line M2. The transmission direction is generally perpendicular to the scanning line direction in the case of column transmission. Each column of pixels has an independent data line connected to the column's TFT source (S) or drain (D) for transfer. The power signal is also accessed to the TFT source (S) or drain (D) of each column for transmission. However, unlike the data line, the power signal is a relatively simple DC signal or a fixed-value pulse signal. Thus, all power lines are generally short-circuited for integrated transmission.

The first planarization (PLN) layer 409 has functions of planarization, insulation, and phase protection against fluctuations of the substrate electrode.

When the pixel defining layer 412 is specifically disposed, the pixel defining layer 412 may be a layer structure formed by coating a photoresist-type organic material on the thin film transistor layer through slit coating. In addition, the pixel region 4121 and the side encapsulation region 4122 may be obtained through processing such as exposure or development for the pixel defining layer 412 . The pixel region 4121 and the side encapsulation region 4122 may each be formed of a hole structure penetrating the pixel defining layer 412 , and the side encapsulation region 4122 is disposed around the pixel unit encapsulated by the encapsulation structure. .

A pixel unit is a minimum unit for realizing a display function of a display panel, and includes an OLED light emitting component. The OLED light emitting component may be disposed in the pixel area. 5 is a schematic diagram of a layer structure of an OLED light emitting component according to an embodiment of the present application; The OLED light emitting component consists of an anode 411, a hole injection layer (HIL) 414, a hole transport layer (HTL) 415, a light emitting layer 415, a light emitting layer stacked in series. (emission layer, EL) 416 , an electron transport layer (ETL) 417 , a cathode 418 and a capping layer (CPL) 419 , but are not limited thereto. does not 4 and 5 are referred together. In the process of manufacturing each layer structure of the OLED light emitting component, since the material used to form each layer structure is fluid, in order to reduce the difficulty of management and control of the manufacturing process, some material is applied outside the pixel region 4121 However, it can be understood that the light emitting effect of the OLED light emitting component is not affected. It should be noted that, in this embodiment of the present application, an example in which an OLED light emitting component is partially disposed in a pixel region is used for explanation. Alternatively, the OLED light emitting component may be disposed entirely in the pixel area. This is not limited in this embodiment of the present application.

When the encapsulation structure is specifically disposed, the encapsulation structure may have a one-to-one correspondence with the pixel unit. For example, each pixel unit is encapsulated with one encapsulation structure. Specifically, the encapsulation structure includes a first encapsulation layer 410 and a second encapsulation layer 420 . A first encapsulation layer 410 is disposed between the OLED light emitting component and the thin film transistor layer and may be exposed from the side encapsulation region 4122 of the pixel defining layer 412 . From FIG. 4 , it can be seen that the second encapsulation layer 420 covers the pixel unit, and the second encapsulation layer 420 passes through the side encapsulation region 4122 to make sealing contact with the first encapsulation layer 410 . As described above, since each pixel unit is wound by the first encapsulation layer 410 and the second encapsulation layer 420 , each pixel unit is independently encapsulated. Also, the pixel defining layer 412 is formed between two adjacent encapsulation structures. Since the material of the pixel defining layer 412 is an organic material and a flexible material, adjacent encapsulation structures may be flexibly connected. Therefore, the technical solution of the present application can prevent the formation of a large encapsulation layer on the display panel, and when the encapsulation layer is cracked in scenarios such as bending, curling, or freely deforming an OLED flexible display including a display panel It is possible to effectively prevent the occurring water-oxygen infiltration. In this embodiment, the material of the first encapsulation layer 410 may be an inorganic material such as SiO ₂ , SiNx, or Al ₂ O ₃ , but is not limited thereto, and the material of the second encapsulation layer 420 is also SiO ₂ , SiNx , or Al ₂ O ₃ , but may be an inorganic material, but is not limited thereto. This achieves a relatively good water-oxygen barrier effect. Each of the first encapsulation layer 410 and the second encapsulation layer 420 may be a single inorganic encapsulation layer, or may be an encapsulation layer of a multi-layered laminate structure in which inorganic layers and organic base layers are alternately stacked, for example, each of the inorganic layers , a three-layer structure formed by sequentially stacking an organic layer and an inorganic layer, a four-layer structure formed by sequentially stacking an inorganic layer, an organic layer, an inorganic layer and an organic layer, or a five-layer or five-layer or more structure formed through stacking. I can understand.

Since each pixel unit is independently encapsulated by one encapsulation structure, it is possible to prevent a large encapsulation layer from being formed on the display panel. The encapsulation structures are independent of each other. When the display panel is applied to the OLED flexible display, even if the OLED flexible display is bent more than 100000 times in any direction, the display panel can still have good encapsulation characteristics. Therefore, the display panel of this embodiment of the present application can reduce the risk of cracking of the encapsulation layer in application scenarios such as bending, curling, or freely deforming of the OLED flexible display, so that water and oxygen penetrate through the encapsulation layer. It is possible to prevent the display defect problem of the flexible display that occurs when entering the display panel. In addition, since each pixel unit is encapsulated independently, water and oxygen entering any encapsulation structure can be further prevented from diffusing between adjacent OLED light emitting components, thereby preventing deterioration of the light emitting performance of adjacent OLED light emitting components. .

Also, it should be noted that a plurality of pixel units (the quantity of the plurality of pixel units is less than the total quantity of the pixel units on the display panel) may be alternately encapsulated by one encapsulation structure. The encapsulation structure may be of any shape. See FIG. 6 . For example, in the case of a display panel having a single, fixed folding direction (the curve with an arrow in the drawing indicates the folding direction), all pixel units can be grouped into columns or rows along the folding direction, so that the column-shaped ( Pixel unit encapsulation may be implemented by forming a column-shaped or row-shaped encapsulation structure. This can effectively improve the folding performance of the display panel in a fixed single folding direction of the display panel. In addition, compared with the embodiment in which each pixel unit is encapsulated independently, this embodiment in which pixel unit encapsulation is implemented by forming a column-shaped or row-shaped encapsulation structure can effectively reduce manufacturing difficulty and manufacturing cost. Still referring to FIG. 6 . In some other embodiments of the present application, several adjacent pixel units may be encapsulated by one encapsulation structure (refer to the dotted rectangular box in the drawing). In general, a relatively large number of pixel units exist on a display panel, and an area of an encapsulation structure encapsulating several adjacent pixel units is smaller than an area of the entire display panel. Therefore, the encapsulation method of this embodiment can adapt to the bending requirements of the display panel and realize excellent encapsulation characteristics. It is described for a pixel unit on a display panel that each pixel unit is independently encapsulated or that a plurality of pixel units in a quantity less than the total quantity of pixel units on the display panel are encapsulated by one encapsulation structure. Accordingly, in the present application, both of the aforementioned two encapsulation structures are referred to as pixel level encapsulation structures.

