Pixel structure of organic electroluminescent display panel and method of making the same

• US 8,183,766 B2
• Filed: 07/12/2010
• Issued: 05/22/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 03/07/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: AU Optronics Corporation
• Original Assignee: AU Optronics Corporation
• Inventors: Chao, Ching-Yan, Hsiao, Hsia-Tsai, Yeh, Hsieh-Hsin
• Primary Examiner(s): Santiago, Mariceli
• Application Number:
  US12/834,028
• Publication Number:
  US 20100277403A1
• Time in Patent Office: 680 Days
• Field of Search: 313500-512, 3151691-1694, 345 44- 46, 345 76- 81, 445/24, 445/25, 427/66
• US Class Current: 313/505
• 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: H10K 59/12 Active-matrix OLED [AMOLED] displays
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/122 Pixel-defining structures or layers, e.g. banks
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/123 Connection of the pixel electrodes to the thin film transistors [TFT]
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/86 Series electrical configurations of multiple OLEDs

Abstract

A pixel structure of an organic electroluminescent display panel has a plurality of sub-pixel regions. Each of the sub-pixel regions has a plurality of organic luminescent devices electrically connected in series, and the organic luminescent devices disposed in a same sub-pixel region are disposed between a source electrode of a thin film transistor and a voltage source Vdd.

Claims

1. A pixel structure of an organic electroluminescent display panel, comprising:

a substrate having a thin film transistor region, a first luminescent device region, and a second luminescent device region;

a thin film transistor disposed in the thin film transistor region of the substrate;

a first passivation layer disposed on the substrate, the first passivation layer having an opening partially exposing the thin film transistor;

a first bottom electrode disposed on the first passivation layer in the first luminescent device region;

a second bottom electrode disposed on the first passivation layer in the second luminescent device region;

a second passivation layer disposed on the first bottom electrode and the second bottom electrode so as to at least partially expose the first bottom electrode and the second bottom electrode, the exposed first bottom electrode having a first luminescent region and a first series-connected region, and the exposed second bottom electrode having a second luminescent region and a second series-connected region;

a partition substantially disposed on the second passivation layer and substantially overlapped with at least one of the first series-connected region and the second series-connected region;

a first organic luminescent layer disposed on the first bottom electrode, and a second organic luminescent layer disposed on the second bottom electrode in the second luminescent region;

a first top electrode disposed on the first organic luminescent layer in the first luminescent region and disposed on a part of the first passivation layer in the thin film transistor region, and electrically connected to the thin film transistor through the opening of the first passivation layer; and

a second top electrode disposed on the second organic luminescent layer in the second luminescent region and electrically connected to the first series-connected region.

2. The pixel structure of claim 1, wherein at least one of the first series-connected region and the second series-connected region is disposed under the partition.

3. The pixel structure of claim 1, wherein the first bottom electrode and the second bottom electrode are anodes, and the first top electrode and the second top electrode are cathodes.

4. The pixel structure of claim 1, wherein the second series-connected region is electrically connected to a voltage source Vdd.

5. The pixel structure of claim 1, wherein a vertical cross-sectional shape of the partition is trapezoidal, having an upside that is wider than a downside.

6. The pixel structure of claim 5, wherein the partition further has a top surface and an inclined side surface connected to the top surface, and the top surface and the inclined side surface form an included angle in a range of 40 degrees to 90 degrees.

7. The pixel structure of claim 1, wherein the first series-connected region is located between the first luminescent region and the second luminescent region.

8. The pixel structure of claim 1, wherein a width of the partition is in a range of 5 μ

m to 20 μ

m, and a height of the partition is in a range of 1 μ

m to 3 μ

m.

9. The pixel structure of claim 1, wherein the thin film transistor is an NMOS thin film transistor.

10. The pixel structure of claim 1, wherein a material of the first bottom electrode and the second bottom electrode comprises indium-tin oxide, indium-zinc oxide, aluminum-zinc oxide, or combinations thereof, and a material of the first top electrode and the second top electrode comprises aluminum, lithium, calcium, magnesium, barium, or combinations thereof.

11. A pixel structure of an organic electroluminescent display panel, comprising:

a substrate having a thin film transistor region, a first luminescent device region, and a second luminescent device region;

a thin film transistor disposed in the thin film transistor region of the substrate;

a first passivation layer disposed on the substrate, the first passivation layer having an opening partially exposing the thin film transistor;

a first bottom electrode disposed on the first passivation layer in the first luminescent device region;

a second bottom electrode disposed on the first passivation layer in the second luminescent device region;

a second passivation layer disposed on the first bottom electrode and the second bottom electrode so as to at least partially expose the first bottom electrode and the second bottom electrode, the exposed first bottom electrode having a first luminescent region and a first series-connected region, and the exposed second bottom electrode having a second luminescent region and a second series-connected region;

a partition substantially disposed on the second passivation layer and substantially overlapped with at least one of the first series-connected region and the second series-connected region;

a first organic luminescent layer disposed on the first bottom electrode, and a second organic luminescent layer disposed on the second bottom electrode in the second luminescent region, wherein a portion of the first organic luminescent layer is substantially within the opening of the first passivation layer;

a first top electrode disposed on the first organic luminescent layer in the first luminescent region and disposed on a part of the first passivation layer in the thin film transistor region, and electrically connected to the thin film transistor through the opening of the first passivation layer; and

a second top electrode disposed on the second organic luminescent layer in the second luminescent region and electrically connected to the first series-connected region.

