JP2016134328A - Light emitting device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To increase contrast between a predetermined pattern and a region around the pattern, in displaying the pattern within a light emitting region of a light emitting device.SOLUTION: A substrate 100 transmits visible light. A plurality of light emitting parts are formed to the substrate 100, and aligned to each other. A first insulation layer 150 defines the plurality of light emitting parts. Each of the plurality of light emitting parts includes a first electrode 110, an organic layer 120 and a second electrode. The organic layer 120 is located between the first electrode 110 and the second electrode. A region located between the plurality of light emitting parts in the light emitting device 10 transmits visible light. At least one of the light emitting parts has a non-light emitting region 142. The non-light emitting region 142 is a region where a second insulation layer 154 is provided in the light emitting parts. The second insulation layer 154 is located between the first electrode 110 and the second electrode in a thickness direction thereof.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a light emitting device.

  In recent years, organic EL elements have been used as light sources for light-emitting devices. The organic EL element has a configuration in which an organic layer is disposed between the first electrode and the second electrode. At least the first electrode is formed using a transparent conductive material.

  On the other hand, a light-emitting device using an organic EL element is required to transmit external light depending on the application. In Patent Document 1, when the second electrode is a metal electrode, a plurality of organic EL elements are formed on a light-transmitting substrate, and a gap is provided between the plurality of organic EL elements. It is described that external light is transmitted through the.

  Further, in Patent Document 2, in an organic EL device having an organic layer in which a hole injection layer, a hole transport layer, a light emitting layer, and an electron transport layer are stacked, an electron injection layer is formed on the electron transport layer only in a predetermined region. Is described. Accordingly, it is described that the luminance of the predetermined area is lowered and the pattern of the predetermined area can be visually recognized.

JP 2013-149376 A Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-50481

  In the method described in Patent Document 2, the emission intensity is weaker in the area where the pattern is displayed than in the area located around the area. In other words, since the area where the pattern is displayed also emits light, the contrast between the pattern and the surrounding area is small.

  An example of a problem to be solved by the present invention is to increase the contrast between the pattern and the surrounding area when displaying a predetermined pattern in the light emitting area of the light emitting device.

The invention according to claim 1 is a substrate that transmits visible light;
A plurality of light emitting portions provided on the substrate and arranged side by side;
A first insulating layer defining the plurality of light emitting portions;
With
The region located between the plurality of light emitting parts transmits visible light,
The plurality of light emitting units include a first electrode, a second electrode, and an organic layer positioned between the first electrode and the second electrode,
At least one of the light emitting units is a light emitting device having a non-light emitting region having a second insulating layer between the first electrode and the second electrode.

It is a top view of the light-emitting device concerning an embodiment. It is the figure which removed the 2nd electrode from FIG. It is the figure which removed the organic layer, the 1st insulating layer, and the 2nd insulating layer from FIG. It is AA sectional drawing of FIG. It is BB sectional drawing of FIG. It is the top view which looked at the light-emitting device from the 2nd surface of the board | substrate. 6 is a plan view showing a configuration of a light emitting device according to Modification Example 1. FIG. It is BB sectional drawing of FIG. 12 is a plan view showing a configuration of a light emitting device according to Modification 2. FIG.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In all the drawings, the same reference numerals are given to the same components, and the description will be omitted as appropriate.

  FIG. 1 is a plan view of a light emitting device 10 according to the embodiment. 2 is a diagram in which the second electrode 130 is removed from FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a diagram in which the organic layer 120, the first insulating layer 150, and the second insulating layer 154 are removed from FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA in FIG. 1, and FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB in FIG.

  The light emitting device 10 according to the embodiment includes a substrate 100, a plurality of light emitting units 140, and a first insulating layer 150. The substrate 100 transmits visible light. The plurality of light emitting units 140 are formed on the substrate 100 and are arranged side by side. The first insulating layer 150 defines a plurality of light emitting portions 140. The plurality of light emitting units 140 includes a first electrode 110, an organic layer 120, and a second electrode 130. The organic layer 120 is located between the first electrode 110 and the second electrode 130. Moreover, the area | region located between the some light emission parts 140 among the light-emitting devices 10 permeate | transmits visible light. At least one light emitting unit 140 has a non-light emitting region 142. The non-light emitting region 142 is a region where the second insulating layer 154 is provided in the light emitting unit 140. The second insulating layer 154 is located between the first electrode 110 and the second electrode 130 in the thickness direction. Details will be described below.

