Electro-phoretic display and fabricating method thereof

• US 8,072,674 B2
• Filed: 03/05/2009
• Issued: 12/06/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 12/01/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: E Ink Holdings Incorporated
• Original Assignee: E Ink Holdings Incorporated
• Inventors: Wang, Yi-Ching, Liu, Su-Cheng, Shinn, Ted-Hong
• Primary Examiner(s): Ben, Loha
• Application Number:
  US12/399,008
• Publication Number:
  US 20100134871A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,006 Days
• Field of Search: 359/296, 345/55, 345/107, 345/173, 345/175, 345/204, 445/24, 204/484, 204/606, 257/40, 257/E51.006
• US Class Current: 359/296
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/133305 Flexible substrates, e.g. plastics, organic film
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/167 by electrophoresis
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/16757 Microcapsules
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/1676 Electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/1677 Structural association of cells with optical devices, e.g. reflectors or illuminating devices
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/1681 having two or more microcells partitioned by walls, e.g. of microcup type

Abstract

In an electro-phoretic display and a fabricating method thereof, the electro-phoretic display is fabricated by the steps: forming a plurality of pixel electrodes arranged in matrix form on a first substrate; disposing a plurality of electro-phoretic displaying units including a plurality of colored charged particles, wherein each pixel electrode is corresponding to at least one of the electro-phoretic displaying units having the colored charged particles with the same color; forming a transparent electrode on a second substrate; and disposing the second substrate on the electro-phoretic displaying units to positioning the transparent electrode between the second substrate and the electro-phoretic displaying units. The electro-phoretic display can select a part of the pixel electrodes for being driven according to the color of the image being displayed, so that the electro-phoretic display may have an improved chromatic performance.

Claims

1. An electro-phoretic display, comprising:

a first substrate;

a plurality of pixel electrodes arranged in a matrix form on the first substrate;

a plurality of electro-phoretic displaying units disposed on the pixel electrodes, each electro-phoretic displaying unit comprising a plurality of colored charged particles, wherein each pixel electrode corresponds to at least one of the electro-phoretic displaying units having the colored charged particles with the same color, wherein the colored charged particles are red, green or blue charged particles, and wherein each electro-phoretic displaying unit further comprises a plurality of black charged particles;

a second substrate disposed above the electro-phoretic displaying units;

a transparent electrode disposed on the second substrate and between the second substrate and the electro-phoretic displaying units; and

a light-shielding layer having a plurality of openings filled with the transparent electrode, wherein each of the openings corresponds to one of the electro-phoretic displaying units.

2. The electro-phoretic display as recited in claim 1, wherein each electro-phoretic displaying unit is disposed on at least one of the pixel electrodes.

3. The electro-phoretic display as recited in claim 2, wherein each of the electro-phoretic displaying units is disposed on two corresponding pixel electrodes.

4. The electro-phoretic display as recited in claim 1, wherein the electro-phoretic displaying units comprise electro-phoretic micro-cups.

5. The electro-phoretic display as recited in claim 1, further comprising a barrier structure disposed on the first substrate and partitioning a plurality of containing spaces on the first substrate, wherein each electro-phoretic displaying units comprise electro-phoretic microcapsules and each of the electro-phoretic microcapsules is correspondingly disposed in one of the containing spaces.

6. The electro-phoretic display as recited in claim 5, wherein the barrier structure extends from the first substrate to the second substrate.

7. The electro-phoretic display as recited in claim 6, wherein the material of the barrier structure comprises light-shielding material.

8. The electro-phoretic display of claim 1, wherein the first substrate and the second substrate are respectively a glass substrate and a flexible substrate.

9. A fabricating method of an electro-phoretic display comprising the steps of:

forming a plurality of pixel electrodes arranged in a matrix form on a first substrate;

disposing a plurality of electro-phoretic displaying units on the pixel electrodes, wherein each electro-phoretic displaying unit comprises a plurality of colored charged particles, and each pixel electrode corresponds to a least one of the electro-phoretic displaying units having the colored charged particles with the same color, wherein the colored charged particles are red, green or blue charged particles, and wherein each electro-phoretic displaying unit further comprises a plurality of black charged particles;

forming a transparent electrode on a second substrate;

disposing the second substrate with the transparent electrode on the electro-phoretic displaying units to position the transparent electrode between the second substrate and the electro-phoretic displaying units; and

forming a light-shielding layer having a plurality of openings filled with the transparent electrode, wherein each of the openings corresponds to one of the electro-phoretic displaying units.

10. The method as recited in claim 9, wherein the step of disposing the electro-phoretic displaying units on the pixel electrodes comprises the step of disposing the electro-phoretic displaying units with the colored charged particles having the same color on each pixel electrode, respectively.