12. The pixel structure of claim 11, wherein at least one of the first series-connected region and the second series-connected region is disposed under the partition.

13. The pixel structure of claim 11, wherein the first bottom electrode and the second bottom electrode comprise anodes, and the first top electrode and the second top electrode comprise cathode.

14. The pixel structure of claim 11, wherein the second series-connected region is electrically connected to a voltage source Vdd.

15. The pixel structure of claim 11, wherein a vertical cross-sectional shape of the partition is trapezoidal, having an upside that is wider than a downside.

16. The pixel structure of claim 15, wherein the partition further has a top surface and an inclined side surface connected to the top surface, and the top surface and the inclined side surface form an included angle in a range of 40 degrees to 90 degrees.

17. The pixel structure of claim 11, wherein the first series-connected region is located between the first luminescent region and the second luminescent region.

18. The pixel structure of claim 11, wherein a width of the partition is in a range of 5 μ

m to 20 μ

m, and a height of the partition is in a range of 1 μ

m to 3 μ

m.

19. The pixel structure of claim 11, wherein the thin film transistor is an NMOS thin film transistor.

20. The pixel structure of claim 11, wherein a material of the first bottom electrode and the second bottom electrode comprises indium-tin oxide, indium-zinc oxide, aluminum-zinc oxide, or combinations thereof, and a material of the first top electrode and the second top electrode comprises aluminum, lithium, calcium, magnesium, barium, or combinations thereof.

21. A method of making an organic electroluminescent display panel, comprising:

providing a substrate having a plurality of pixel regions and a plurality of thin film transistors respectively disposed in each of the pixel regions;

forming a first passivation layer on the substrate corresponding to each of the thin film transistors, the first passivation having an opening exposing at least part of each of the thin film transistors;

forming a plurality of bottom electrodes in each of the pixel regions;

forming a second passivation layer on the first passivation layer and the bottom electrodes, wherein the second passivation at least partially exposes each of the bottom electrodes to form a luminescent region and a series-connected region on each of the bottom electrodes;

forming a plurality of partitions on the second passivation layer for dividing each of the pixel regions into a plurality of sub-pixel regions, wherein each of the bottom electrodes is located in each of the corresponding sub-pixel regions, each of the partitions has a top surface, and each of the partitions substantially overlaps with one of the series-connected regions;

performing a first evaporation process to form an organic luminescent layer on the bottom electrodes and on all the top surface of each partition to form a plurality of organic luminescent patterns isolated from each other on the anodes through the partitions, each of the organic luminescent patterns respectively corresponding to each of the bottom electrodes, wherein a portion of each of the organic luminescent patterns is substantially within the opening of the first passivation; and

performing a second evaporation process to form a plurality of top electrodes on the organic luminescent layer corresponding to each of the organic luminescent patterns, the top electrodes being isolated from each other on the organic luminescent patterns through the partitions to form a plurality of organic luminescent devices, wherein in each of the pixel regions, the top electrode in one of the sub-pixel regions is in contact with the series-connected region of the adjacent bottom electrode, and the top electrode in another sub-pixel region is in contact with the adjacent thin film transistor to connect the organic luminescent devices in each of the sub-pixel regions to the thin film transistor in series.

22. The method of claim 21, wherein a vertical cross-sectional shape of each of the partitions is trapezoidal with an upside that is wider than a downside.

23. The method of claim 21, wherein each of the partitions further has an inclined side surface connected to the top surface, and the top surface and the inclined side surface form an included angle in a range of 40 degrees to 90 degrees.

24. The method of claim 21, wherein each of the bottom electrodes comprises an anodes, and each of the top electrodes comprises a cathode.

25. The method of claim 21, wherein the first evaporation process comprises evaporating an organic source to form the organic luminescent layer with a first tilt angle, the second evaporation process comprises evaporating a metal source to form the top electrodes with a second tilt angle, and the first tilt angle is less than the second tilt angle.

26. The method of claim 25, wherein the first tilt angle is substantially between 20 and 45 degrees, and the second tilt angle is substantially between 30 and 75 degrees.

27. The method of claim 25, wherein a first shutter having a first opening is disposed between the substrate and the organic source in the first evaporation process, and a second shutter having a second opening is disposed between the substrate and the metal source in the second evaporation process.

28. A pixel structure of an organic electroluminescent display panel, comprising:

a substrate having a thin film transistor region, a first luminescent device region, and a second luminescent device region;

a thin film transistor substantially disposed in the thin film transistor region of the substrate;

a first passivation layer disposed on the substrate, the first passivation layer having an opening partially exposing the thin film transistor;

a first bottom electrode disposed on the first passivation layer in the first luminescent device region;

a second bottom electrode disposed on the first passivation layer in the second luminescent device region;

a second passivation layer disposed on the first bottom electrode and the second bottom electrode so as to at least partially expose the first bottom electrode and the second bottom electrode, the exposed first bottom electrode having a first luminescent region and a first series-connected region, and the exposed second bottom electrode having a second luminescent region and a second series-connected region;

a partition substantially disposed on the second passivation layer and at least overlapped with a portion of the thin film transistor;

a first organic luminescent layer disposed on the first bottom electrode, and a second organic luminescent layer disposed on the second bottom electrode in the second luminescent region;

a first top electrode disposed on the first the organic luminescent layer in the first luminescent region and disposed on a part of the first passivation layer in the thin film transistor region, and electrically connected to the thin film transistor through the opening of the first passivation layer; and

a second top electrode disposed on the second organic luminescent layer in the second luminescent region and electrically connected to the first bottom electrode under the partition.