In order to realize electrical connection between OLED light emitting components encapsulated with a pixel-level encapsulation structure on the display panel, a metal line may be further disposed on the display panel to control the display of the entire display panel. When the metal line is specifically disposed, the metal line may be the third metal grid line M3 of FIG. 4 . Referring to FIG. 6 , the cathode 418 of the OLED light emitting component of each pixel unit is connected to the third metal grid line M3 . Thus, as shown in FIG. 5 , holes may pass through the hole injection layer 414 and hole transport layer 415 of each OLED light emitting component in turn using the anode 411 to reach the light emitting layer 416 . Electrons may reach the light emitting layer 416 from the cathode 418 through the electron transport layer 417 . Holes and electrons combine with each other on the light emitting layer 416 to form excited-state excitons. The exciton transfers energy to organic light emitting molecules on the light emitting layer 416 and excites electrons of the organic light emitting molecules to transition from the ground state to the excited state. Electron radiation in the excited state is deactivated and photons are generated to emit light. Since the cathodes 418 of all OLED light emitting components are connected via a third metal grid line M3, the third metal grid line M3 simultaneously transmits a cathode drive signal to the cathodes 418 of all OLED light emitting components, Implement synchronous cathode signal control. The material of the third metal grid line M3 may be a titanium aluminum alloy, molybdenum, or the like. Also, when the third metal grid line M3 is specifically arranged, reference is still made to FIG. 4 . The third metal grid line M3 is disposed on the side surface of the pixel defining layer 412 and away from the thin film transistor layer. Alternatively, see FIGS. 7 and 8 . FIG. 7 is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A of FIG. 6 , and is a cross-sectional view of the display panel in a position where the third metal grid line M3 is not connected to the cathode 418 . FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along line B-B of FIG. 6 , and is a cross-sectional view of the display panel at a position where the third metal grid line M3 is connected to the cathode 418 . 7 and 8 , the third metal grid line M3 may be disposed on the first encapsulation layer 410 . Alternatively, in another embodiment, the third metal grid line M3 is on the layer structure of the thin film transistor layer (eg, the planarization layer 409 , the interlayer dielectric layer 408 , or the intermetal dielectric layer 406 ). can be placed.

Reference is still made to FIG. 8 . The display panel of this embodiment of the present application may further include a photo spacer 413 disposed on the pixel defining layer 412 , and the photo spacer 413 may be a photo spacer. By disposing the photo spacer 413 on the pixel defining layer 412 , in the process of forming an OLED light emitting component through deposition, a deposition mask for forming each functional layer of the OLED light emitting component through deposition is in contact with the display panel This effectively prevents the display panel from forming and improves the product yield of the display panel.

In addition to the above-described structure, the display panel may further include a second planarization layer 421 . The second planarization layer 421 is disposed on the side surface of the second encapsulation layer 420 and away from the thin film transistor layer. By depositing the second planarization layer 421, it is possible to provide a flat machining surface in a subsequent process. In addition, the second planarization layer 421 may also cover the foreign material to prevent the foreign material from penetrating into another film layer disposed on the second planarization layer 421 . Also, reference is still made to FIG. 8 . An entire third encapsulation layer 422 may be additionally disposed on the second planarization layer 421 . In the present application, the full-surface encapsulation structure disposed on the display panel is referred to as a panel-level encapsulation structure. Accordingly, the display panel has both a pixel level encapsulation structure and a panel level encapsulation structure, which helps to improve the water-oxygen barrier effect of the display panel. In addition, the third encapsulation layer 422 may be a single-layer inorganic encapsulation layer, or may be an encapsulation layer of a multi-layered laminate structure in which inorganic layers and organic layers are alternately stacked, for example, an inorganic layer, an organic layer, and an inorganic layer sequentially. It may be a stacked three-layer structure, a four-layer structure in which an inorganic layer, an organic layer, an inorganic layer, and an organic layer are sequentially stacked, or a structure having five or five or more layers formed through stacking.

In this embodiment of the present application, the display panel has both a pixel level encapsulation structure and a panel level encapsulation structure to provide double protection for the pixel unit. In this case, even if water and oxygen enter the display panel through the panel level encapsulation structure, water and oxygen cannot enter the OLED light emitting component due to the barrier of the pixel level encapsulation structure. Therefore, this solution can help to improve the water-oxygen barrier effect of the display panel.

This embodiment of the present application further provides a flexible display. The flexible display may include, but is not limited to, a protective cover, a polarizing plate, a touch panel, a display panel, a heat dissipation layer, and a protective layer. When the flexible display is specifically arranged, the polarizer is fixed to the protective cover, and the touch panel is arranged between the polarizer and the display panel; Alternatively, after fixing the touch panel to the protective cover, the polarizing plate may be disposed between the touch panel and the display panel. The display panel may be any one of the above embodiments.

The protective cover may be a transparent glass cover or a cover made of an organic material such as polyimide in order to implement a protective function and reduce the influence on the display effect of the display. The polarizer may be a circular polarizer to avoid anode light reflection. The touch panel may be independently disposed or may be integrated into a structure integrated with the display panel. The heat dissipation layer may be formed of a heat dissipation copper foil. The protective layer may be a protective foam. The layer structure of the flexible display may be bonded using an optically clear adhesive or an opaque adhesive.

