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DE-102017114541-B4 - Organic electronic component

DE102017114541B4DE 102017114541 B4DE102017114541 B4DE 102017114541B4DE-102017114541-B4

Abstract

Organic electronic component (100), comprising - a substrate (1) with an active area (11), a connection area (13) and a mechanical decoupling area (12) connecting the active area (11) and connection area (13), - an active element (10) on the substrate (1) in the active area (11), - at least one contact layer (30) on the substrate (1) in the connection area (13) and - at least one conductor track (22) on the substrate (1) in the decoupling area (12), wherein the at least one conductor track (22) electrically connects the at least one contact layer (30) to the active element (10), wherein the decoupling area (12) has a mechanical relief structure (20) which has greater flexibility than the active area (11), wherein the active area (11), the decoupling area (12) and the connection area (13) of the substrate (1) are formed in a continuous and single-piece manner, wherein the relief structure (20) has at least two webs (21) that connect the active area (11) with the connection area (13), wherein the at least two webs (21) run uniformly side by side from the active area (11) to the connection area (13) in an unloaded state, and wherein the at least two webs (21) in an unloaded state have at least one change of direction in the course from the active area (11) to the connection area (13).

Inventors

  • Arne Fleissner
  • Kilian Regau
  • Sebastian Wittmann
  • Armin Heinrichsdobler
  • Nina Riegel
  • Thomas Wehlus

Assignees

  • PICTIVA DISPLAYS INTERNATIONAL LIMITED

Dates

Publication Date
20260513
Application Date
20170629

Claims (15)

  1. Organic electronic device (100) comprising: - a substrate (1) with an active region (11), a terminal region (13), and a mechanical decoupling region (12) connecting the active region (11) and the terminal region (13); - an active element (10) on the substrate (1) in the active region (11); - at least one contact layer (30) on the substrate (1) in the terminal region (13); and - at least one conductive trace (22) on the substrate (1) in the decoupling region (12), wherein the at least one conductive trace (22) electrically connects the at least one contact layer (30) to the active element (10); in which the decoupling region (12) has a mechanical stress-relieving structure (20) that exhibits greater flexibility than the active region (11); in which the active region (11), the decoupling region (12), and the terminal region (13) of the substrate (1) are formed integrally and in one piece; in which the relief structure (20) has at least two webs (21) that connect the active area (11) with the connection area (13), whereby the at least two webs (21) run uniformly side by side from the active area (11) to the connection area (13) in an unloaded state, and whereby the at least two webs (21) have at least one change of direction in an unloaded state in the course from the active area (11) to the connection area (13).
  2. Component (100) according to the previous claim, wherein the relief structure (20) has at least one opening (23) arranged between the at least two webs (21).
  3. Component (100) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the at least two webs (21) extend in a wave-like manner from the active area (11) to the connection area (13) in an unloaded state.
  4. Component (100) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the relief structure (20) has a plurality of openings (23), wherein openings (23) immediately adjacent to each other are each separated from each other by a web (21) of a plurality of webs (21).
  5. Component (100) according to the preceding claim, wherein the majority of the webs (21) form a comb-like structure.
  6. Component (100) according to Claim 4 , where the majority of the bridges (21, 21') form a net-like structure.
  7. Component (100) according to one of the preceding claims, further comprising an encapsulation arrangement (40) over the active element (10), wherein the encapsulation arrangement (40) extends from the active area (11) into the decoupling area (12).
  8. Component (100) according to the previous claim, wherein the encapsulation arrangement (40) extends into the connection area (13).
  9. Component (100) according to one of the Claims 1 until 6 , further comprising an encapsulation arrangement (40) over the active element (10), wherein the encapsulation arrangement (40) is arranged exclusively on the active area (11) of the substrate (1).
  10. Component (100) according to one of the Claims 7 until 9 , wherein the encapsulation arrangement (40) comprises a thin-film encapsulation.
  11. Component (100) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the at least one conductor track (22) in the decoupling area (12) is covered with a protective layer (60) made of a plastic material.
  12. Component (100) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the substrate (1) is flexible.
  13. Component (100) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the substrate (1) is electrically conductive and the at least one conductor track (22) is arranged in an electrically insulated manner from the substrate (1).
  14. Component (100) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the active element (10) has an organic functional layer stack (4).
  15. Component (100) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the active element (10) is an organic optoelectronic element.

