CN109887935B - Array substrate, display panel and display device - Google Patents

Fig. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of an array substrate in the prior art, and as shown in fig. 1, the array substrate includes a

bending region

11, and further includes a

flexible substrate

20, an

inorganic insulating layer

30 and a

metal trace

60, when the array substrate is bent, the

bending region

11 may bear an excessively concentrated stress, and since the

inorganic insulating layer

30 of the

bending region

11 has a large hardness, the stress in the array substrate cannot be released, which causes problems such as cracking, peeling, and misalignment of each film layer of the inorganic insulating layer in the array substrate.

Fig. 2 is a schematic structural diagram of an array substrate according to an embodiment of the present invention, and as shown in fig. 2, the array substrate includes a

bending region

11; further comprising: a

flexible substrate

20; an

inorganic insulating layer

30 located on one side of the

flexible substrate

20, wherein an

opening structure

40 is formed in a portion of the

inorganic insulating layer

30 corresponding to the

bending region

11, and the

opening structure

40 penetrates through the

inorganic insulating layer

30 in a direction (Y direction in fig. 2) perpendicular to a plane where the

flexible substrate

20 is located; an

organic material layer

50 at least partially filling the

opening structure

40; a

metal trace

60 located on a side of the

organic material layer

50 away from the

flexible substrate

20; the bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

70 is at least located in the

opening structure

40, and is located between the

metal trace

60 and the

flexible substrate

20 in a direction (Y direction in fig. 2) perpendicular to the plane of the

flexible substrate

20.

The array substrate includes a

bending region

11 and a

non-bending region

12, and the array substrate is bent along a bending axis (not shown) in the

bending region

11. An

opening structure

40 is formed in the

corresponding bending region

11 in the

inorganic insulating layer

30 in the array substrate, and an organic material with high elasticity, i.e., an

organic material layer

50, is filled in the

opening structure

40, because the

organic material layer

50 has high elasticity, the

organic material layer

50 can absorb stress generated when the array substrate is bent. However, since the

flexible substrate

20 and the

organic material layer

50 are both made of organic materials and have poor water and oxygen barrier properties, and water vapor and oxygen can easily permeate through the

flexible substrate

20 and the

organic material layer

50 to corrode the

metal trace

60, in this embodiment, a bending-resistant water and

oxygen barrier layer

70 is further disposed between the

metal trace

60 and the

flexible substrate

20 at least in the

opening structure

40 and in a direction (Y direction in fig. 2) perpendicular to the plane of the

flexible substrate

20. Because the bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

70 has good film adhesion and bending performance, the filling between the

metal trace

60 and the

flexible substrate

20 does not affect the bending effect, and the bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

70 has good water-oxygen barrier performance, so that the

metal trace

60 can be prevented from being corroded by water and oxygen permeating into the

flexible substrate

20 and the

organic material layer

50.

Alternatively, the material of the

flexible base substrate

20 may include, for example, one or a combination of more of polyether sulfone, polyacrylate, polyetherimide, polyethylene naphthalate, polyethylene terephthalate, polyphenylene sulfide, polyarylate, polyimide, polycarbonate, and a polymer resin of cellulose acetate propionate. The

flexible substrate

20 may have a multi-layer structure, and each layer of the structure may include one or more combinations of the above polymer resins, and a barrier layer made of an inorganic material may be further included between two adjacent layers, for example, the inorganic material may include any one or more combinations of silicon oxide, silicon nitride, and silicon oxynitride. The

inorganic insulating layer

30 may include a buffer layer 31, a gate insulating layer 32, and an

interlayer insulating layer

33. The materials of the buffer layer 31, the gate insulating layer 32, and the

interlayer insulating layer

33 may be the same, and may include, for example, any one or a combination of silicon oxide, silicon nitride, and silicon oxynitride. The buffer layer 31, the gate insulating layer 32, and the

interlayer insulating layer

33 may be formed by chemical vapor deposition or atomic layer deposition. The material of the

organic material layer

50 may include, for example, an organic material such as agar. The

metal trace

60 may be located only above the

organic material layer

50, or may be located above the

organic material layer

50 and extend from the

bending region

11 to the

non-bending region

12. The material of the

metal trace

60 may be the same as the material of the source 34 or the drain 35, and the

metal trace

60 may be formed simultaneously with the source 34 or the drain 35, which may simplify the process steps. The material of the bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

70 includes an oxide semiconductor material or a metal material having good film adhesion, bending property, and good water-oxygen barrier property, and may include, for example, indium gallium zinc oxide, etc.