When the display panel is specifically arranged, the display panel includes a substrate, a thin film transistor layer, a pixel defining layer, at least two encapsulation structures, and at least two pixel units. The at least two encapsulation structures are configured to encapsulate at least two pixel units. The thin film transistor layer is disposed on the substrate. The pixel defining layer is disposed on the thin film transistor layer. In this embodiment of the present application, the substrate may provide a flexible bearer for each upper layer, such as a thin film transistor layer. The substrate may include, but is not limited to, a first substrate material layer, a barrier layer and a second substrate material layer stacked sequentially from bottom to top. In some embodiments of the present application, in order to simplify the structure of the substrate, the barrier layer or the second substrate material layer of the substrate may be otherwise omitted.

When the thin film transistor layer is specifically disposed, the thin film transistor layer includes a buffer layer, an active layer, a gate insulating layer, a gate, a first metal grid line, an intermetallic dielectric layer, a metal capacitor, an interlayer dielectric layer, a source, a drain, a second metal grid line; and at least one of the first planarization layer. This is not limited in this embodiment of the present application.

When the pixel defining layer is specifically disposed, the pixel region and the side encapsulation region are disposed on the pixel defining layer. The pixel region and the side encapsulation region may be a hole structure penetrating the pixel defining layer, and the side encapsulation region is disposed around the pixel unit encapsulated by the encapsulation structure. A pixel unit is a minimum unit for realizing a display function of a display panel, and includes an OLED light emitting component. The OLED light emitting component is partially or completely disposed in the pixel area.

When the encapsulation structure is specifically disposed, the encapsulation structure may have a one-to-one correspondence with the pixel unit. For example, each pixel unit is encapsulated with one encapsulation structure. Specifically, the encapsulation structure includes a first encapsulation layer and a second encapsulation layer. A first encapsulation layer is positioned between the OLED light emitting component and the thin film transistor layer and may be exposed from the side encapsulation region of the pixel defining layer. The second encapsulation layer covers the pixel unit, and the second encapsulation layer penetrates through the side encapsulation region and is in sealing contact with the first encapsulation layer. In this way, each pixel unit is wrapped by the first encapsulation layer and the second encapsulation layer, so that each pixel unit is encapsulated independently.

In a possible embodiment, the plurality of pixel units (the quantity of the plurality of pixel units is less than the total quantity of the pixel units on the display panel) may be alternatively encapsulated by one encapsulation structure. The encapsulation structure may be of any shape. For example, in the case of a display panel having a fixed single folding direction, all pixel units are grouped into columns or rows along the folding direction to form a column-shaped or row-shaped encapsulation structure to implement pixel unit encapsulation. can do.

The flexible display of this embodiment can still have good encapsulation characteristics even after being bent over 100000 times in either direction. This can prevent water-oxygen permeation that occurs when the encapsulation layer cracks in application scenarios such as flexible displays bending, drying, or freely deforming, so when water and oxygen penetrate through the encapsulation layer and enter the display panel, It is possible to prevent a display defect problem of the flexible display that occurs. In addition, by encapsulating each pixel unit independently or grouping and encapsulating, water and oxygen entering the encapsulation structure are further prevented from diffusing between the adjacent encapsulation structures, thereby preventing light emission failure of the entire flexible display.

Embodiments of the present application further provide an electronic device. The electronic device includes an intermediate frame, a rear housing, a printed circuit board, and a flexible display according to any one of the above embodiments. The intermediate frame may be configured to support the printed circuit board and the OLED flexible display. The OLED flexible display and printed circuit board are located on both sides of the intermediate frame. The rear housing is located on the side of the printed circuit board and away from the intermediate frame.

In this embodiment of the present application, the electronic device may be a foldable device. In the process of folding the OLED flexible display of an electronic device, the risk of cracking of the encapsulation layer of the display panel of the flexible display is relatively low, so the display defect problem of the flexible display that occurs when water and oxygen penetrate through the encapsulation layer and enter the display panel can prevent

In order to further understand the structure of the display panel in the present application, the embodiments of the present application further provide a process for manufacturing the display panel. The manufacturing process includes the following detailed steps:

Step 001: A substrate is prepared. In this embodiment of the present application, a top gate low temperature poly-silicon (LTPS) thin film transistor (TFT) substrate may be used as an example. For a method of setting the layer structure of the substrate, refer to FIG. 9 . The substrate may be formed on the bearer layer 401 , and the bearer layer may be a bearer glass layer for implementing a bearing in a manufacturing process of a display panel. In addition, vias 4091 need to be reserved on the first planarization layer 409 to facilitate subsequent electrode connection. Since the process for manufacturing the LTPS-TFT substrate is relatively mature, the process for manufacturing the LTPS-TFT substrate is not described in detail in this application.

Step 002: A first encapsulation layer 410 is prepared. In this step, a SiO ₂ , SiNx, or Al ₂ O ₃ deposition layer is formed through chemical vapor deposition (CVD), atomic layer deposition (ALD), etc. to form the first encapsulation layer 410 . can be used as Then, the first encapsulation layer 410 is patterned through photoresist coating, exposure, development, etching, photoresist stripping, or the like. Accordingly, since the first encapsulation layer 410 is disconnected corresponding to each region forming the pixel unit, an independent first encapsulation layer 410 corresponding to each pixel unit is formed. For the pattern of the first encapsulation layer 410 formed in step 002, refer to FIG. 10 . A dotted line indicates a region for forming the pixel unit 43 , and a solid line indicates an independently formed first encapsulation layer 410 . Also, FIG. 11 is a cross-sectional view of the display panel obtained after the first encapsulation layer 410 is manufactured. It can be seen from the figure that the independent first encapsulation layer 410 corresponding to each pixel unit avoids the via 4091 reserved on the first planarization layer 409 to facilitate subsequent electrode connection.

Step 003: Prepare the anode 411. In general, the anode 411 of the OLED light emitting component is manufactured by sequentially depositing indium tin oxide (ITO), Ag, and ITO through physical vapor deposition (PVD). Then, the anode 411 may be patterned through photoresist coating, exposure, development, etching, photoresist stripping, or the like to form the anode 411 shown in FIG. 12 . The anode 411 may be in contact with and connected to the drain D through the via 4091 to implement sealing.

