Methods for fabricating OLEDs

• US 9,843,024 B2
• Filed: 12/03/2014
• Issued: 12/12/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/03/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Universal Display Corporation
• Original Assignee: Universal Display Corporation
• Inventors: Ma, Ruiqing, Felts, John, Silvernail, Jeffrey, Zhoi, Zhaoqun, Krall, Emory, Brown, Julia J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Lee, Cheung
• Application Number:
  US14/559,516
• Publication Number:
  US 20160164043A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,105 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 50/844 Encapsulations
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 71/00 Manufacture or treatment specially adapted for the organic devices covered by this subclass
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 71/135 using ink-jet printing
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 71/40 Thermal treatment, e.g. annealing in the presence of a solvent vapour
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 71/80 using temporary substrates

Abstract

Systems and methods for fabricating an OLED are provided, which include dispensing a substrate material onto a substrate carrier, the substrate carrier being rotated by one or more drums, curing the substrate material to form a substrate, depositing at least one OLED onto the substrate, and separating the substrate from the substrate carrier.

Claims

1. A method for fabricating organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs), comprising:

dispensing a substrate material onto a substrate carrier, the substrate carrier moved by one or more drums;

curing the substrate material to form a substrate;

depositing at least one OLED onto the substrate; and

subsequent to depositing the at least one OLED onto the substrate, separating the substrate from the substrate carrier.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the substrate material is continuously dispensed onto the substrate carrier.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising;

depositing a substrate barrier onto the substrate prior to depositing the OLED onto the substrate.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein depositing the OLED comprises:

depositing a first electrode layer onto the substrate barrier;

depositing one or more OLED layers onto the first electrode layer; and

depositing a second electrode layer onto the one or more OLED layers.

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising depositing a thin film encapsulation layer over the second electrode layer.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising depositing a cover film onto the OLED.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the substrate carrier includes surface features which mold a surface of the substrate to form surface features on the substrate.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the molded surface features comprise a plurality of features selected from the group consisting of:

microlenses, micro-prisms, grooves, aerogel or other shapes of protrusions.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

separating the substrate and the OLED from the substrate carrier.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising, after separating the substrate from the substrate carrier, depositing one or more layers of material on a surface of the substrate opposite the surface of the substrate upon which the OLED was deposited.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the substrate remains in contact with the substrate carrier until the substrate is separated from the substrate carrier, and wherein the substrate carrier is in thermal contact with at least one of the drums.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the substrate carrier surface is continuous.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the dispensing operation, the curing operation and the depositing operation are executed by devices arranged around a single rotatable drum.