WO2014094622A1

WO2014094622A1 - Touch control electrode structure and manufacturing process therefor

Info

Publication number: WO2014094622A1
Application number: PCT/CN2013/089878
Authority: WO
Inventors: 刘振宇; 李禄兴
Original assignee: 宸鸿光电科技股份有限公司
Priority date: 2012-12-18
Filing date: 2013-12-18
Publication date: 2014-06-26
Also published as: TW201426945A; TWM469545U; CN103870043A; CN103870043B; TWI544598B

Abstract

A manufacturing process for a touch control electrode structure, comprising the steps of: S1: forming an electrode layer on a substrate; S2: forming a first anti-etching optical layer; S3: etching the electrode layer, wherein the electrode layer located in a non-etching area comprises: more than two first electrode blocks arranged in a first direction, adjacent first electrode blocks being electrically connected via a first conductor; and more than two second electrode blocks arranged in a second direction, the second electrode blocks being respectively arranged on both sides of the first conductor; S4: forming a second anti-etching optical layer, and forming a hollow area corresponding to the second anti-etching optical layer on each of the second electrode blocks; S5: etching the first anti-etching optical layer in the hollow area, so as to form a through hole; and S6: forming a line layer, the line layer being located on the second anti-etching optical layer and being electrically connected to the adjacent second electrode blocks via the hollow area and the through hole. The touch control electrode structure formed using the above-mentioned process has a better visual effect, short processing time and high process efficiency.

Description

Touch electrode structure and manufacturing process thereof

The present invention relates to touch technology, and in particular to a touch electrode structure and a manufacturing process thereof. Background technique

In the conventional touch electrode structure manufacturing process, the most important steps include the formation of an electrode structure and the formation of a circuit layer. In these two steps, a mask for defining an electrode pattern and a definition are respectively required. A mask for the connection area of the circuit layer. In conventional manufacturing processes, the mask typically requires additional step removal after completing the above process steps.

On the other hand, in order to make the touch electrode structure have a good visual effect when applied to the touch display device, after the touch sensing electrode structure is formed, an additional optical layer is usually required on the touch electrode structure to adjust the touch. The display effect of the control device.

Therefore, the conventional touch electrode structure manufacturing process is not only cumbersome, but also requires additional cost in adjusting the display effect. Invention disclosure

Based on this, it is necessary to provide a manufacturing process of a touch electrode structure which has fewer process steps and better visual effects.

In addition, a touch electrode structure is also provided.

A manufacturing process of a touch electrode structure, comprising:

S1: forming an electrode layer on a substrate;

S2: forming a first anti-etching optical layer on the electrode layer;

S3: etching the electrode layer not blocked by the first anti-etching optical layer, the etched electrode layer is divided into an etched region and a non-etched region, and the electrode layer located in the non-etched region comprises:

At least two or more first electrode blocks arranged along the first direction, and the adjacent first electrode blocks are electrically connected by a first wire;

At least two or more second electrode blocks arranged along the second direction, the second electrode blocks being respectively disposed on two sides of the first wire;

S4: forming a second anti-etching optical layer on the first anti-etching optical layer and the substrate, and corresponding The second anti-etching optical layer on each of the second electrode blocks is formed with a hollow region;

S5: etching the first anti-etching optical layer at the hollow region, forming a through hole penetrating the first anti-etching optical layer;

S6: forming a circuit layer, the circuit layer is located on the second anti-etching optical layer, and electrically connecting the adjacent second electrode block to the through hole through the hollow region.