Step 004: Prepare a pixel definition layer (PDL) 412 . First, a photoresist-type organic material is coated on the structure formed after step 003, for example, the first planarization layer 409, the first encapsulation layer 410, or the anode 411 through slit coating. can Then, the patterned pixel defining layer 412 may be obtained through exposure, development, or the like. 13 , a pixel region 4121 and a side encapsulation region 4122 formed around the pixel region 4121 are formed on the patterned pixel defining layer 412 . An OLED light emitting component of a pixel unit may be formed in a pixel region 4121 , and a side encapsulation region 4122 is used to expose the first encapsulation layer 410 to implement subsequent pixel unit encapsulation.

Step 005: Prepare a third metal grid line M3 connected to the cathode to subsequently electrically connect the cathodes of the OLED light emitting components of all pixel units. Also, some of the third metal grid lines M3 may be used as data lines for transmitting data signals.

In general, when manufacturing the third metal grid line M3 , first, a material such as Ti, Al, Ti is sequentially deposited or a material such as Mo is deposited through PVD to form a metal layer on the pixel defining layer 412 . to form The metal layer is then formed via a third metal grid line M3 via one or more of photoresist coating, exposure, development, etching and photoresist stripping, for example via photoresist coating, exposure, development, etching and photoresist stripping. can be patterned to form 14 shows a wiring solution of the third metal grid line M3 (the figure includes a pattern of the third metal grid line M3 and subsequently formed cathode 418).

Also, FIG. 15 is a cross-sectional view taken along line C-C of FIG. 14 . 15 is a cross-sectional view of the display panel at a position where the third metal grid line M3 is not connected to the cathode 418 after step 005 . FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view taken along line D-D of FIG. 14 . FIG. 16 is a cross-sectional view of the display panel at a position where the third metal grid line M3 is connected to the cathode 418 after step 005 .

In a possible embodiment of the present application, after step 005 , the manufacturing process may optionally include step 006: manufacturing a photo spacer (PS) 413 . When the photo spacer 413 is specifically formed, in general, photoresist coating is first performed through slit coating, and then the photo spacer 413 is obtained through exposure, development, or the like. Referring to FIG. 17 for a stacking relationship between the manufactured photo spacer 413 and the manufactured pixel defining layer 412 . As shown in FIG. 17 , the cross-sectional shape of the photo spacer 413 may be a trapezoid, and of course may be other possible shapes such as a rectangle. Also, a position at which the photo spacer 413 is disposed may be selected according to a specific situation. By fabricating the photo spacer 413 on the pixel defining layer 412 , it is possible to effectively prevent the mask from contacting the surface of the display panel in a subsequent process of forming an OLED light emitting component through deposition.

Step 007: Fabricate the patterned OLED light emitting component. The OLED light emitting component includes a hole injection layer (HIL) 414 , a hole transport layer (HTL) 415 , an emission layer (EL) 416 , an electron transport layer (ETL) ) 417 , a cathode 418 and a capping layer (CPL) 419 are successively stacked.

See Figures 17 and 18. When an OLED light emitting component is formed in the pixel region 4121 defined by the pixel defining layer 412 , each layer structure of the OLED light emitting component is subjected to fine metal mask (FFM) deposition, printing, and film lift off. , and is patterned through laser etching with thickness mismatches and undercuts of the edges of other film layers. In FIG. 18 , hole injection layer 414 , hole transport layer 415 , light emitting layer 416 , electron transport layer 417 , cathode 418 and capping layer 419 are all vapor phases of an OLED light emitting component implemented through FFM. It is used as an example to present the patterning design of the deposited layer.

It should be noted that, in this embodiment of the present application, an example in which an OLED light emitting component is partially disposed in a pixel region is used for explanation. Alternatively, the OLED light emitting component may be disposed entirely in the pixel area. This is not limited in this embodiment of the present application.

Step 008: A second encapsulation layer 420 is prepared. See FIG. 19 . Specifically, when manufacturing the second encapsulation layer 420 , SiO ₂ , SiNx, or Al ₂ O ₃ may be deposited as the second encapsulation layer 420 through CVD or ALD. Then, the second encapsulation layer 420 is patterned by a method such as photoresist coating, exposure, development, etching, photoresist stripping, or the like, so that an independent second encapsulation corresponding to each pixel unit and positioned on top of each pixel unit is applied. A layer 420 may be formed. Since the first encapsulation layer 410 between adjacent pixels is also independently disposed, the second encapsulation layer 420 and the first encapsulation layer of the pixel unit are used using the side encapsulation region 4122 of the pixel defining layer 412 . 410 may be in sealing contact. 19 illustrates a manner in which pixel encapsulation is performed at a position where the third metal grid line M3 is not connected to the cathode 418 . 20 illustrates a manner in which pixel encapsulation is performed at a position where the third metal grid line M3 is connected to the cathode 418 .

In the above process step of manufacturing the display panel, the corresponding second encapsulation layer 420 and the corresponding first encapsulation layer 410 are formed for each pixel unit, so that each pixel unit can be encapsulated independently, In other words, the structure of the pixel level encapsulation display panel is formed. In this way, it is possible to prevent the formation of a large encapsulation layer by breaking the encapsulation connection between the pixel units, thereby encapsulating in scenarios such as bending, curling, freely deforming, etc. of the OLED flexible display including the display panel. It can effectively prevent water-oxygen infiltration that occurs when the layers are cracked. In addition, the OLED flexible display can further realize true multi-directional folding, curling, free deformation and small radius bending, thereby realizing true free flexible encapsulation.

Also, the pixel defining layer 412 has grooves and protrusions, and the grooves and protrusions may be transferred to the second encapsulation layer 420 . However, reference is made to FIG. 21 to facilitate subsequent processing. A second planarization layer 421 may be further formed on the display panel formed after step 008 . In addition, the second planarization layer 421 may also cover the foreign material to prevent the foreign material from penetrating into another film layer disposed on the second planarization layer 421 .