It should be noted that the material of the

flexible substrate

20 and the material of the

organic material layer

50 include, but are not limited to, the above examples, and can be selected by those skilled in the art according to the product requirement, and are not limited in the present invention. The specific location of the

opening structure

40 in the

inorganic insulating layer

30 in the

bending region

11 is not particularly limited in the present invention as long as it is located in the

bending region

11. The cross-sectional shape of the

opening structure

40 may include a trapezoid, a rectangle, etc., and those skilled in the art can set the cross-sectional shape of the

opening structure

40 according to the product requirement, and the invention is not limited in particular, and fig. 2 only illustrates the cross-sectional shape of the

opening structure

40 as a rectangle. The material of the bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

70 is not specifically limited in the embodiment of the present invention, as long as the bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

70 has good film adhesion, bending performance, and good water-oxygen barrier performance. The position and number of layers of the bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

70 in the

open structure

40 are not particularly limited as long as the bending-resistant water-oxygen barrier layer is located in the

open structure

40 and located between the

metal trace

60 and the

flexible substrate

20 in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the flexible substrate 20 (Y direction in fig. 2), and fig. 2 illustrates the bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

70 as one layer and located between the

organic material layer

50 and the

flexible substrate

20.

On the basis of the above technical solution, optionally, fig. 3 is a schematic structural diagram of another array substrate according to an embodiment of the present invention, and as shown in fig. 3, the bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

70 includes a first bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

71 located between the

organic material layer

50 and the

flexible substrate

20; and/or, the kink-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

70 includes a second kink-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

72 between the

metal trace

60 and the

organic material layer

50.

In the embodiment of the present invention, the bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

70 may only include a first bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

71 located between the

organic material layer

50 and the

flexible substrate

20, or may only include a second bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

72 located between the

metal trace

60 and the

organic material layer

50, or may further include a first bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

71 located between the

organic material layer

50 and the

flexible substrate

20, and a second bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

72 located between the

metal trace

60 and the

organic material layer

50, where fig. 3 only illustrates that the bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

70 includes the first bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

71 located between the

organic material layer

50 and the

flexible substrate

20, and the second bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

72 located between the

metal trace

60 and the

organic material layer

50.

Specifically, because the water and oxygen barrier properties of the

flexible substrate

20 and the

organic material layer

50 are poor, and water vapor and oxygen easily permeate through the

flexible substrate

20 and the

organic material layer

50 to corrode the

metal wire

60, the first bending-resistant water and

oxygen barrier layer

71 is arranged at the lowest part of the

opening structure

40, namely, below the

organic material layer

50, so that water vapor and oxygen cannot enter the

organic material layer

50, and because the

metal wire

60 is located at one side of the

organic material layer

50 far away from the

flexible substrate

20, corrosion of the water vapor and oxygen to the

metal wire

60 is prevented; the second bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

72 may also be disposed on the organic material layer in the

opening structure

40, that is, below the

metal trace

60, so that although water vapor and oxygen can enter the

organic material layer

50, the corrosion of the water vapor and oxygen to the

metal trace

60 is prevented by disposing the second bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

72 below the

metal trace

60; still can be at

open structure

40 the bottom, the below of

organic material layer

50 sets up first resistant water

oxygen barrier layer

71 of buckling promptly, simultaneously, the higher authority of the organic material layer in

open structure

40, the below of

metal line

60 promptly sets up the resistant water

oxygen barrier layer

72 of buckling of second, through two-layer resistant water oxygen barrier layer of buckling, more effective prevention steam and oxygen to the corruption of

metal line

60.