A touch electrode structure comprising:

a substrate;

An electrode layer is disposed on the substrate, and the electrode layer is divided into an etched region and a non-etched region, wherein the electrode layer of the non-etched region comprises: at least two or more first electrode blocks arranged along the first direction The adjacent first electrode blocks are electrically connected by the first wire; at least two or more second electrode blocks arranged along the second direction, the second electrode blocks are respectively disposed on two sides of the first wire;

a first anti-etching optical layer is disposed on the electrode layer of the non-etching region, and the first anti-etching optical layer is formed with a through hole corresponding to the positions of the second electrode blocks;

a second anti-etching optical layer is disposed on the first anti-etching optical layer and the substrate, and the second anti-etching optical layer is formed with a hollow region corresponding to the position of the through hole;

A circuit layer is disposed on the second anti-etching optical layer, and the circuit layer is electrically connected to the adjacent second electrode block through the hollow region and the through hole.

The invention is described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments, but not to limit the invention. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

1 is a flow chart showing a manufacturing process of the touch electrode structure of the first embodiment;

2a to 2f are top views of the touch electrode structure corresponding to each step in the process flow chart shown in Fig. 1; Fig. 2a' to Fig. 2f are cross-sectional views taken along line A-A' of Fig. 2a to Fig. 2f, respectively;

2G is a hierarchical structure diagram of the electrode layer of the touch electrode structure etched region and the non-etched region of the first embodiment;

3a is a plan view of the touch electrode structure of the second embodiment; FIG. 3a' is a cross-sectional view taken along line A-A' of FIG. 3a;

4 is a flow chart showing a manufacturing process of a touch electrode structure according to another embodiment;

5a to 5e are top views of the touch electrode structure corresponding to each step in the process flow chart shown in FIG. Figure 5a' to Figure 5e' are cross-sectional views taken along line A-A' of Figures 5a to 5e, respectively. The best way to implement the invention

FIG. 1 is a flow chart showing a manufacturing process of the touch electrode structure of an embodiment. The manufacturing process includes the following steps.

S101: Form an electrode layer on a substrate. Referring to Figures 2a, and 2a, an electrode layer 130a is formed on the substrate 110. The substrate 110 may be a glass substrate or a polyphthalic plastic.

(Polyethylene terephthalate, PET) substrate. The substrate 110 can be planar or curved to accommodate different touch products. The substrate 110 can also be a rigid substrate or a disturbable substrate. The electrode layer 130a may be a nano silver wire (Silver Nano-Wire, S) layer, a carbon nanotube (CNT nanotube) layer, a graphene layer, a conductive ive polymer layer, and a metal oxide layer. A material that can be seen through (IT0, AZ0... Gel) layers. The electrode layer 130 may be formed by a deposition, sputtering or the like.

S102: forming a protective layer on the electrode layer. For a material that is easily oxidized such as nanosilver, the protective layer 140 isolates the electrode layer 130a from the air, thereby contributing to an increase in the oxidation resistance of the electrode layer 130a. At the same time, since the nano-silver material itself has a certain density, the protective layer 140 can contact the substrate through the gap of the nano-silver wire, and the material with better adhesion to the substrate 110 is selected to help improve the nano-silver wire on the substrate. The adhesion of 110. The material of the protective layer is made of a see-through insulating material such as silica. The protective layer has a thickness of 50 nm to 500 nm.

S103: forming a first anti-etching optical layer on the protective layer. Referring to Figures 2b' and 2b, a first anti-etching optical layer 150 is formed on the protective layer 140. The first anti-etching optical layer 150 has a patterned shape for defining a conductive electrode pattern on the electrode layer 130a. The first anti-etching optical layer 150 may be made of a see-through insulating material such as Acrylate Polymer and Epoxide Resin. The manner in which the first anti-etching optical layer 150 is formed may employ a printing process. The thickness of the first anti-etching optical layer is from 0.05 um to 5 Å.