See also FIG. 22 . A full-surface third encapsulation layer 422 may be further formed on the second planarization layer 421 , and the third encapsulation layer 422 is formed of SiO for forming a full-surface water-oxygen barrier encapsulation on the display panel. ₂ , SiNx, or Al ₂ O ₃ . Accordingly, an encapsulation mode combining both the pixel level encapsulation structure and the panel level encapsulation structure is formed for the display panel, further enhancing the water-oxygen barrier encapsulation effect of the display panel.

At the end of the process of manufacturing the display panel in the present application, the contact surface between the bearer layer 401 and the first substrate material layer PI1 is irradiated with a laser, so that the bearer layer 401 is the first substrate material layer PI1 . adhesion is lost, and thus the bearer layer 401 is removed. In this way, a flexible display panel is obtained.

After the display panel is processed, the display panel can be cut according to the specific size requirements of the OLED flexible display; Then attach the touch panel and the polarizer, perform the necessary binding process to realize the electrical connection; A flexible cover, a heat-dissipating copper foil, a protective film, etc. are attached; Finally, assembling the OLED flexible display with custom functions, performing the necessary performance checks, and completing the manufacturing of the OLED flexible display.

See FIG. 23 . In some embodiments of the present application, a display panel is further provided. The display panel includes a substrate, a thin film transistor layer, a pixel defining layer 412 , a pixel unit, and an encapsulation structure. The encapsulation structure is configured to encapsulate the pixel unit. The pixel defining layer 412 has a pixel area and a side encapsulation area disposed around a pixel unit encapsulated by an encapsulation structure. The pixel defining layer 412 may obtain a pixel region and a side encapsulation region by coating a photoresist-based organic material on the thin film transistor layer through slit coating, and through exposure and development.

The thin film transistor layer may include, but is not limited to, a buffer layer 403 , an active layer, a gate insulating layer 405 , an intermetal dielectric layer 406 , an interlayer dielectric layer 408 , and a first planarization layer 409 laminated. does not The buffer layer 403 , the gate insulating layer 405 , the intermetallic dielectric layer 406 , and the interlayer dielectric layer 408 are generally inorganic layer structures made of inorganic materials such as SiO ₂ , SiNx, or Al ₂ O ₃ , and relatively good water. -Oxygen barrier effect can be obtained. Therefore, in this embodiment, the above-described inorganic layer structure of the thin film transistor layer may be used as the first encapsulation layer. In addition, in this embodiment, a via is further provided at a position corresponding to the side encapsulation region of the thin film transistor layer, and the via is an inorganic layer structure of the thin film transistor layer (eg, an interlayer dielectric layer 408 , an intermetal dielectric layer 406 ). , the gate insulating layer 405 , or the buffer layer 403 ). For example, as shown in FIG. 23 , the interlayer dielectric layer 408 is exposed by vias on the thin film transistor layer.

In this embodiment of the present application, the pixel unit may include, but is not limited to, an OLED light emitting component. The OLED light emitting component is partially or completely disposed in the pixel area. Specifically, when the encapsulation structure is disposed, the encapsulation structure used as the second encapsulation layer 420 covers each pixel unit in a one-to-one correspondence manner. In other words, each pixel unit is encapsulated with one encapsulation structure. The second encapsulation layer 420 penetrates the side encapsulation region and the vias of the thin film transistor layer to be in sealing contact with the inorganic layer structure of the thin film transistor layer (eg, the interlayer dielectric layer 408), so that each pixel unit has a thin film Wrapped by an inorganic layer structure of a transistor layer (eg, interlayer dielectric layer 408 ) and a second encapsulation layer 420 , encapsulating each pixel unit independently, in other words, forming a pixel level encapsulation structure . This prevents the formation of a large encapsulation layer, thereby effectively preventing water-oxygen penetration that occurs when the encapsulation layer is cracked in scenarios such as bending, drying, or freely deforming of an OLED flexible display including a display panel. .

23 is used as an example. In this embodiment, the pixel unit includes an OLED light emitting component, a planarization layer 409 , a source S and a drain D. Optionally, the pixel unit may further include an interlayer dielectric layer 408 . Optionally, the pixel unit may further include an intermetallic dielectric layer 406 and a gate (G).

Also, in this embodiment, the plurality of pixel units (the number of the plurality of pixel units is less than the total number of the pixel units on the display panel) may be alternately encapsulated by one encapsulation structure as a whole. The encapsulation structure may be of any shape. See FIG. 6 . For example, in the case of a display panel having a fixed single folding direction (the curve with an arrow in the drawing indicates the folding direction), all pixel units are grouped into columns or rows to form a column-shaped or row-shaped encapsulation structure. to implement pixel unit encapsulation. This improves the bending performance of the display panel and reduces manufacturing difficulty and manufacturing cost. Still referring to FIG. 6 . In some other embodiments of the present application, several adjacent pixel units may be encapsulated by one encapsulation structure (refer to the dotted rectangular box in the drawing). It is described for a pixel unit on a display panel that each pixel unit is individually encapsulated, or that a plurality of pixel units in a quantity less than the total quantity of pixel units on the display panel are encapsulated by one encapsulation structure. Accordingly, in the present application, both of the aforementioned two encapsulation structures are referred to as pixel level encapsulation structures.

In this embodiment, the pixel units on the display panel are encapsulated independently, so that each pixel unit or n (n < total number of pixel units on the display panel) pixel units is formed by one encapsulation structure (pixel level encapsulation structure). is sealed This effectively improves the bending characteristics of the display panel, reduces the possibility of damage to the encapsulation structure in the process of bending the display panel, alleviates problems such as defects in OLED light emitting components, and extends the lifespan of the OLED flexible display including the display panel. can be extended Also, in this embodiment of the present application, in addition to encapsulating the OLED light emitting component, the encapsulation structure comprises a planarization layer 409 , a source S, a drain D, an interlayer dielectric layer 408 , and an intermetal dielectric layer 406 . , and one or more of the structures such as the gate G may be additionally sealed. This protects the encapsulated structure. In addition, since the existing structure is used as part of the encapsulation structure, process steps are omitted and cost and manufacturing time are reduced.