On the basis of the above scheme, the material of the first bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

71 may include a metal material or an oxide semiconductor material; the material of the second kink-resistant water

oxygen barrier layer

72 may include an oxide semiconductor material.

For example, since the metal material and the oxide semiconductor material both have good bending resistance and water and oxygen barrier properties, the material of the first bending-resistant water and

oxygen barrier layer

71 may include the oxide semiconductor material or the metal material, which ensures good bending resistance and water and oxygen barrier properties of the first bending-resistant water and

oxygen barrier layer

71. Because the water

oxygen barrier layer

72 of being able to buckle of second and the contact of

metal wiring

60, when the material of the water

oxygen barrier layer

72 of being able to buckle of second was metal material, can change the resistance of

metal wiring

60 to the transmission of influence display signal, so the material of the water

oxygen barrier layer

72 of being able to buckle of second can include oxide semiconductor material, guarantees the better resistant bending performance and the water oxygen barrier performance of the water

oxygen barrier layer

72 of being able to buckle of second.

Optionally, the first bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

71 includes a single-layer structure or a multi-layer structure; the second kink-resistant water

oxygen barrier layer

72 includes a single-layer structure or a multi-layer structure.

When the first bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

71 is of a single-layer structure; when the second bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

72 is of a single-layer structure, the corrosion of water vapor and oxygen to the

metal trace

60 is prevented while the process is simplified. When the first bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

71 or the second bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

72 is a multilayer structure, the water-oxygen barrier effect can be enhanced.

On the basis of the foregoing solution, optionally, fig. 4 is a schematic structural diagram of another array substrate provided in an embodiment of the present invention, and as shown in fig. 4, the array substrate further includes a

non-bending region

12, the

non-bending region

12 is formed with a driving circuit, the driving circuit includes an oxide semiconductor

thin film transistor

80, the oxide semiconductor

thin film transistor

80 includes an

active layer

36, a

first gate

37, and a source-drain connection layer 38, a material of the

active layer

36 is an oxide semiconductor material; the first bending-resistant water-

oxygen blocking layer

71 is arranged on the same layer as the

active layer

36, the

first grid

37 or the source-drain connecting layer 38; alternatively, the second kink-resistant water

oxygen barrier layer

72 is disposed in the same layer as the

active layer

36.

Specifically, the material of the

active layer

36 in the embodiment of the present invention may include an oxide semiconductor material, and since the material of the first bending-resistant water-

oxygen blocking layer

71 may also be an oxide semiconductor material, the first bending-resistant water-

oxygen blocking layer

71 and the

active layer

36 are disposed in the same layer, so that the preparation process steps are simplified; because the material of the

first gate

37 is a metal material, the material of the source-drain connection layer 38 is also a metal material, and the material of the first bending-resistant water-

oxygen blocking layer

71 may include a metal material, the preparation process steps are simplified by disposing the first bending-resistant water-

oxygen blocking layer

71 on the same layer as the

first gate

37, or disposing the first bending-resistant water-

oxygen blocking layer

71 on the same layer as the source-drain connection layer 38. Since the material of the second bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

72 may include an oxide semiconductor material, the second bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

72 and the

active layer

36 are disposed on the same layer, which simplifies the manufacturing process.

In the array substrate having both the low temperature polysilicon thin film transistor and the oxide thin film transistor, after the active layer of the low temperature polysilicon thin film transistor is formed, an oxidation phenomenon occurs due to the exposure of the active layer to the air, so that a large contact resistance is formed when the active layer of the low temperature polysilicon thin film transistor is in contact with the source or the drain, and the signal transmission is affected by the large contact resistance. In the embodiment, the

active layer

36 is made of an oxide semiconductor material, and when the

active layer

36 of the low temperature polysilicon thin film transistor is processed by using hydrofluoric acid, the oxide semiconductor material reacts with the hydrofluoric acid, so that the active layer of the oxide semiconductor thin film transistor is damaged, and by arranging the source/drain connection layer 38 between the

active layer

36 and the

source electrode

39, and between the

active layer

36 and the

drain electrode

40, when the active layer of the low temperature polysilicon thin film transistor is processed by using hydrofluoric acid, the source/drain connection layer can prevent the hydrofluoric acid from damaging the active layer of the oxide semiconductor thin film transistor.