S104: etching the electrode layer that is not blocked by the first anti-etching optical layer, and the etched electrode layer is divided into an etched region and a non-etched region. Referring to FIG. 2c' and FIG. 2c, the electrode layer 130a of FIG. 2b' and FIG. 2b is etched to form the electrode layer 130 shown in FIG. 2c and FIG. 2c'. During the etching process, since the thickness of the protective layer 140 is thin, The etchant permeable protective layer 140 etches the electrode layer 130a. The electrode layer 130b shown in Fig. 2c' and Fig. 2c is divided into an etched region M and a non-etched region N. In this implementation In the example, the etching electrode layer 130 etches only the electrode of the partial etching region M by the process of incomplete etching, that is, while ensuring that the electrode layer 130b of the etching region M is electrically insulated from the electrode layer 130b of the non-etching region N. With the process of incomplete etching, the chromatic aberration of the electrode layers of the etched region M and the non-etched region N can be prevented from being excessive. In another embodiment, a fully etched process can be employed. The electrode layer 130b of the non-etched region N includes: at least two or more first electrode blocks 132 arranged in the first direction, and the adjacent first electrode blocks 132 are electrically connected by the first wires 134; at least two or more edges The second electrode block 136 and the second electrode block 136 are respectively disposed on the two sides of the first wire 134. Only a partial electrode block of the electrode layer 130b of the non-etched region N is shown in the drawing, and the actual electrode layer 130b should contain more electrode blocks. Due to the occlusion of the first anti-etching optical layer 150, after etching, the electrode layer 130 finally forms the same electrode structure as that defined by the first anti-etching optical layer 150. In FIG. 2c' and FIG. 2c, the first electrode block 132, the first wire 134, and the second electrode block 136 are both located under the first anti-etching optical layer 150.

S105: forming a second anti-etching optical layer on the protective layer and the first anti-etching optical layer. Referring to FIG. 2d' and FIG. 2d, after the electrode layer 130b is formed by etching, a second anti-etching optical layer 160 is formed over the entire substrate 210, and the second anti-etching optical layer 160 is formed on the first anti-etching optical layer 150. Above the protective layer 140, and corresponding to the second anti-etching optical layer 160 on each of the second electrode blocks 136, a hollow region 162 is formed. The second anti-etching optical layer 160 may be made of a see-through insulating material such as Acrylate Polymer and Epoxide Resin. The thickness of the second anti-etching optical layer 160 is from 0.05 um to 5 Å.

S106 etches the first anti-etch optical layer and the protective layer at the hollow regions. Referring to Figures 2e' and 2e, through holes 152 may be formed in the first anti-etching optical layer 150 and the protective layer 140 by etching the first anti-etching optical layer 150 and the protective layer 140 at the cutout region 162. The through holes 152 are formed and penetrated through the first anti-etching optical layer 150 and the protective layer 140 such that the second electrode block 136 is partially exposed. It should be noted that, for a single second electrode block 136, the number of the hollow regions 162 and the through holes 152 can be adjusted according to the size of the second electrode block 136, and is not limited to the number in the figure. The cutout area 162 and the through hole 152 may also have a circular shape or the like, and are not limited to the square shape in the drawing.

S107: Form a circuit layer. Referring to FIG. 2f' and FIG. 2f, a wiring layer 170 is formed on the second anti-etching optical layer 160, and is electrically connected to the second electrode block 136 located in the non-etching region through the hollow region 162 and the through holes 152. The wiring layer 170 may be a see-through conductive material such as indium tin oxide, or a metal material such as silver or aluminum, or an alloy material such as molybdenum aluminum molybdenum.

Referring to FIG. 2c, FIG. 2f' and FIG. 2f, the touch electrode junction obtained by the above process is obtained. The electrode layer 130b is disposed on the substrate 110, and the electrode layer 130b is divided into an etched region M and a non-etched region N, wherein the electrode layer of the non-etched region N comprises: at least two or more a first electrode block 132 arranged in one direction, the adjacent first electrode blocks 132 are electrically connected by a first wire 134; at least two or more second electrode blocks 136 arranged in a second direction, the second The electrode blocks 136 are respectively disposed on the two sides of the first wire 134; the protective layer 140 is disposed on the electrode layer 130b; the first anti-etching optical layer 150 is disposed on the protective layer of the non-etched region N, and the first anti-etching The optical layer 150 and the protective layer 140 are formed with a through hole 152 at a position corresponding to the second electrode block 136; the second anti-etching optical layer 160 is disposed on the protective layer 140 and the first anti-etching optical layer 150, and the second anti-etching The optical layer 160 is formed with a hollow region 162 corresponding to the position of the through hole 152. The circuit layer 170 is disposed on the second anti-etching optical layer 160, and the circuit layer 170 is electrically connected to the adjacent portion through the hollow region 162 and the through hole 152. Two electrode blocks 136. Other characteristics of the components of the touch electrode structure of this embodiment have been described in detail in the forming process, and therefore will not be described herein.