Further, a third metal grid line M3 may be further disposed on the display panel, and the cathode 418 of the OLED light emitting component of each pixel unit is connected to the third metal grid line M3 . The material of the third metal grid line M3 may be a titanium aluminum alloy, molybdenum, or the like. When the third metal grid line M3 is specifically arranged, reference is made to FIG. 23 . The third metal grid line M3 may be disposed on the side of the pixel defining layer 412 and away from the thin film transistor layer; Alternatively, the third metal grid line M3 may be disposed on a layer structure of a thin film transistor layer (eg, the planarization layer 409 , the interlayer dielectric layer 408 , or the intermetal dielectric layer 406 ).

Reference is still made to FIG. 23 . The display panel of this embodiment of the present application may further include a photo spacer 413 disposed on the pixel defining layer 412 , and the photo spacer 413 may be a photo spacer. By disposing the photo spacer 413 on the pixel defining layer 412 , in the process of forming an OLED light emitting component through vapor deposition, a deposition mask for forming each functional layer of the OLED light emitting component through vapor deposition is brought into contact with the display panel It effectively prevents the display panel from forming and improves the product yield of the display panel.

In addition to the above-described structure, the display panel may further include a second planarization layer 421 . The second planarization layer 421 is disposed on the side surface of the second encapsulation layer 420 and away from the thin film transistor layer. By depositing the second planarization layer 421 , a planar processing surface may be provided in a subsequent process. In addition, the second planarization layer 421 may also cover the foreign material to prevent the foreign material from penetrating into another film layer disposed on the second planarization layer 421 . Also, reference is still made to FIG. 23 . An entire third encapsulation layer 422 may be additionally disposed on the second planarization layer 421 . In this embodiment, the full-surface encapsulation structure disposed on the display panel is referred to as a panel-level encapsulation structure. Accordingly, the display panel has both a pixel level encapsulation structure and a panel level encapsulation structure, which helps to improve the water-oxygen barrier effect of the display panel.

When manufacturing the display panel of this embodiment, the manufacturing process is similar to the manufacturing process of the display panel shown in Figs. Details are not described again here. The differences between the process of manufacturing the display panel in this embodiment and the process of manufacturing the display panel described above are: In this embodiment, the inorganic layer structure of the thin film transistor layer (eg, the interlayer dielectric layer 408) is exposed. Since the vias configured to do so should be provided at positions corresponding to the side encapsulation regions of the pixel defining layer on the thin film transistor layer, the inorganic layer structure of the second encapsulation layer 420 and the thin film transistor layer (for example, the interlayer dielectric layer 408) ) may be in sealing contact through the via when the second encapsulation layer 420 is formed, thereby implementing pixel-level encapsulation of the display panel. For example, one process of manufacturing the display panel in this embodiment includes the following steps.

Step 001: A substrate is prepared. For example, the substrate may include a first layer of substrate material, a barrier layer, and a second layer of substrate material stacked sequentially.

Step 002: Form a thin film transistor layer on a substrate, wherein the thin film transistor layer includes an inorganic material layer, for example, a buffer layer, a gate insulating layer, an intermetallic dielectric layer, and an interlayer dielectric layer.

Step 003: A first via and a second via are provided on the thin film transistor layer. The first via is configured to expose the drain of the thin film transistor layer, and the second via extends into any one of the aforementioned inorganic layer structures of the thin film transistor layer.

Step 004: Prepare the anode. For the specific manufacturing process of the anode, refer to the manufacturing process of the display panel of the above-described embodiment. Details are not described again here. The anode may contact and connect with the drain through the first via to implement sealing.

Step 005: A pixel defining layer is prepared. For the specific manufacturing process of the pixel defining layer, refer to the manufacturing process of the display panel of the above-described embodiment. Details are not described again here. The formed pixel defining layer has a pixel region and a side encapsulation region. An OLED light emitting component of the pixel unit may be formed in the pixel area. The side encapsulation region is disposed to face the second via, exposing the inorganic layer of the thin film transistor layer, and subsequently encapsulating the pixel unit.

Step 006: Fabricate a third metal grid line connected to the cathode to subsequently electrically connect the cathodes of the OLED light emitting components of all pixel units. For the specific manufacturing process of the third metal grid line, refer to the manufacturing process of the display panel of the above-described embodiment. Details are not described again here.

Step 007: A photo spacer is prepared. For the specific manufacturing process of the photo spacer, refer to the manufacturing process of the display panel of the above-mentioned embodiment. Details are not described again here. By fabricating the photo spacer on the pixel defining layer, it is possible to effectively prevent the mask from contacting the surface of the display panel in the subsequent process of forming the OLED light emitting component through deposition.

Step 008: Fabricate the patterned OLED light emitting component. When forming the OLED light emitting component in the pixel area of the pixel defining layer, a portion of the OLED light emitting component may be disposed in the pixel area, and the OLED light emitting component may be completely disposed in the pixel area. This is not limited in this embodiment of the present application. In addition, the layer structure and specific manufacturing process of the OLED light emitting component refer to the manufacturing process of the display panel of the above-described embodiment. Details are not described again here.

Step 009: Prepare an encapsulation structure. First, the entire surface encapsulation structure layer may be formed by depositing SiO ₂ , SiNx, or Al ₂ O ₃ through CVD, ALD, or the like. Then, the entire surface encapsulation structure layer may be patterned through photoresist coating, exposure, development, etching, photoresist stripping, or the like to form an independent encapsulation structure positioned over each pixel unit and corresponding to each pixel unit. The encapsulation structure and the inorganic layer of the thin film transistor layer may be in sealing contact through the side encapsulation region of the pixel defining layer.

Also, the pixel defining layer may include grooves and protrusions, and the grooves and protrusions may be transferred to the encapsulation structure. However, in order to facilitate the subsequent process, a planarization layer may be additionally formed on the display panel formed after step 009. In addition, the planarization layer may cover foreign substances to prevent the foreign substances from penetrating into other film layers disposed on the planarization layer. In addition, an entire third encapsulation layer may be formed on the planarization layer.

