Liquid crystal display device

• US 9,230,994 B2
• Filed: 08/18/2011
• Issued: 01/05/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 09/15/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd.
• Inventors: Miyake, Hiroyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): CHEN, WEN YING PATTY
• Application Number:
  US13/212,510
• Publication Number:
  US 20120062811A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,601 Days
• Field of Search: 349/39, 349/48
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/136213 Storage capacitors associated with the pixel electrode
• 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 27/1255 integrated with passive devices, e.g. auxiliary capacitors

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to provide a liquid crystal display device which allows a desirable storage capacitor to be ensured in a pixel without decreasing the aperture ratio in response to changes in frame frequency. In a liquid crystal display device including a pixel transistor and two capacitive elements using an oxide semiconductor material in each pixel, one of the capacitive elements comprises a light-transmitting material to improve the aperture ratio of the pixel. Furthermore, through the use of characteristics of the light-transmitting capacitive element, the size of the storage capacitor in the pixel is varied by adjusting the voltage value of a capacitance value in response to the frame frequency varied depending on images displayed.

Claims

1. A semiconductor device comprising:

a transistor including a gate electrode electrically connected to a scan line, a first electrode electrically connected to a signal line, and a second electrode electrically connected to a pixel electrode;

a first capacitive element including one electrode electrically connected to the second electrode, and the other electrode electrically connected to a capacitance line; and

a second capacitive element including one electrode electrically connected to the second electrode,

wherein the second capacitive element has a capacitance value variable by adjusting an electric potential of the capacitance line depending upon whether an image to be displayed by the pixel electrode is a still image or a moving image.

2. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein the pixel electrode and semiconductor layer of the transistor have a light-transmitting property.

3. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein a semiconductor layer of the transistor comprises an oxide semiconductor.

4. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein the second capacitive element has a MOS capacitor structure with a dielectric layer interposed between the one electrode and the other electrode.

5. The semiconductor device according to claim 1,

wherein the one electrode of the second capacitive element is formed from the same layer as the pixel electrode, and

wherein the other electrode of the second capacitive element is formed from the same semiconductor material as a semiconductor layer of the transistor.

6. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein a dielectric layer of the first capacitive element or the second capacitive element has a multilayer structure.

7. The semiconductor device according to claim 1, wherein the other electrode of the second capacitive element is electrically connected to the capacitance line.

8. The method according to claim 6, wherein the other electrode of the second capacitive element is electrically connected to the capacitance line.

9. A method for driving a display device at frame frequencies comprising:

a transistor including a gate electrode electrically connected to a scan line, a first electrode electrically connected to a signal line, and a second electrode electrically connected to a pixel electrode;

a first capacitive element including one electrode electrically connected to the second electrode, and the other electrode electrically connected to a capacitance line; and

a second capacitive element including one electrode electrically connected to the second electrode,

the method comprising a step of;

adjusting an electric potential of the capacitance line depending upon the frame frequencies so that a capacitance value of the second capacitive element is adjusted.

10. The method according to claim 9,

wherein the one electrode of the second capacitive element is formed from the same layer as the pixel electrode, and

wherein the other electrode of the second capacitive element is formed from the same semiconductor material as a semiconductor layer of the transistor.

11. The method according to claim 9, wherein a semiconductor layer of the transistor comprises an oxide semiconductor.