Methods and displays utilizing integrated zinc oxide row and column drivers in conjunction with organic light emitting diodes

• US 20060091793A1
• Filed: 11/02/2004
• Published: 05/04/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 11/02/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: 3M Innovative Properties Company (3M Company)
• Original Assignee: 3M Innovative Properties Company (3M Company)
• Inventors: Haase, Michael A., Theiss, Steven D., Hemmesch, Eric W., Baude, Paul F.
• Granted Patent: US 7,298,084 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 313/506
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/1214 comprising a plurality of TFTs formed on a non-semiconducting substrate, e.g. driving circuits for AMLCDs
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/1218 with a particular composition or structure of the substrate
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/1225 with semiconductor materials not belonging to the group IV of the periodic table, e.g. InGaZnO
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/7869 having a semiconductor body comprising an oxide semiconductor material, e.g. zinc oxide, copper aluminium oxide, cadmium stannate
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 2102/3026 Top emission
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 2102/311 Flexible OLED
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/12 Active-matrix OLED [AMOLED] displays
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/1213 the pixel elements being TFTs
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/123 Connection of the pixel electrodes to the thin film transistors [TFT]

Abstract

Methods and displays utilize row and column drivers with ZnO channels that control pixel transistors with ZnO channels, which in turn address OLEDs of an array to produce images of a display screen. A display backplane including the ZnO row and column drivers and the OLEDs may be constructed by utilizing aperture masking or a combination of photolithography and aperture masking. Monolithic integration of the ZnO row and column drivers together with the ZnO pixel transistors is thereby achieved.

Claims

1. A display, comprising:

a backplane substrate;

a set of thin film transistor row and column drivers that is patterned on the backplane substrate and that contains ZnO channels;

a set of pixel thin film transistors that is monolithically integrated with the set of thin film transistor row and column drivers on the backplane substrate and that contain ZnO channels; and

a set of organic light-emitting diodes comprising a stack of layers patterned on the backplane substrate, wherein each organic light-emitting diode is activated to produce light by a corresponding one or more pixel thin film transistors of the set, and wherein the corresponding one or more pixel thin film transistors are addressed by the set of thin film transistor row and column drivers.

2. The display of claim 1, wherein the backplane substrate is flexible.

3. The display of claim 2, wherein the backplane substrate is plastic.

4. The display of claim 1, wherein the backplane substrate is rigid.

5. The display of claim 4, wherein the backplane substrate is glass.

6. The display of claim 1, wherein the set of thin film transistor row and column drivers and the set of pixel thin film transistors are patterned by photolithography and at least one layer of the stack of layers in the the set of organic light-emitting diodes is patterned by polymeric aperture masking.

7. The display of claim 1, wherein the set of thin film transistor row and column drivers, the set of pixel thin film transistors, and at least one layer of the stack of layers in the set of organic light-emitting diodes are patterned by polymeric aperture masking.

8. The display of claim 1, wherein the organic light emitting diodes emit away from the backplane substrate.

9. The display of claim 1, wherein the organic light emitting diodes emit through the backplane substrate.

10. The display of claim 1, wherein the set of pixel thin film transistors form individual cells that contain four thin film transistors and one organic light-emitting diode per cell.

11. The display of claim 1, wherein the thin film transistor row and column drivers have an electron mobility in excess of 4 cm²/V-sec.

12. A method of creating a display, comprising:

patterning a set of ZnO channel thin film transistor row and column drivers on a backplane substrate;

patterning a set of ZnO channel pixel thin film transistors on the backplane substrate, the pixel thin film transistors being in electrical connection with the thin film transistor row and column drivers; and

patterning a set of organic-light emitting diodes on the backplane substrate in electrical connection with the pixel thin film transistors, wherein each organic light-emitting diode comprises a stack of layers.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein patterning the set of ZnO channel thin film transistor row and column drivers and patterning the set of ZnO channel pixel thin film transistors on the backplane substrate comprises forming by photolithography.

14. The method of claim 12, wherein patterning the set of ZnO channel thin film transistor row and column drivers and patterning the set of ZnO channel pixel thin film transistors on the backplane substrate comprises utilizing polymeric aperture masking.

15. The method of claim 12, wherein patterning the set of organic light-emitting diodes on the backplane substrate comprises forming at least one layer of the stack of layers in the organic light-emitting diodes utilizing polymeric aperture masking.

16. A method of creating a video display backplane, comprising:

utilizing polymeric aperture masking to define ZnO channel row and column drivers and ZnO channel pixel thin film transistors on a backplane substrate; and

utilizing polymeric aperture masking to define organic light-emitting diodes on the backplane substrate.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein utilizing polymeric aperture masking to define ZnO channel row and column drivers and ZnO channel pixel thin film transistors comprises patterning electrical connections between the row and column drivers and the pixel thin film transistors.

18. The method of claim 16, wherein utilizing polymeric aperture masking to pattern organic-light emitting diodes on the backplane substrate comprises patterning electrical connections between the pixel thin film transistors and the organic light-emitting diodes.

19. The method of claim 16, wherein utilizing polymeric aperture masking to define organic-light emitting diodes on the backplane substrate comprises patterning layers forming the organic light-emitting diodes atop an electrode layer of the pixel thin film transistors.

20. The method of claim 16, further comprising patterning an encapsulant layer over the row and column drivers and the pixel thin film transistors.