In addition, in some embodiments of the present application, the substrate may include a stacked first substrate material layer PI1 , a barrier layer 402 , and a second substrate material layer PI2 . The barrier layer 402 is generally an inorganic layer structure made of an inorganic material such as SiO ₂ , SiNx, or Al ₂ O ₃ , and a relatively good water-oxygen barrier effect can be obtained. Accordingly, in some embodiments of the present application, the inorganic layer structure (eg, the barrier layer 402 ) of the substrate may be used as the first encapsulation layer. In this case, the via may be provided on the substrate and at a position corresponding to the side encapsulation region on the thin film transistor layer on the substrate, and the via may expose the inorganic layer structure (eg, barrier layer 402 ) of the substrate. have. The pixel unit encapsulation is similar to the embodiment described above. Details are not described again here.

An embodiment of the present application further provides a flexible display. The flexible display may include, but is not limited to, a protective cover, a polarizing plate, a touch panel, a display panel, a heat dissipation layer, and a protective layer. when the flexible display is specifically disposed, the polarizer is fixed to the protective cover, and the touch panel is disposed between the polarizer and the display panel; Alternatively, after fixing the touch panel to the protective cover, the polarizing plate may be disposed between the touch panel and the display panel. The display panel may be any one of the above embodiments.

In this embodiment, the thin film transistor layer may include, but is not limited to, a buffer layer, an active layer, a gate insulating layer, an intermetallic insulating layer, an interlayer insulating layer, and a first planarization layer, which are stacked. Each of the buffer layer, the gate insulating layer, the intermetallic insulating layer, and the interlayer insulating layer is an inorganic layer structure generally made of an inorganic material such as SiO ₂ , SiNx, or Al ₂ O ₃ , and a relatively good water-oxygen barrier effect can be obtained. Therefore, in this embodiment, the above-described inorganic layer structure of the thin film transistor layer may be used as the first encapsulation layer.

When the encapsulation structure is specifically disposed, the encapsulation structure used as the second encapsulation layer covers each pixel unit in a one-to-one correspondence manner. In other words, each pixel unit is encapsulated with one encapsulation structure. The second encapsulation layer passes through the side encapsulation region and the vias on the thin film transistor layer to make sealing contact with the inorganic layer structure of the thin film transistor layer (for example, the interlayer insulating layer), so that each pixel unit has the inorganic layer structure of the thin film transistor layer ( (eg, an interlayer dielectric layer) and a second encapsulation layer to encapsulate each pixel unit independently, ie to form a pixel level encapsulation structure. It should be noted that the pixel unit in this embodiment includes an OLED light emitting component, a planarization layer, a source and a drain. Optionally, the pixel unit may further include an interlayer dielectric layer. Optionally, the pixel unit may further include an intermetallic dielectric layer and a gate.

In a possible embodiment, the plurality of pixel units (the quantity of the plurality of pixel units is less than the total quantity of the pixel units on the display panel) may be alternatively encapsulated by one encapsulation structure. The encapsulation structure may be of any shape. For example, in the case of a display panel having a fixed single folding direction, all pixel units are grouped into columns or rows along the folding direction to form a column-shaped or row-shaped encapsulation structure to implement pixel unit encapsulation. can do.

The flexible display of this embodiment can still have good encapsulation characteristics even after being bent over 100000 times in either direction. This can prevent water-oxygen permeation that occurs when the encapsulation layer cracks in application scenarios such as flexible display bending, drying, or freely deforming, so when water and oxygen permeate through the encapsulation layer and enter the display panel It is possible to prevent a display defect problem of the flexible display that occurs. In addition, since each pixel unit is individually encapsulated or grouped and encapsulated, it is possible to further prevent the diffusion of water and oxygen entering any encapsulation structure between adjacent encapsulation structures, thereby preventing poor light emission of the entire flexible display.

Embodiments of the present application further provide an electronic device. The electronic device includes an intermediate frame, a rear housing, a printed circuit board, and a flexible display according to any one of the preceding embodiments. The intermediate frame may be configured to support the printed circuit board and the flexible display. The flexible display and the printed circuit board are positioned on both sides of the intermediate frame. The rear housing is disposed on the side of the printed circuit board and away from the intermediate frame.

In this embodiment of the present application, the electronic device may be a foldable device. In the process of folding the flexible display of an electronic device, the risk of cracking of the encapsulation layer of the display panel of the flexible display is relatively low. can be prevented

The foregoing descriptions are merely specific implementations of the present application and are not intended to limit the protection scope of the present application. Modifications or replacements easily figured out by those skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in the present application shall fall within the protection scope of the present application. Accordingly, the protection scope of the present application is governed by the protection scope of the claims.

Claims (19)