The substrate 100 is formed of a material that transmits visible light, such as glass or a light-transmitting resin. However, when the light emitting device 10 is a top emission type, the substrate 100 may be formed of a material that does not have translucency. The substrate 100 is, for example, a polygon such as a rectangle. The substrate 100 may have flexibility. In the case where the substrate 100 has flexibility, the thickness of the substrate 100 is, for example, not less than 10 μm and not more than 1000 μm. In particular, when the substrate 100 is glass, the thickness of the substrate 100 is, for example, 200 μm or less. When the substrate 100 is a resin, the substrate 100 is formed using, for example, PEN (polyethylene naphthalate), PES (polyethersulfone), PET (polyethylene terephthalate), or polyimide. When the substrate 100 is a resin, an inorganic barrier film such as SiN _x or SiON is formed on at least one surface (preferably both surfaces) of the substrate 100 in order to suppress moisture from permeating the substrate 100. .

  The light emitting unit 140 has an organic EL element. This organic EL element has a configuration in which a first electrode 110, an organic layer 120, and a second electrode 130 are laminated in this order on the first surface 102 of the substrate 100. The light emitting unit 140 is provided for each pixel of the display device.

  The first electrode 110 is a transparent electrode that transmits visible light. The transparent conductive material constituting the transparent electrode is a metal-containing material, for example, a metal oxide such as ITO (Indium Tin Oxide), IZO (Indium Zinc Oxide), IWZO (Indium Tungsten Zinc Oxide), or ZnO (Zinc Oxide). is there. The thickness of the first electrode 110 is, for example, not less than 10 nm and not more than 500 nm. The first electrode 110 is formed using, for example, a sputtering method or a vapor deposition method. The first electrode 110 may be a carbon nanotube or a conductive organic material such as PEDOT / PSS.

  The organic layer 120 has a light emitting layer. The organic layer 120 has a configuration in which, for example, a hole injection layer, a light emitting layer, and an electron injection layer are stacked. A hole transport layer may be formed between the hole injection layer and the light emitting layer. In addition, an electron transport layer may be formed between the light emitting layer and the electron injection layer. The organic layer 120 may be formed by a vapor deposition method. In addition, at least one layer of the organic layer 120, for example, a layer in contact with the first electrode 110, may be formed by a coating method such as an inkjet method, a printing method, or a spray method. In this case, the remaining layers of the organic layer 120 are formed by vapor deposition. Moreover, all the layers of the organic layer 120 may be formed using the apply | coating method.

  The second electrode 130 is made of, for example, a metal selected from the first group consisting of Al, Au, Ag, Pt, Mg, Sn, Zn, and In, or an alloy of a metal selected from the first group. Contains a metal layer. In this case, the second electrode 130 does not transmit visible light. The thickness of the second electrode 130 is, for example, not less than 10 nm and not more than 500 nm. However, the second electrode 130 may be formed using the material exemplified as the material of the first electrode 110. The second electrode 130 is formed using, for example, a sputtering method or a vapor deposition method. In the example shown in this drawing, the second electrode 130 has a pattern. For this reason, the second electrode 130 is formed using, for example, a mask. The second electrode 130 may be formed in a predetermined pattern by etching.

  However, the second electrode 130 may be formed using a transparent conductive material. This transparent conductive material is selected from the materials exemplified as the material of the first electrode 110, for example. In this case, the second electrode 130 transmits visible light.

In the example shown in the drawing, the second electrode 130 is not formed between the adjacent light emitting portions 140. For this reason, the area | region between the adjacent light emission parts 140 among the light-emitting devices 10 can permeate | transmit visible light. In the second direction (the x direction in FIG. 2), the width w ₁ of the light emitting unit 140 is, for example, 50 μm or more and 500 μm or less, and a region between adjacent light emitting units 140 (ie, a region through which visible light is transmitted). width _{w 2} of, for example, is 15μm or more 1000μm or less.

