Organic light-emitting diode display panels

• US 10,707,282 B1
• Filed: 06/05/2018
• Issued: 07/07/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 09/08/2017
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Yang, Chih Jen, Mandlik, Prashant, Chang, Chia-Hao, Wang, Chien-Chung, Teng, Te-Hua, Chen, Yu Cheng
• Primary Examiner(s): Withers, Grant S
• Application Number:
  US16/000,725
• Time in Patent Office: 763 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/041 Digitisers, e.g. for touch screens or touch pads, characterised by the transducing means
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/84 Passivation; Containers; Encapsulations
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/1213 the pixel elements being TFTs
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/122 Pixel-defining structures or layers, e.g. banks
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/131 Interconnections, e.g. wiring lines or terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/40 OLEDs integrated with touch screens
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/8731 multilayered coatings having a repetitive structure, e.g. having multiple organic-inorganic bilayers
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/88 Dummy elements, i.e. elements having non-functional features

Abstract

A display may have organic light-emitting diode pixels formed from thin-film circuitry. An organic layer including planarization layers and a pixel definition layer may overlap the thin-film circuitry. Thin-film encapsulation may overlap the organic layer. The thin-film encapsulation may be formed from an organic dielectric layer interposed between two layers of inorganic dielectric material. A strip of peripheral crack-stopper structures may run along an edge of the display and may surround the array of pixels. The crack-stopper structures may include parallel inorganic lines formed from a first inorganic layer such as an inorganic layer of the thin-film circuitry. A strip of the organic layer may overlap the parallel inorganic lines. The crack-stopper structures may have parallel tapered polymer lines. The polymer lines may be overlapped by a second inorganic dielectric layer formed from the inorganic material of the thin-film encapsulation layer.

Claims

1. A display, comprising:

a substrate having a peripheral edge;

thin-film circuitry on the substrate that is configured to form pixels, wherein the thin-film circuitry includes a first inorganic dielectric layer and an organic layer that overlaps the first inorganic dielectric layer;

thin-film encapsulation that covers the thin-film circuitry, wherein the thin-film encapsulation includes at least a second inorganic dielectric layer; and

a crack-stopper structure that runs along the peripheral edge and surrounds the pixels, wherein the first and second inorganic dielectric layers overlap the crack-stopper structure, the crack-stopper structure comprising;

a portion of the organic layer; and

a polymer line with tapered sidewalls, wherein the tapered sidewalls form an overhang that overlaps the portion of the organic layer.

2. The display defined in claim 1 wherein the pixels comprise organic light-emitting diode pixels and wherein the polymer line with the tapered sidewalls comprises one of a plurality of polymer lines on the portion of the organic layer, wherein each of the polymer lines has tapered sidewalls.

3. The display defined in claim 2 wherein the crack-stopper structure includes a strip-shaped portion of the first inorganic dielectric layer that runs parallel to the peripheral edge.

4. The display defined in claim 3 wherein the polymer lines with the tapered sidewalls have lower portions and upper portions, wherein the lower portions are closer to the portion of the organic layer than the upper portions, and wherein the lower portions of each polymer line are narrower than the upper portions of that polymer line.

5. The display defined in claim 4 wherein the strip-shaped portion of the first inorganic dielectric layer is patterned to form a plurality of first inorganic dielectric layer lines, each adjacent pair of the first inorganic dielectric layer lines being separated by a respective slot-shaped opening in the strip-shaped portion of the first inorganic dielectric layer.

6. The display defined in claim 5 wherein the portion of the organic layer comprises a strip-shaped portion of the organic layer that runs parallel to the peripheral edge.

7. The display defined in claim 6 wherein each of the polymer lines with the tapered sidewalls runs parallel to the peripheral edge and wherein the second inorganic dielectric layer overlaps the polymer lines with the tapered sidewalls.

8. The display defined in claim 7 wherein the polymer lines include at least five polymer lines.

9. The display defined in claim 7 wherein the polymer lines each have a first width, wherein the polymer lines are separated from each other by slot-shaped openings that each have a second width, and wherein the second width is less than the first width.

10. A display, comprising:

a substrate having a peripheral edge;

thin-film transistor circuitry on the substrate that is configured to form pixels, wherein the thin-film transistor circuitry includes a first inorganic dielectric layer;

thin-film encapsulation that covers the thin-film transistor circuitry, wherein the thin-film encapsulation includes at least a second inorganic dielectric layer; and

a line of crack-stopper structures that surrounds the pixels, wherein the line of crack stopper structures comprises a plurality of parallel polymer lines that are overlapped by the second inorganic dielectric layer, wherein the second inorganic dielectric layer has a first density in regions overlapping the polymer lines and a second density that is less than the first density in regions interposed between each of the polymer lines.

11. The display defined in claim 10 wherein the pixels comprise organic light-emitting diode pixels, wherein each of the polymer lines has tapered sidewalls, wherein the polymer lines with the tapered sidewalls each have a lower portion and an upper portion, and wherein the lower portion of each of the polymer lines is narrower than the upper portion of that polymer line.

12. The display defined in claim 11 wherein the line of crack-stopper structures includes a plurality of lines formed from the first inorganic dielectric layer and wherein the lines formed from the first inorganic dielectric layer are separated from each other by slot-shaped openings and run parallel to the peripheral edge.

13. The display defined in claim 12 wherein the thin-film transistor circuitry further comprises an organic layer that overlaps the first inorganic dielectric layer, wherein the line of crack-stopper structures includes a strip of the organic layer that overlaps the lines of the first inorganic dielectric layer and that extends parallel to the peripheral edge.

14. The display defined in claim 13 wherein the polymer lines each have a first width, wherein the polymer lines are separated from each other by gaps, wherein each gap has a second width, and wherein the second width is less than the first width.

15. The display defined in claim 14 wherein the second inorganic dielectric layer comprises first and second silicon nitride layers.

16. A display, comprising:

a substrate having a peripheral edge;

thin-film circuitry on the substrate that is configured to form pixels, wherein the thin-film circuitry includes a first inorganic dielectric layer and includes an organic layer that overlaps the first inorganic dielectric layer;

thin-film encapsulation that covers the thin-film circuitry, wherein the thin-film encapsulation includes a second inorganic dielectric layer; and

a crack-stopper structure that surrounds the pixels, wherein the crack stopper structure comprises parallel polymer lines that are overlapped by the second inorganic dielectric layer, wherein the polymer lines include first and second polymer lines, wherein the polymer lines each have a first surface and a second surface and a first width from the first surface to the second surface, wherein the polymer lines are separated from each other by a gap that extends from a first surface of the first polymer line to the second surface of the second polymer line and wherein the gap has a second width that is less than the first width.

17. The display defined in claim 16 wherein the pixels comprise light-emitting diode pixels and wherein each of the polymer lines has tapered sidewalls with upper portions and lower portions that are narrower than the upper portions.

18. The display defined in claim 17 wherein the crack-stopper structure includes a plurality of inorganic lines formed from the first inorganic dielectric layer.

19. The display defined in claim 18 wherein the organic layer has a strip-shaped portion in the crack-stopper structure that overlaps the plurality of inorganic lines.

20. The display defined in claim 19 wherein the second width is less than half of the first width.