OLED LIGHTING DEVICE WITH SHORT TOLERANT STRUCTURE

• US 20140332780A1
• Filed: 05/09/2014
• Published: 11/13/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 01/12/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Universal Display Corporation
• Original Assignee: Universal Display Corporation
• Inventors: Hack, Michael, Ma, Ruiqing, Krall, Emory
• Granted Patent: US 9,698,140 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 257/40
• CPC Class Codes: H01L 27/0288 using passive elements as protective elements, e.g. resistors, capacitors, inductors, spark-gaps
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/00 Integrated devices, or assemblies of multiple devices, comprising at least one organic light-emitting element covered by group H10K50/00
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/10 OLED displays
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/17 Passive-matrix OLED displays
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/179 Interconnections, e.g. wiring lines or terminals
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/1795 comprising structures specially adapted for lowering the resistance
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/32 Stacked devices having two or more layers, each emitting at different wavelengths
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 59/86 Series electrical configurations of multiple OLEDs
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 71/621 Providing a shape to conductive layers, e.g. patterning or selective deposition
• CPC Class Codes: H10K 71/861 Repairing

Abstract

An OLED panel having a plurality of OLED circuit elements is provided. Each OLED circuit element may include a fuse or other component that can be ablated or otherwise opened to render the component essentially non-conductive. Each OLED circuit element may comprise a pixel that may include a first electrode, a second electrode, and an organic electroluminescent (EL) material disposed between the first and the second electrodes. Each of the OLED circuit elements may not be electrically connected in series with any other of the OLED circuit elements.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

obtaining an OLED panel having a plurality of pixels, each pixel being electrically connected to a fuse that limits current to the pixel;

selecting a plurality of fuses in the OLED panel; and

applying energy to each fuse of the selected plurality of fuses to cause the fuse to be opened.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein each fuse of the selected plurality of fuses occupies an area of the panel that is not more than 10% of the area of the panel occupied by the pixel to which the fuse limits current.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of applying energy to the selected plurality of fuses comprises directing a laser at each of the plurality of fuses to ablate each of the selected group of fuses.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the laser is a type selected from the group consisting of:

an ultraviolet (UV) laser, and an infrared (IR) laser.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the area of each of the plurality of fuses is not more than about 400 μ

m².

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the OLED panel comprises at least one material type selected from the group consisting of:

a transparent material, a flexible material, and a plastic.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the OLED panel is color-tunable.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the OLED panel comprises a plurality of stripes, each stripe configured to emit red, green, or blue light.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the plurality of selected fuses includes a first group of fuses that limits current to pixels in a stripe of a first color in a first region of the panel.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the plurality of selected fuses includes a second group of fuses that limits current to pixels in a stripe of a second color in a second region of the panel.

11. The method of claim 9, wherein the plurality of selected fuses includes a second group of fuses that limits current to pixels in a stripe of a second color in the first region of the panel.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of obtaining the OLED panel having a plurality of pixels further comprises:

obtaining a substrate having a first electrode;

depositing organic emissive material over the first electrode;

depositing a plurality of physically segmented second electrodes over the organic emissive material;

depositing insulating material over the physically segmented second electrodes, wherein a portion of each of the second electrodes remains exposed through the insulating material; and

depositing an unpatterned blanket layer of a conductive material such that the blanket layer of conductive material electrically connects to the portion of each of the second electrodes that remains exposed through the insulating material, to form the plurality of pixels, each pixel being electrically connected to the fuse that limits current to the pixel.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of obtaining the OLED panel having a plurality of pixels further comprises:

obtaining a substrate having a patterned first electrode, the patterned first electrode comprising a plurality of electrode regions;

depositing organic emissive material over the patterned first electrode;

depositing a second electrode over the organic emissive layer; and

disposing a bus line over the substrate;

wherein each of the plurality of electrode regions is electrically connected to one of the plurality of pixels, and connected to the bus line through one of the plurality of fuses in the OLED panel.

18. A device fabricated according to the method of claim 1.

14. A method comprising:

obtaining a fabricated emissive panel having a plurality of OLEDs, each of the plurality of OLEDs being electrically connected to a power source and having an individual emissive area;

selecting a group of the plurality of OLEDs; and

for each OLED of the selected group of the plurality of OLEDs, applying energy to a component of the OLED to cause the component of the OLED to be essentially non-conductive.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein, for each OLED of the selected group of the plurality of OLEDs, the component is a fuse.

16. The method of claim 14, wherein the fabricated OLED panel is encapsulated prior to the step of applying energy.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the total area of components of the OLEDs to which energy is applied is not more than 10% of the total area of OLEDs in the selected group.

19. A device comprising:

an OLED panel comprising a plurality of pixels, each connected to a bus through a fuse;

wherein a plurality of fuses in the OLED panel are essentially non-conductive; and

wherein the OLED panel has an active area less than the active area of the panel when all fuses in the panel are not essentially non-conductive.

20. The device of claim 19, wherein the plurality of fuses are pre-selected.