  In addition, the light emitting device 10 includes a first terminal 112 and a second terminal 132. The first terminal 112 is electrically connected to the first electrode 110. Specifically, the first terminal 112 has a layer formed of the same material as the first electrode 110. This layer is integrated with the first electrode 110. The second terminal 132 is electrically connected to the second electrode 130. The second terminal 132 also has a layer formed of the same material as the first electrode 110. However, this layer is separated from the first electrode 110.

  A lead wiring may be provided between the first terminal 112 and the first electrode 110. In addition, a lead wiring may be provided between the second terminal 132 and the second electrode 130.

  In addition, a conductive layer made of a material having lower resistance than the first electrode 110 may be formed on the first electrode 110, the first terminal 112, and the second terminal 132. This conductive layer is formed of, for example, a metal or an alloy. This conductive layer may have a single layer structure or a multilayer structure. The conductive layer has a configuration in which, for example, a Mo alloy layer (for example, a MoNb layer), an Al alloy layer (for example, an AlNd layer), and a Mo alloy layer (for example, a MoNb layer) are formed in this order. And the part located in the 1st electrode 110 among this electrically conductive layer is formed as a some linear electrode, for example. Further, a portion of the conductive layer located on the first terminal 112 may be formed on the entire surface of the first terminal 112. Further, a portion of the conductive layer located on the second terminal 132 may be formed on the entire surface of the second terminal 132. By forming this conductive layer, the apparent resistance of the first electrode 110, the first terminal 112, and the second terminal 132 is lowered.

  In addition, the light emitting device 10 includes a first insulating layer 150. The first insulating layer 150 is provided on the first surface 102 of the substrate 100 to define the light emitting unit 140. The first insulating layer 150 is made of, for example, polyimide, epoxy, acrylic, or novolac resin material. The first insulating layer 150 is formed, for example, by mixing and applying a photosensitive material to a resin material to be the first insulating layer 150, and then exposing and developing the resin material. The first insulating layer 150 can also be formed using an inkjet method or a screen printing method. The edge of the first electrode 110 is covered with the first insulating layer 150. The first insulating layer 150 has an opening 152 in a portion of the first electrode 110 that becomes the light emitting unit 140. The light emitting unit 140 is formed by providing the organic layer 120 in the opening 152. In addition, by providing the first insulating layer 150, it is possible to suppress a short circuit between the first electrode 110 and the second electrode 130 at the edge of the first electrode 110. The first insulating layer 150 and the opening 152 are formed by applying a resin material to be the first insulating layer 150 and then exposing and developing the resin material.

  At least one light emitting unit 140 includes a second insulating layer 154. The second insulating layer 154 is provided in a part of the light emitting unit 140 in the planar layout, and is located between the first electrode 110 and the second electrode 130 in the thickness direction. In the portion of the light emitting unit 140 where the second insulating layer 154 is provided, no current flows between the first electrode 110 and the second electrode 130. For this reason, the part in which the 2nd insulating layer 154 is provided among the light emission parts 140 does not light-emit. The second insulating layer 154 is formed using the material exemplified as the material of the first insulating layer 150 such as polyimide, but may be formed using other materials. In the example shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, the second insulating layer 154 is formed of the same material as the first insulating layer 150 and is integrated with the first insulating layer 150. For this reason, since the 2nd insulating layer 154 can be formed simultaneously with the 1st insulating layer 150, the manufacturing cost of the light-emitting device 10 does not increase.

  In the example shown in the figure, the light emitting device 10 has three or more light emitting units 140. The second insulating layer 154 is provided in each of the plurality of light emitting units 140 adjacent to each other. In other words, at least two or more light emitting units 140 arranged side by side have a non-light emitting region 142. These non-light emitting areas 142 are arranged so as to indicate characters, figures, or patterns. However, when viewed as a whole of the light emitting device 10, the total value of the areas of the plurality of non-light emitting regions 142 is the total value of the areas of the light emitting units 140 other than the non-light emitting regions 142 (that is, the light emitting regions). Is preferably smaller. In this way, the amount of light from the light emitting device 10 can be increased.