A display panel comprising:
a substrate, a thin film transistor layer, a pixel defining layer, at least two encapsulation structures, and at least two pixel units;
the at least two encapsulation structures are configured to encapsulate the at least two pixel units;
the thin film transistor layer is disposed on the substrate;
the pixel defining layer is disposed on the thin film transistor layer, the pixel defining layer includes a pixel region and a side encapsulation region, the side encapsulation region being disposed around the pixel unit encapsulated by the encapsulation structure, and the pixel region and the side encapsulation region are through holes disposed on the pixel defining layer;
the pixel unit includes an OLED light emitting component, the OLED light emitting component being partially or completely disposed in the pixel area; and
The encapsulation structure includes a first encapsulation layer and a second encapsulation layer, wherein the first encapsulation layer is disposed on a side of the OLED light emitting component and proximal to the thin film transistor layer, the second encapsulation layer comprising: A display panel disposed on a side of an OLED light emitting component and on a side remote from the thin film transistor layer, wherein the first encapsulation layer and the second encapsulation layer are in sealed contact in the side encapsulation region. According to claim 1,
A display panel, wherein the quantity of the encapsulation structures is equal to the quantity of the pixel units, and each encapsulation structure is configured to encapsulate one pixel unit. 3. The method of claim 1 or 2,
The first encapsulation layer is a single-layer structure formed by an inorganic material layer or a multi-layer structure in which an inorganic material layer and an organic material layer are alternately stacked,
The second encapsulation layer is a single-layer structure formed by an inorganic material layer or a multi-layer structure in which an inorganic material layer and an organic material layer are alternately stacked, a display panel. 4. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 3,
The display panel further comprises a metal line through which the cathodes of all OLED light emitting components are connected. 5. The method of claim 4,
the metal line is disposed on a side of the pixel defining layer and away from the thin film transistor layer; or the metal line is disposed on the first encapsulation layer; or the metal line is disposed on the layer structure of the thin film transistor layer. As a flexible display,
It comprises a protective cover, a polarizer, a touch panel, and the display panel according to any one of claims 1 to 8,
the polarizing plate is fastened to the protective cover, and the touch panel is disposed between the polarizing plate and the protective cover; or
The touch panel is fixed to the protective cover, and the polarizer is disposed between the touch panel and the display panel, a flexible display. An electronic device comprising:
A middle frame, a rear housing, a printed circuit board and a flexible display according to claim 6,
the intermediate frame is configured to support the printed circuit board and the flexible display, the printed circuit board and the flexible display are located on both sides of the intermediate frame; and
and the rear housing is located on a side of the printed circuit board and away from the intermediate frame. A method of manufacturing a display panel, comprising:
The display panel includes a substrate, a thin film transistor layer, a pixel defining layer, at least two encapsulation structures, and at least two pixel units, wherein the at least two encapsulation structures are configured to encapsulate the at least two pixel units; the encapsulation structure comprises a first encapsulation layer and a second encapsulation layer, wherein the pixel unit comprises an OLED light emitting component;
The method is
manufacturing the substrate;
forming a thin film transistor layer on the substrate and providing a first via on the thin film transistor layer, the first via extending to a drain of the thin film transistor layer;
forming an entire-surface first encapsulation structure layer on the thin film transistor layer, and patterning the entire-surface first encapsulation structure layer to obtain at least two independent first encapsulation layers;
forming the pixel defining layer and patterning the pixel defining layer to form a pixel region and a side encapsulation region on each first encapsulation layer, the side encapsulation region being used to expose the first encapsulation layer;
forming the OLED light emitting component in the pixel region, the OLED light emitting component coupled to the drain through the first via; and
forming a full-surface second encapsulation structure layer corresponding to the thin-film transistor layer on a side surface of the OLED light emitting component and away from the thin-film transistor layer, and patterning the full-surface second encapsulation structure layer, at least obtaining two independent second encapsulation layers, wherein the second encapsulation layer and the first encapsulation layer are in sealing contact in the side encapsulation region;
How to include. 9. The method of claim 8,
Forming the first encapsulation layer is specifically,
depositing one or more of SiO ₂ , SiNx, or Al ₂ O ₃ on the thin film transistor layer to form the entire surface first encapsulation structure layer; and
patterning the full-surface first encapsulation structure layer to obtain the first encapsulation layer, wherein the patterning comprises one or more of coating, exposing, developing, etching, or exfoliating;
A method comprising 10. The method according to claim 8 or 9,
Before the pixel defining layer is formed,
The method is
forming an anode on the first encapsulation layer
further comprising,
and the anode is connected to the drain through the first via. 11. The method of claim 10,
The step of forming the anode is specifically,
forming an anode material layer by sequentially depositing ITO, Ag, and ITO on the first encapsulation layer; and
patterning said layer of anode material to obtain said anode, said patterning comprising one or more of coating, exposing, developing, etching, or exfoliating;
A method comprising 12. The method according to any one of claims 8 to 11,
forming a metal line
further comprising,
wherein the cathode of each OLED light emitting component is connected to the metal line. 13. The method of claim 12,
The step of forming the metal line is specifically,
forming a metal layer by sequentially depositing Ti, Al, and Ti after forming the pixel defining layer; and
patterning the metal layer to obtain the metal line, wherein the patterning comprises one or more of coating, exposing, developing, etching or stripping.
A method comprising 14. The method according to any one of claims 8 to 13,
The step of forming the second encapsulation layer is specifically,
depositing one or more of SiO ₂ , SiNx, or Al ₂ O ₃ on the pixel defining layer and the OLED light emitting component to form the full-surface second encapsulation structure layer; and
patterning the full-surface second encapsulation structure layer to obtain the second encapsulation layer, wherein the patterning comprises one or more of coating, exposing, developing, etching, or exfoliating.
A method comprising A display panel comprising:
a substrate, a thin film transistor layer, a pixel defining layer, at least two encapsulation structures, and at least two pixel units;
the at least two encapsulation structures are configured to encapsulate the at least two pixel units,
the thin film transistor layer is disposed on the substrate;
the pixel defining layer is disposed on the thin film transistor layer, the pixel defining layer includes a pixel region and a side encapsulation region, the side encapsulation region being disposed around the pixel unit encapsulated by the encapsulation structure, the the pixel region and the side encapsulation region are through holes disposed in the pixel defining layer;
the thin film transistor layer includes an inorganic material layer and a via is provided at a position corresponding to the side encapsulation region, the via exposing the inorganic material layer;
the pixel unit includes an OLED light emitting component, the OLED light emitting component being partially or completely disposed in the pixel area; and
wherein the encapsulation structure is disposed on a side of the OLED light emitting component and away from the thin film transistor layer, wherein the encapsulation structure and the inorganic layer are in sealing contact in the side encapsulation region. 16. The method of claim 15,
A display panel, wherein the quantity of the encapsulation structures is equal to the quantity of the pixel units, and each encapsulation structure is configured to encapsulate one pixel unit. 17. The method of claim 15 or 16,
The encapsulation structure is a single-layer structure formed by an inorganic material layer or a multi-layer structure in which an inorganic material layer and an organic material layer are alternately stacked, a display panel. 18. The method according to any one of claims 15 to 17,
The display panel further comprises a metal line through which the cathodes of all OLED light emitting components are connected. 19. The method of claim 18,
the metal line is disposed on a side of the pixel defining layer and away from the thin film transistor layer; or the metal line is disposed on the layer structure of the thin film transistor layer.

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