Forming a conductive connection between a common electrode of an optical front plane and an electrical contact part of an opposite back plane

• US 9,627,493 B2
• Filed: 08/20/2013
• Issued: 04/18/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/20/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: FlexEnable Limited (Plastic Logic JSC)
• Original Assignee: FlexEnable Limited (Plastic Logic JSC)
• Inventors: Riedel, Stephan
• Primary Examiner(s): Vu, David
• Assistant Examiner(s): INOUSSA, MOULOUCOULAY
• Application Number:
  US14/422,577
• Publication Number:
  US 20150206944A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,337 Days
• Field of Search: 257774, 438666, 439139, 439147, 439 42
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/13306 Circuit arrangements or driving methods for the control of single liquid crystal cells G02F1/132, G02F1/133382 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/1341 Filling or closing of cells
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/1345 Conductors connecting electrodes to cell terminals
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/136227 Through-hole connection of the pixel electrode to the active element through an insulation layer
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/1368 in which the switching element is a three-electrode device G02F1/136277 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 2201/121 common or background
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 2201/50 Protective arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 2202/28 Adhesive materials or arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/76802 by forming openings in dielectrics
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/76877 Filling of holes, grooves or trenches, e.g. vias, with conductive material
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 21/76897 Formation of self-aligned vias or contact plugs, i.e. involving a lithographically uncritical step self-aligned silicidation on field effect transistors H01L29/665
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/124 with a particular composition, shape or layout of the wiring layers specially adapted to the circuit arrangement, e.g. scanning lines in LCD pixel circuits wiring structures per se H01L23/52
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/1248 with a particular composition or shape of the interlayer dielectric specially adapted to the circuit arrangement
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/1259 Multistep manufacturing methods
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 29/41733 for thin film transistors with insulated gate

Abstract

A technique for creating a conductive connection between a contact part (24) of a display back plane (34) and a common electrode (20) of a display front plane (32), comprising the step of compressing a compressible conductive component (30) between the display front plane (32) and the display back plane (34), wherein the method further comprises the step of interposing one or more layers (10, 36) having a low modulus of elasticity not larger than 5 GPa between the contact part (24) and the compressible conductive component (30) prior to the compressing step.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

producing a control component for lamination to an optical media component comprising an optical active layer, the control component comprising an array of pixel electrodes and an array of electronic switching devices for controlling the electric potential at said array of pixel electrodes, and a contact element for an electrically conductive connection to a common electrode of said optical media component;

wherein said control component comprises lower and upper conductor layers defining electrodes of said array of electronic switching devices, and said lower layer defines said contact element;

depositing one or more insulating layers over said array of electronic switching devices and said contact element;

forming, at least through the one or more insulating layers, via-holes (a) for electrically conductive connections between the electronic switching devices and the respective pixel electrodes of the pixel electrode array, and one or more via-holes (b) disposed laterally beyond a lateral edge of said optical active layer and extending down to the lower conductor layer for an electrically conductive connection between said contact element and a part of said common electrode beyond said lateral edge of the optical active layer of said optical media component; and

thereafter depositing conductive material to fill said via-holes (a) and said one or more via-holes (b) down to said contact element.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein depositing said conductive material to fill said via holes (a) and said one or more via-holes (b) also comprises forming a layer of conductive material on said upper surface of said one or more insulating layers, which layer of conductive material extends down to drain electrodes of said array of electronic switching devices through said via-holes (a) and extends down to said contact element through said one or more via-holes (b);

and patterning said layer of conductive material to both define said array of pixel electrodes, and define an electrically conductive element conductively connected to said contact element and electrically isolated from said array of pixel electrodes.

3. The method according to claim 2, further comprising:

laminating said optical media component to said control component, wherein said laminating includes interposing an electrically conductive pad and/or conductive adhesive between said electrically conductive element and said part of said common electrode beyond said lateral edge of said optical active layer of said optical media component.

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

forming an electrically conductive adhesive layer extending down to said contact element via said one or more via-holes (b); and

laminating an optical media component to the control component, wherein said laminating includes interposing an electrically conductive pad between said electrically conductive adhesive layer and a common electrode of said optical media component, or directly contacting said electrically conductive adhesive layer with said common electrode of said optical media component.

9. The method according to claim 1, comprising:

depositing electrically conductive adhesive material in said one or more via-holes (b) without depositing said electrically conductive adhesive material in said via-holes (a), to form an electrically conductive adhesive layer extending from above said one or more insulating layers down to said contact element.

10. The method according to claim 9, further comprising:

laminating said optical media component to the control component, wherein said laminating includes interposing an electrically conductive pad between said electrically conductive adhesive layer and said common electrode of said optical media component, or directly contacting said electrically conductive adhesive layer with said common electrode of said optical media component.

11. The method according to claim 1, further comprising:

laminating said optical media component to said control component, and creating an electrically conductive connection between said contact element and said part of said common electrode beyond said lateral edge of said optical active layer of said optical media component.

5. A control component for laminating to an optical media component comprising an optical active layer, wherein the control component comprises:

an array of pixel electrodes,

an array of electronic switching devices for controlling the electric potential at said array of pixel electrodes, and

a contact element for an electrically conductive connection to a common electrode of said optical media component,

wherein said control component comprises lower and upper conductor layers defining electrodes of said array of electronic switching devices, and said lower layer defines said contact element;

wherein said control component further comprises one or more insulating layers formed over both said array of electronic switching devices and said contact element, and a patterned further conductor layer over said one or more insulating layers, and

wherein said patterned further conductor layer defines said array of pixel electrodes, extends down to drain electrodes of said array of electronic switching devices through via holes (a), and also extends down to said contact element through one or more via holes (b) disposed laterally beyond a lateral edge of the optical active layer of the optical media component.

6. A display device comprising:

a control component according to claim 5, said optical media component laminated to said control component; and

an electrically conductive pad and/or conductive adhesive interposed between a part of said common electrode beyond said lateral edge of said optical active layer of said optical media component and a part of said patterned further conductor layer in contact with said contact element and isolated from said array of pixel electrodes.

12. The display device comprising:

a control component according to claim 5, and said optical media component laminated to said control component; and

an electrically conductive connection between said contact element and said part of said common electrode beyond said lateral edge of said optical active layer of said optical media component.

7. A control component for laminating to an optical media component, wherein the control component comprises:

an array of pixel electrodes and an array of electronic switching devices for controlling the electric potential at said array of pixel electrodes, and

a contact element for an electrically conductive connection to a common electrode of said optical media component,

wherein said control component comprises lower and upper conductor layers defining electrodes of said array of electronic switching devices, and said lower layer defines said contact element;

wherein said control component further comprises;

one or more insulating layers formed over both said array of electronic switching devices and said contact element; and

a patterned further conductor layer over said one or more insulating layers, wherein said patterned further conductor layer defines said array of pixel electrodes, and extends down to drain electrodes of said array of electronic switching devices through via holes (a); and

an upper layer of electrically conductive adhesive material over the one or more insulating layers, wherein said upper layer of electrically conductive adhesive material extends down to said contact element through one or more via holes (b) and provides an electrically conductive element co-planar with said array of pixel electrodes, but electrically isolated from said array of pixel electrodes.

8. A display device comprising:

a control component according to claim 7, said optical media component laminated to said control component; and

an electrically conductive pad interposed between said electrically conductive element and a common electrode of said optical media component.