  In the at least one light emitting unit 140, the non-light emitting region 142 is located between the two light emitting regions. In the example shown in FIG. 2, all the non-light emitting areas 142 are sandwiched between two light emitting areas. Thereby, the freedom degree of arrangement | positioning of the non-light-emitting area | region 142 improves, and the variation of the character, figure, or pattern drawn by the non-light-emitting area 142 increases. However, at least one non-light emitting region 142 may be in contact with the outer peripheral portion of the first insulating layer 150 (that is, the portion of the first insulating layer 150 that is not located between the light emitting portions 140).

  In addition, the plurality of light emitting units 140 extend linearly in the first direction (y direction in FIGS. 1 to 3), and intersect with the first direction (for example, perpendicular to the second direction). They are lined up (in the x direction in FIGS. 1 to 3). Therefore, the plurality of non-light emitting regions 142 extend in the y direction and are aligned with each other in the x direction. In the y direction, the position of at least one end of at least some of the adjacent non-light emitting regions 142 is different from each other. Thereby, a character, a figure, or a pattern can be shown by the plurality of non-light emitting regions 142.

  The light emitting device 10 may further include a sealing member (not shown). The sealing member is formed using, for example, a metal such as glass or aluminum, or a resin, and has a polygonal shape or a circular shape similar to that of the substrate 100 and has a shape in which a concave portion is provided at the center. The edge of the sealing member is fixed to the substrate 100 with an adhesive. Thereby, the space surrounded by the sealing member and the substrate 100 is sealed. And the light emission part 140 is located in this sealed space. The sealing member may be a film formed by an atomic layer deposition (ALD) method or a film formed by a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method.

  An auxiliary electrode may be provided on the first electrode 110. The auxiliary electrode is made of a material having a lower resistance than the first electrode 110, for example, a metal. The auxiliary electrode may have a single layer structure or a multilayer structure. When the auxiliary electrode has a single layer structure, the auxiliary electrode is formed using, for example, Al or an Al alloy. When the auxiliary electrode has a multilayer structure, the auxiliary electrode is, for example, a first conductive layer that is a metal layer such as Mo or Mo alloy, a second conductive layer that is a metal layer such as Al or Al alloy, and It has the structure which laminated | stacked the 3rd conductive layer which is metal layers, such as Mo or Mo alloy, in this order.

  Next, a method for manufacturing the light emitting device 10 will be described. First, the first electrode 110 is formed on the substrate 100. In this step, the first terminal 112 and the second terminal 132 are also formed. Next, a resin material to be the first insulating layer 150 is applied to the first surface 102 of the substrate 100, and this resin material is exposed and developed. Thereby, the first insulating layer 150, the opening 152, and the second insulating layer 154 are formed.

  Next, the organic layer 120 is formed in the opening 152 of the first insulating layer 150. Next, the second electrode 130 is formed. Thereafter, a sealing member is provided as necessary.

  FIG. 6 is a plan view of the light emitting device 10 as viewed from the second surface 104 of the substrate 100 (that is, the surface where the light emitting unit 140 is not formed). As described above, the portion of the light emitting unit 140 where the second insulating layer 154 is formed is a non-light emitting region 142. For this reason, when the light emitting device 10 is caused to emit light, a character, a figure, or a pattern is displayed on the second surface 104 of the light emitting device 10 due to the difference in luminance between the light emitting region 140 and the non-light emitting region 142. Here, when the second electrode 130 is formed of a material that does not transmit visible light, the non-light-emitting region 142 is particularly dark, so that characters, figures, or patterns are clearly displayed on the second surface 104. In addition, since the area | region between the adjacent light emission parts 140 is narrow, the several light emission part 140 appears mutually connected.