Referring to FIG. 2f', FIG. 2f and FIG. 2g, the touch electrode structure formed by the process of the present invention, the protective layer 140 and the second anti-etching optical layer 160 are formed on the etched region M of the electrode layer 130b; the non-etched region N A protective layer 140, a first anti-etching optical layer 150, and a second anti-etching optical layer 160 are formed thereon. By adjusting the refractive index of the protective layer 14 (X first anti-etching optical layer 15 (X second anti-etching optical layer 160), the difference in appearance of the etching region and the non-etching region after etching can be alleviated. In an embodiment, 1。 The refractive index of the first anti-etching optical layer 150 is at least 0.11 greater than the refractive index of the first anti-etching optical layer 150. The refractive index of the protective layer 140, the first anti-etching optical layer 150, and the second anti-etching optical layer 160 may be adjusted according to the refractive index of the different electrode layer materials. In addition, the protective layer 140 may have a thickness of up to 50 nm to 500 nm. The thickness of the first anti-etching optical layer 150 and the second anti-etching optical layer 160 may be 0. 05um to 5um, which is advantageous for ensuring the overall touch. The light transmittance of the electrode structure is controlled. Further, compared with the conventional manufacturing process, the process of the present embodiment does not involve the step of removing the mask for defining the electrode pattern of the electrode layer and the removal. Define the position of the mask through-hole ho step, so the process will be less ho step, the process time will be shorter, can improve the efficiency of the process.

Referring to FIG. 3a' and FIG. 3a, in another embodiment of the present invention, after forming the touch electrode structure of FIG. 2f and FIG. 2f', an optical adjustment layer 180 may be further formed to cover the circuit layer. 170 on. The optical adjustment layer 180 may be a single layer structure or a multilayer composite structure. On the one hand, optical adjustment The layer 180 can be used to protect the overall touch structure; on the other hand, the optical adjustment layer 180 can also function to adjust the optical appearance of the circuit layer 170 and the overall touch structure. The thickness of the optical adjustment layer 180 is 0.05 um to 5 recommended. The optical adjustment layer 280 is made of a see-through insulating material such as Acrylate Polymer and Epoxide Resin.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing a manufacturing process of the touch electrode structure of another embodiment. The manufacturing process flow includes the following steps.

S201: Form an electrode layer on a substrate. Referring to Figures 5a, and 5a, an electrode layer 230a is formed on the substrate 210. The substrate 210 may be a glass substrate or a polyphthalic plastic.

(Polyethylene terephthalate, PET) substrate. The substrate 110 can be planar or curved to accommodate different touch products. The substrate 110 can also be a rigid substrate or a disturbable substrate. The electrode layer 230a may be a nano silver wire (Silver Nano-Wire, SNW) layer, a carbon nanotube (CNT nanotube) layer, a graphene layer, a conductive ive polymer layer, and an oxidized metal ( A material that can be seen through such as IT0, AZ0... Gel) layers. The electrode layer 130 may be formed by a deposition, sputtering or the like.

S202: Form a first anti-etching optical layer on the electrode. Refer to Figure 5a' and Figure 5a, and Figure

The process flow shown in 1 is different. When the electrode layer is made of a metal oxide (IT0, AZ0... Gel) layer and other materials having good oxidation resistance and adhesion, the step of forming a protective layer may be omitted. The first anti-etching optical layer is directly formed on the electrode layer. The first anti-etching optical layer 250 has a patterned shape for defining a conductive electrode pattern on the electrode layer 230a. Other characteristics of the first anti-etching optical layer 250 are the same as those of the foregoing embodiment, and are not described herein again.