11. The method as recited in claim 9, wherein the step of disposing the electro-phoretic displaying units on the pixel electrodes comprises the step of disposing each electro-phoretic displaying unit on at least one of the pixel electrodes.

12. The method as recited in claim 9, further comprising the step of forming a barrier structure disposed on the first substrate to partition a plurality of containing spaces on the first substrate before disposing the electro-phoretic displaying units comprising electro-phoretic microcapsules on the pixel electrodes, wherein each electro-phoretic microcapsule is disposed in corresponding one of the containing spaces.

13. The method as recited in claim 12, wherein the barrier structure extends from the first substrate to the second substrate.

14. The method as recited in claim 13, wherein the material of the barrier structure comprises light-shielding material.

15. An electro-phoretic display, comprising:

a first substrate;

a plurality of pixel electrodes arranged in a matrix form on the first substrate;

a plurality of electro-phoretic displaying units disposed on the pixel electrodes, each electro-phoretic displaying unit comprising a plurality of colored charged particles, wherein each pixel electrode corresponds to at least one of the electro-phoretic displaying units having the colored charged particles with the same color, wherein the colored charged particles are cyan, yellow or magenta charged particles, and wherein each electro-phoretic displaying unit further comprises a plurality of white charged particles;

a second substrate disposed above the electro-phoretic displaying units;

a transparent electrode disposed on the second substrate and between the second substrate and the electro-phoretic displaying units; and

a light-shielding layer having a plurality of openings filled with the transparent electrode, wherein each of the openings corresponds to one of the electro-phoretic displaying units.

16. The electro-phoretic display as recited in claim 15, wherein each of the electro-phoretic displaying units is disposed on two corresponding pixel electrodes.

17. A fabricating method of an electro-phoretic display comprising the steps of:

forming a plurality of pixel electrodes arranged in a matrix form on a first substrate;

disposing a plurality of electro-phoretic displaying units on the pixel electrodes, wherein each electro-phoretic displaying unit comprises a plurality of colored charged particles, and each pixel electrode corresponds to at least one of the electro-phoretic displaying units having the colored charged particles with the same color, wherein the colored charged particles are cyan, yellow or magenta charged particles, and wherein each electro-phoretic displaying unit further comprises a plurality of white charged particles;

forming a transparent electrode on a second substrate;

disposing the second substrate with the transparent electrode on the electro-phoretic displaying units to position the transparent electrode between the second substrate and the electro-phoretic displaying units; and

forming a light-shielding layer having a plurality of openings filled with the transparent electrode, wherein each of the openings corresponds to one of the electro-phoretic displaying units.

18. An electro-phoretic display, comprising:

a first substrate;

a plurality of pixel electrodes arranged in a matrix form on the first substrate;

a plurality of electro-phoretic micro-cups disposed on the pixel electrode, each electro-phoretic micro-cup comprising a plurality of colored charged particles, wherein each pixel electrode corresponds to at least one of the electro-phoretic displaying micro-cups having the colored charged particles with the same color, wherein the colored charged particles are red, green of blue charged particles, and wherein each electro-phoretic micro-cup further comprises a plurality of black charged particles;

a second substrate disposed above the micro-cups; and

a transparent electrode disposed on the second substrate and between the second substrate and the electro-phoretic micro-cups.

19. An electro-phoretic display, comprising:

a first substrate;

a plurality of pixel electrodes arranged in matrix form on the first substrate;

a plurality of electro-phoretic displaying units disposed on the pixel electrodes, each electro-phoretic displaying unit comprising a plurality of colored charged particles, wherein each pixel electrode corresponds to at least on of the electro-phoretic displaying units having the colored charged particles with the same color, wherein the colored charged particles are red, green or blue charged particles, and wherein each electro-phoretic displaying unit further comprises a plurality of black charged particles;

a second substrate disposed above the electro-phoretic displaying units;

a transparent electrode disposed on the second substrate and between the second substrate and the electro-phoretic displaying units; and

a barrier structure disposed on the first substrate and partitioning a plurality of containing spaces on the first substrate, wherein the electro-phoretic displaying units comprise electro-phoretic microcapsules and each of the electro-phoretic microcapsules is correspondingly disposed in one of the containing spaces.

20. An electro-phoretic display, comprising:

a glass substrate;

a plurality of pixel electrodes arranged in a matrix form on the glass substrate;

a plurality of electro-phoretic displaying units disposed on the pixel electrodes, each electro-phoretic displaying unit comprising a plurality of colored charged particles, wherein each pixel electrode corresponds to at least one of the electro-phoretic displaying units having the colored charged particles with the same color, wherein the colored charged particles are red, green or blue charged particles, and wherein each electro-phoretic displaying unit further comprises a plurality of black charged particles;

a flexible substrate disposed above the electro-phoretic displaying units; and

a transparent electrode disposed on the flexible substrate and between the flexible substrate and the electro-phoretic displaying units.