  On the other hand, the part located between the light emission parts 140 among the light-emitting devices 10 transmits visible light. For this reason, when the light emitting device 10 is not emitting light, a scene or an object on the opposite side of the light emitting device 10 can be visually recognized through the light emitting device 10. Here, when the second electrode 130 is formed of a light-transmitting material, the light emitting unit 140 also transmits visible light, so that it is easy to see the scenery and objects on the opposite side of the light emitting device 10.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the pattern is displayed on the second surface 104 of the light emitting device 10 due to the difference in luminance between the light emitting area of the light emitting unit 140 and the non-light emitting area 142. Since the non-light emitting region 142 does not emit light, the difference in luminance becomes large. For this reason, this pattern becomes easy to visually recognize. Moreover, since the part located between the light emission parts 140 among the light-emitting devices 10 permeate | transmits visible light, while the light-emitting device 10 is not light-emitting, the scenery and the object on the opposite side of the light-emitting device 10 are shown. 10 can be visually recognized.

(Modification 1)
FIG. 7 is a plan view showing the configuration of the light emitting device 10 according to the first modification, and corresponds to FIG. 2 in the embodiment. 8 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line BB in FIG. The light emitting device 10 according to this modification has the same configuration as the light emitting device 10 according to the embodiment, except that the second insulating layer 154 is formed in a separate process from the first insulating layer 150.

  Also according to this modification, a pattern is displayed on the second surface 104 of the light emitting device 10 based on a difference in luminance between the light emitting area of the light emitting unit 140 and the non-light emitting area 142, as in the embodiment. Further, the second insulating layer 154 can be formed using a material different from that of the first insulating layer 150.

(Modification 2)
FIG. 9 is a plan view illustrating a configuration of the light emitting device 10 according to the second modification, and corresponds to FIG. 2 in the embodiment. The light emitting device 10 according to this modification is the same as the light emitting device 10 according to the embodiment or the modification 1 except that a pattern is displayed on the second surface 104 of the light emitting unit 140 by the light emitting region of the light emitting unit 140. It is the composition.

  Also according to this modification, a pattern is displayed on the second surface 104 of the light emitting device 10 due to a difference in luminance between the light emitting area of the light emitting unit 140 and the non-light emitting area 142. Since the non-light emitting region 142 does not emit light, the difference in luminance becomes large. For this reason, this pattern becomes easy to visually recognize.

  As mentioned above, although embodiment and the Example were described with reference to drawings, these are illustrations of this invention and can also employ | adopt various structures other than the above.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Light-emitting device 100 Board | substrate 110 1st electrode 120 Organic layer 130 2nd electrode 140 Light-emitting part 142 Non-light emission area | region 150 1st insulating layer 152 Opening 154 2nd insulating layer

Claims (9)

A substrate that transmits visible light;
A plurality of light emitting portions provided on the substrate and arranged side by side;
A first insulating layer defining the plurality of light emitting portions;
With
The region located between the plurality of light emitting parts transmits visible light,
The plurality of light emitting units include a first electrode, a second electrode, and an organic layer positioned between the first electrode and the second electrode,
At least one of the light emitting units includes a non-light emitting region having a second insulating layer between the first electrode and the second electrode. The light-emitting device according to claim 1.
The light emitting device, wherein the at least one light emitting unit includes the non-light emitting region between two light emitting regions. The light-emitting device according to claim 1 or 2,
The light emitting device has at least three or more light emitting units,
At least two of the light emitting units arranged side by side have the non-light emitting region,
The light emitting device in which the two or more non-light emitting regions are arranged so as to indicate a character, a figure, or a pattern. In the light-emitting device as described in any one of Claims 1-3,
The second electrode is a light emitting device that does not transmit visible light. In the light-emitting device as described in any one of Claims 1-3,
The second electrode is a light emitting device that transmits visible light. In the light-emitting device as described in any one of Claims 1-5,
The total area of the non-light emitting areas is smaller than the total area of the light emitting areas of the plurality of light emitting units. In the light-emitting device as described in any one of Claims 1-6,
The light emitting device, wherein the second insulating layer is formed of the same material as the first insulating layer. In the light-emitting device as described in any one of Claims 1-7,
The light-emitting devices, wherein the plurality of light-emitting portions extend linearly in a first direction and are arranged in a second direction that intersects the first direction. The light-emitting device according to claim 8.
The light emitting device has at least three or more light emitting units,
At least two of the light emitting units arranged side by side have the non-light emitting region,
The at least two non-light emitting areas extend in the first direction;
The position of the first direction of at least one end of at least some of the adjacent non-light emitting regions is different from each other.

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