S203: etching the electrode layer not blocked by the first anti-etching optical layer, and the etched electrode layer is divided into an etched region and a non-etched region. Referring to Figures 5b' and 5b, the electrode layer 230a of Figures 5a' and 5a is etched to form the electrode layer 230b shown in Figures 5b, and 5b. The electrode layer 230b shown in 5b' and FIG. 5b is divided into an etched region M and a non-etched region N. The etching electrode layer 230a may employ a process of complete etching or incomplete etching. The electrode layer 230b of the non-etched region N includes: at least two or more first electrode blocks 232 arranged in the first direction, and the adjacent first electrode blocks 232 are electrically connected by the first wires 234; at least two or more edges The second electrode block 236 and the second electrode block 236 are arranged on the two sides of the first wire 234. Only a partial electrode block of the electrode layer 230b of the non-etched region N is shown in the drawing, and the actual electrode layer 230b should contain more electrode blocks. Due to the occlusion of the first anti-etching optical layer 250, after etching, the electrode layer 230b finally forms a pattern defined by the first anti-etching optical layer 250. The same electrode structure. In FIG. 5b' and FIG. 5b, the first electrode block 232, the first wire 234, and the second electrode block 236 are both located under the first anti-etching optical layer 250.

S204: Form a second anti-etching optical layer on the first anti-etching optical layer and the substrate. Referring to FIG. 5c' and FIG. 5c, after the electrode layer 230b is formed by etching, a second anti-etching optical layer 260 is formed over the entire substrate 210, and the second anti-etching optical layer 260 is formed on the first anti-etching optical layer 250 and A hollowed out region 262 is formed on the substrate 210 and corresponding to the second anti-etching optical layer 260 on each of the second electrode blocks 236. Other characteristics of the second anti-etching optical layer 260 are the same as those of the previous embodiment, and will not be described again here.

S205: etching the first anti-etching optical layer at the hollow region. Referring to Figures 5d' and 5d, a through via 252 can be formed in the first etch-resistant optical layer 250 by etching the first etch-resistant optical layer 250 at the vacant region 262. The through hole 252 is formed and penetrates through the first anti-etching optical layer 250 such that the second electrode block 236 is partially exposed. Other features of the cutout region 262 and the through hole 252 are the same as those of the previous embodiment, and are not described herein again.

S206: Form a circuit layer. Referring to FIG. 5e' and FIG. 5e, the wiring layer 270 is formed on the second etch-resistant optical layer 260, and is electrically connected to the adjacent second electrode block 136 through the hollow region 262 and the through hole 252. Other characteristics of the circuit layer 270 are the same as those of the previous embodiment, and are not described herein again.

Referring to FIG. 5b, FIG. 5e' and FIG. 5e, the touch electrode structure obtained by the above process includes: a substrate 210; an electrode layer 230b disposed on the substrate 210, and the electrode layer 230b is divided into an etching region M. And the non-etching region N, wherein the electrode layer of the non-etching region N comprises: at least two or more first electrode blocks 232 arranged in the first direction, and the adjacent first electrode blocks 232 are electrically connected through the first wires 234 Connecting at least two second electrode blocks 236 arranged in a second direction, the second electrode blocks 236 are respectively disposed on two sides of the first wire 234; the first etching resistant optical layer 250 is disposed in the non-etching region On the electrode layer 230b of the N, the first anti-etching optical layer 250 is formed with a through hole 252 corresponding to the position of the second electrode block 236; the second anti-etching optical layer 260 is disposed on the first anti-etching optical layer 250 and the substrate 210. Upper, and the second anti-etching optical layer 260 is formed with a hollowed out region 262 corresponding to the position of the through hole 252; the wiring layer 270 is disposed on the second anti-etching optical layer 260, and the wiring layer 270 passes through the hollowed out region 262. And the through hole 252 is electrically connected to the adjacent second electrode block 236. In addition, in another embodiment, an optical adjustment layer may be formed on the circuit layer 270. Other characteristics of the components of the touch electrode structure of this embodiment have been described in detail in the forming process, and therefore will not be described herein.