On the basis of the above scheme, optionally, as shown in fig. 3, the array substrate may further include a

non-bending region

12, the

non-bending region

12 is formed with a driving circuit, the driving circuit may include a low temperature polysilicon

thin film transistor

90, and the low temperature polysilicon

thin film transistor

90 includes a

second gate

41; the first bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

71 and the

second gate

41 are disposed on the same layer.

The material of the

second gate

41 is a metal material, and the material of the first bending-resistant water-

oxygen blocking layer

71 can also be a metal material, so that the first bending-resistant water-

oxygen blocking layer

71 and the

second gate

41 are arranged on the same layer, and the preparation process steps can be simplified.

Optionally, fig. 5 is a schematic structural diagram of another array substrate according to an embodiment of the present invention, as shown in fig. 5, the array substrate further includes a

non-bending region

12, the

non-bending region

12 is formed with a driving circuit, the driving circuit includes an oxide semiconductor

thin film transistor

80 and a low temperature polysilicon

thin film transistor

90, the first bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

71 and the

second gate

41 are disposed on the same layer, and the second bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

72 and the

active layer

36 in the oxide semiconductor

thin film transistor

80 are disposed on the same layer.

It should be noted that the array substrate may include a plurality of thin film transistors, and the present embodiment does not limit the types of the transistors, and fig. 5 illustrates only that the driving circuit includes two types of transistors (an oxide semiconductor

thin film transistor

80 and a low temperature polysilicon thin film transistor 90).

Specifically, the

second gate

41 is made of a metal material, and the material of the first bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

71 may include a metal material, so that the first bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

71 and the

second gate

41 are arranged on the same layer, which may simplify the preparation process steps; meanwhile, the material of the

active layer

36 in the oxide semiconductor

thin film transistor

80 is an oxide semiconductor material, and the material of the second bending-resistant water-

oxygen blocking layer

72 may include an oxide semiconductor material, so that the second bending-resistant water-

oxygen blocking layer

72 and the

active layer

36 in the oxide semiconductor

thin film transistor

80 are arranged on the same layer, which may simplify the manufacturing process steps.

Based on the above solution, optionally, as shown in fig. 2 to 5, the perpendicular projection of the bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

70 on the

flexible substrate

20 covers the perpendicular projection of the

organic material layer

50 on the

flexible substrate

20.

Wherein, the perpendicular projection of the bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

70 on the

flexible substrate

20 covers the perpendicular projection of the

organic material layer

50 on the

flexible substrate

20, that is, in the X direction in fig. 2, the width of the bending-resistant water-

oxygen barrier layer

70 is greater than or equal to the width of the

organic material layer

50. The vertical projection of the bending-resistant water and

oxygen blocking layer

70 on the flexible

substrate base plate

20 is arranged to cover the vertical projection of the

organic material layer

50 on the flexible

substrate base plate

20, so that the bending-resistant water and

oxygen blocking layer

70 can completely block water and oxygen, and the

metal wiring

60 is protected by sufficient water and oxygen.

On the basis of the above scheme, optionally, the array substrate may include a display area and a step area located on one side of the display area, and the bending

area

11 may be located in the display area, or the bending

area

11 may be located in the step area.

For example, fig. 6 is a schematic structural diagram of another array substrate according to an embodiment of the present invention, and as shown in fig. 6, the array substrate includes a display area AA, and the bending

area

11 may be located in the display area AA. Specifically, the display region includes a plurality of pixels arranged in an array, and the bending

region

11 may be located between adjacent pixel rows, and/or the bending

region

11 may be located between adjacent pixel columns. Alternatively, referring to fig. 2-5, the stepped region may include the

inflection region

11, i.e., the

inflection region

11 may be located within the stepped region. Specifically, the wiring in the display area extends to the step area from the display area, and in the step area, is bound with the flexible circuit board through the pin, will buckle

district

11 and set up in the step area, through buckling the part that is located the step area with array substrate to the back, can move the part that binds with the flexible circuit board of array substrate to the back to reduce display panel's frame size.