Description

An organic electronic component is specified. The following publications concern organic electronic components: DE 10 2013 107 116 A1 , DE 10 2015 121 133 A1 , DE 10 2006 052 029 A1 , DE 10 2011 003 641 A1 . Organic electronic components typically consist of a substrate onto which organic layers and electrodes are deposited. Regarding the electrical connection of such a component, efforts are underway to provide a robust, simple, cost-effective, and user-friendly contact solution. One advantageous contact option, for example via a connector, would be to connect the connector as directly as possible to the substrate or to design the substrate itself as the connector. However, since the connector area is mechanically strongly connected to the active area of the component, handling the connector area, such as during installation or connection of the component, can lead to damage to the active area. For example, if the connector area is twisted during insertion, this torsion is transferred to the active area and can cause damage such as microscopic or macroscopic cracks in layers or layer boundaries. Mechanical stress can also occur during the manufacturing of the connector area. For instance, when attaching connector parts, the necessary process forces can be transferred from the connector area to the sensitive active area. To avoid these problems, flexible printed circuit boards, so-called FlexPCBs, are attached to the component substrate by bonding them with an anisotropically conductive adhesive and fitted with a connector at the end furthest from the component. However, this approach is complex and expensive. At least one function of certain embodiments is to specify an organic electronic component. This problem is solved by an object according to the independent patent claim. Advantageous embodiments and further developments of the object are characterized in the dependent claims and are further described in the following description and drawings. The organic electronic component comprises a substrate. An active element, comprising at least one organic material, is deposited on the substrate. The substrate can, for example, consist of one or more materials selected from glass, plastic, ceramic, metal, and semiconductor materials. In particular, the substrate can also be designed and configured for the fabrication of multiple components in an assembly. For each component of such an assembly, a specific area on the substrate can be designated, corresponding to a subsequent component. In other words, organic and other materials are deposited in adjacent areas on the substrate to fabricate multiple active elements on the substrate assembly and thus multiple organic electronic components in an assembly. It is also possible that one or more materials are deposited over a large area and subsequently structured according to the designated areas. The individual components can be extracted from the assembly by separating the components. Although the following description refers to a single organic electronic component, the described features and embodiments apply accordingly to multiple components fabricated together in an assembly on the substrate. The substrate has an active region on which the active element is formed. The active region of the substrate is thus characterized by the presence of the active element on this part of the substrate. According to a preferred embodiment, the substrate can be flexible. In particular, the active region of the substrate can be flexible. This can especially mean that the substrate or the active region of the substrate, relative to its size in the finished organic electronic device, can be bent and/or folded under little or essentially no force up to a certain finite minimum bending or folding radius without damaging the substrate and the device as a whole. The substrate can, for example, be formed as a thin glass film, a plastic film, a metal film, or as a multi-layered laminate made of one or more of the aforementioned materials, the thickness of the substrate and, in particular, of the active region depending on the material, the size, and the desired flexibility. For example, in the case of a laminate, the substrate can be formed as a glass-plastic laminate or a metal-plastic laminate. Alternatively, the active area of the substrate can be inflexible relative to its size in the finished product, meaning it is rigid or only slightly flexible. This can also mean, in particular, that the The active area of the substrate is not designed to be bent or folded. Depending on the flexibility of the substrate, and especially the active area, the active element on the active area of the substrate can also be flexible or inflexible. The substrate has a connection area designed and configured for the electrical connection of the organic electronic component, and in particular the active element, to an external power source. The term "power source" includes a simple current and/or volt