In each of the above embodiments, the electrodes of the electrode layer are electrically connected by square electrode blocks, and In the embodiment, the electrode block is also a prism, a pentagon or a hexagon.

The above-mentioned embodiments are merely illustrative of several embodiments of the present invention, and the description thereof is not to be construed as limiting the scope of the invention. It should be noted that a number of variations and modifications may be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, the scope of the invention should be determined by the appended claims.

Industrial applicability

The present invention can alleviate the difference in appearance of the etched and non-etched regions after etching by adjusting the refractive indices of the first anti-etching optical layer and the second anti-etching layer. In addition, compared with the conventional manufacturing process, the process flow of the present embodiment does not involve removing the mask for defining the electrode pattern of the electrode layer and removing the mask for defining the connection region of the circuit layer, so the process 歩Fewer meetings and shorter process times can increase the efficiency of the process.

Claims

Claim

A manufacturing process of a touch electrode structure, characterized in that it comprises:

S1: forming an electrode layer on a substrate;

S2: forming a first anti-etching optical layer on the electrode layer;

S4: forming a second anti-etching optical layer on the first anti-etching optical layer and the substrate, and forming a hollow region corresponding to the second anti-etching optical layer on each of the second electrode blocks;

The manufacturing process of the touch electrode structure according to claim 1, wherein the step S2 further comprises a step of forming a protective layer on the electrode layer, and the step S4 is formed by a second step. An anti-etching optical layer is formed on the first anti-etching optical layer and the protective layer, and a through hole formed in the step S5 penetrates through the protective layer.

3. The manufacturing process of the touch electrode structure according to claim 1, further comprising the step of forming an optical adjustment layer on the circuit layer.

4. The manufacturing process of the touch electrode structure according to claim 1, wherein the step S1 employs a deposition and sputtering process.

The manufacturing process according to claim 1, wherein the step S4 employs a process of incomplete etching.

6. The manufacturing process according to claim 1, wherein the forming the first anti-etching optical layer and the second anti-etching optical layer are performed by a printing process.

A touch electrode structure, comprising: a substrate;

An electrode layer is disposed on the substrate, and the electrode layer is divided into an etched region and a non-etched region, wherein the electrode layer of the non-etched region comprises: at least two or more first electrode blocks arranged along the first direction The adjacent first electrode blocks are electrically connected to the at least two second electrode blocks arranged in the second direction by the first wire, and the second electrode blocks are respectively disposed on two sides of the first wire;

The touch electrode structure according to claim 7, wherein a protective layer is further formed on the electrode layer, and the protective layer is disposed between the electrode layer and the first anti-etching optical layer.

9. The touch electrode structure according to claim 7, wherein an optical adjustment layer is disposed on the circuit layer.

The touch electrode structure according to claim 8, wherein the protective layer has a thickness of 50 nm to 500 nm.

The refractive index of the first anti-etching optical layer is at least 0.11 greater than the refractive index of the protective layer.

The refractive index of the second anti-etching optical layer is at least 0.11 greater than the refractive index of the first anti-etching optical layer. The touch-proof electrode structure according to claim 7 or 11, wherein the refractive index of the second anti-etching optical layer is at least 0.1.

The thickness of the first anti-etching optical layer is 0.05 um to 5 Å.

The thickness of the second anti-etching optical layer is 0.05 um to 5 Å.

The touch electrode structure according to claim 7, wherein the circuit layer is made of a see-through conductive material, a metal material, or an alloy material, or a combination thereof.

The touch electrode structure according to claim 7, wherein the first anti-etching optical layer material and the second anti-etching optical layer material are an acrylic polymer or an epoxy resin.