By disposing the bending

region

11 in the display area AA, or disposing the bending

region

11 in the step region, the bending of the display area AA can be achieved, and the bending of the step region can also be achieved. The technical scheme is not only suitable for the array substrate bent in the step area, but also suitable for the array substrate bent in the display area.

The embodiment of the invention also provides a display panel, and fig. 7 is a schematic structural diagram of the display panel provided by the embodiment of the invention. Referring to fig. 7, the

display panel

200 includes the

array substrate

100 provided in the embodiment of the present invention, and the

array substrate

100 in the

display panel

200 can reduce the problem of stress concentration when the array substrate is bent, and at the same time, can prevent water and oxygen from corroding metal wires of the array substrate, thereby improving the display performance of the

display panel

200.

The embodiment of the invention also provides a display device, and fig. 8 is a schematic structural diagram of the display device provided by the embodiment of the invention. Referring to fig. 8, the

display device

300 includes the

display panel

200 according to the embodiment of the present invention, and has corresponding advantages, which are not described herein again. The

display device

300 may be a mobile phone, a computer, an intelligent wearable device, and the like.

1. The array substrate is characterized by comprising a bending area;

further comprising:

a flexible substrate base plate;

the inorganic insulating layer is positioned on one side of the flexible substrate, an opening structure is formed in the inorganic insulating layer corresponding to the bending region, and the opening structure penetrates through the inorganic insulating layer in the direction perpendicular to the plane of the flexible substrate;

an organic material layer at least partially filling the opening structure;

the metal routing is positioned on one side, away from the flexible substrate, of the organic material layer;

the bending-resistant water and oxygen blocking layer is at least located in the opening structure, perpendicular to the direction of the plane of the flexible substrate base plate and located between the metal wiring and the flexible substrate base plate, and the material of the bending-resistant water and oxygen blocking layer comprises a metal material or an oxide semiconductor material.

2. The array substrate of claim 1, wherein the bend-resistant water-oxygen barrier layer comprises a first bend-resistant water-oxygen barrier layer between the organic material layer and the flexible substrate; and/or the bending-resistant water-oxygen barrier layer comprises a second bending-resistant water-oxygen barrier layer positioned between the metal routing line and the organic material layer.

3. The array substrate of claim 2, wherein the material of the first bending-resistant water-oxygen barrier layer comprises a metal material or an oxide semiconductor material;

the material of the second bending-resistant water-oxygen barrier layer comprises an oxide semiconductor material.

4. The array substrate according to claim 2, wherein the array substrate further comprises a non-bending region, a driving circuit is formed in the non-bending region, the driving circuit comprises an oxide semiconductor thin film transistor, the oxide semiconductor thin film transistor comprises an active layer, a first gate and a source drain connection layer, and the active layer is made of an oxide semiconductor material;

the first bending-resistant water-oxygen blocking layer and the active layer, the first grid electrode or the source-drain connecting layer are arranged on the same layer;

or the second bending-resistant water-oxygen barrier layer and the active layer are arranged on the same layer.

5. The array substrate of claim 2, wherein the array substrate further comprises a non-bending region, the non-bending region is formed with a driving circuit, the driving circuit comprises a low-temperature polysilicon thin film transistor, and the low-temperature polysilicon thin film transistor comprises a second gate;

the first bending-resistant water-oxygen blocking layer and the second grid electrode are arranged on the same layer.

6. The array substrate of claim 2, wherein the first kink-resistant water oxygen barrier layer comprises a single layer structure or a multi-layer structure;

the second bending-resistant water-oxygen barrier layer comprises a single-layer structure or a multi-layer structure.

7. The array substrate of claim 1, wherein a perpendicular projection of the bend-resistant water-oxygen barrier layer on the flexible substrate covers a perpendicular projection of the organic material layer on the flexible substrate.

8. The array substrate of claim 1, wherein the array substrate comprises a display area and a step area located at one side of the display area;

the bending area is positioned in the display area;

or the bending area is positioned in the step area.

9. A display panel comprising the array substrate according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

10. A display device characterized by comprising the display panel according to claim 9.