TWI419335B - Display device and manufacturing method thereof - Google Patents

Description

Display device and method of manufacturing same

The present invention relates to a display device and a method of fabricating the same, and, more particularly, to a display device having a conductive layer having a multilayer structure and a method of fabricating the same.

With the rapid advancement of liquid crystal display device manufacturing technology, and its advantages of light weight, small size, low power consumption and low amplitude radiation, LCD displays have been widely used in personal digital assistants (PDAs). ), notebook computers, digital cameras, mobile phones, computer screens and LCD TVs and other electronic products. In addition, the industry is actively investing in R&D and the use of large-scale production equipment, so that the quality of liquid crystal displays continues to increase, and the price continues to decline, thus rapidly expanding the application field of liquid crystal displays.

At present, the industry has developed an ultra-high aperture ratio (UHA) liquid crystal display panel for increasing the aperture ratio of the liquid crystal display panel and its display brightness. The technology of such an ultra-high aperture ratio is to add an organic photoresist layer between the pixel electrode and the data line, thereby increasing the area of the pixel electrode, thereby improving the aperture ratio of the liquid crystal display panel and the brightness thereof. Please refer to FIG. 1 , which is a schematic diagram showing a display device using a conventional ultra-high aperture ratio technique. The display device 100 includes a substrate 110, a lower conductive layer 120, an insulating layer 130, a semiconductor layer 141, an ohmic contact layer 142, a multilayer conductive layer 150, a protective layer 160, an organic photoresist layer 170, and a transparent Conductive layer 180. The protective layer 160 is used to protect the multilayer conductive layer 150 from the multi-layer conductive layer 150 from moisture attack. The multilayer conductive layer 150 generally includes an upper barrier layer 153, an intermediate layer 152, and a lower barrier layer 151. The material of the transparent conductive layer 180 may be Indium Tin Oxide (ITO). The material of the upper barrier layer 253 may be molybdenum nitride, which can enhance the adhesion of the transparent conductive layer 180 to the multilayer conductive layer 150. When a contact window C is to be formed in the process of the display device 100, the organic photoresist layer 170 is first etched to expose the protective layer 160, and then the protective layer 160 is etched to expose the insulating layer. 130. Next, the exposed insulating layer 130 is etched to form a contact window C.

However, when etching the exposed insulating layer 130, the underlying multilayer conductive layer 150 is often etched simultaneously, particularly over the upper layer of the multilayer conductive layer 150. As a result, the transparent conductive layer 180 cannot be effectively adhered to the multilayer conductive layer 150 when the transparent conductive layer 180 is formed, thereby causing electrical contact quality between the transparent conductive layer 180 and the multilayer conductive layer 150. Deterioration.

In order to avoid the problem that the upper barrier layer is etched away, there are two solutions commonly used in the industry, one is to directly increase the thickness of the upper barrier layer, and the other is to change the multilayer conductive layer structure into a two-layer structure. . However, increasing the thickness of the upper barrier layer increases manufacturing costs. When the multilayer conductive layer structure is changed to a two-layer structure (that is, only the metal layer and the lower barrier layer are included), the material of the metal layer may be aluminum, and the material of the lower barrier layer may be titanium. Directly violent when etching the protective layer to expose the multilayer conductive layer A metal layer of aluminum is exposed. However, it is then necessary to further etch the metal layer to expose the underlying barrier layer such that the transparent conductive layer can be attached to the multilayer conductive layer via the lower barrier layer. In addition to changing the structure of the original multi-layer conductive layer, this method also requires additional process steps, which makes it difficult to be compatible with the original process, and relatively increases the cost and complexity of the process.

The present invention provides a display device and a method of fabricating the same, which utilizes a transparent electrode layer to simultaneously contact an upper barrier layer and an intermediate layer in a multilayer conductive layer, so that the transparent electrode layer can be electrically electrically contacted with the multilayer layer. Conductive layer. This method has the advantages of no need to increase the number of process steps, and does not need to change the thickness of the material layer, and can be compatible with the conventional manufacturing method, without adding additional cost.

A display device according to one aspect of the present invention includes a substrate, a multilayer conductive layer, an organic photoresist layer, and a transparent conductive layer. The multilayer conductive layer includes a lower barrier layer, an intermediate layer, and an upper barrier layer. The lower barrier layer is disposed on the substrate, the intermediate layer is disposed on the lower barrier layer, and the upper barrier layer is disposed on the intermediate layer. The organic photoresist layer is disposed on the multilayer conductive layer. The transparent conductive layer is disposed on the organic photoresist layer, and the transparent conductive layer contacts the upper barrier layer and the intermediate layer.

A method for fabricating a display device according to another object of the present invention comprises the steps of: providing a substrate; forming a multilayer conductive layer on the substrate, the multilayer conductive layer comprising sequentially formed on one of the substrates a barrier layer, an intermediate layer and an upper barrier layer; forming an organic photoresist layer on the multilayer conductive layer; and forming a transparent conductive layer on the organic photoresist layer, and the transparent conductive layer and the upper barrier layer And the middle layer is in contact.

The above described objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent and understood.

According to an embodiment of the method for fabricating a display device of the present invention, a multilayer conductive layer is first formed on a substrate, and an organic photoresist layer is formed on the multilayer conductive layer to form a transparent conductive layer on the organic photoresist layer. on. The transparent conductive layer is simultaneously in contact with the upper barrier layer and the intermediate layer in the multilayer conductive layer, so that the transparent conductive layer can adhere well and electrically contact the multilayer conductive layer. According to the embodiment of the display device of the present invention, the thickness of the material layer does not need to be changed, and the structure of the multilayer conductive layer is not required to be changed, so that no additional cost is added and it is compatible with the conventional process. The first embodiment and the second embodiment are described in detail below. However, the embodiments are merely illustrative, and do not limit the scope of the present invention. Further, the drawings corresponding to the embodiments have omitted unnecessary elements, so as to clearly show the technical features of the present invention.

First embodiment

Please refer to FIG. 2A to FIG. 2F, which are respectively schematic diagrams showing the steps of the manufacturing method of the display device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. this In the manufacturing method of the embodiment, first, as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, a substrate 210 is provided, and the substrate 210 can be divided into a semiconductor element region R1 and a signal input region R2. Next, a lower conductive layer 220, an insulating layer 230, a semiconductor layer 241, and an ohmic contact layer 242 are sequentially formed on the substrate 210, wherein the semiconductor layer 241 and the ohmic contact layer 242 both correspond to the semiconductor element region R1. Then, a multilayer conductive layer 250 is formed on the substrate 210, which also corresponds to the semiconductor element region R1. The insulating layer 230 covers the substrate 210 and the lower conductive layer 220 to provide protection for the lower conductive layer 220. The conductive layer 220 located under the semiconductor body element region R1 can serve as a gate electrode of a Thin Film Transistor (TFT). The semiconductor layer 241 substantially covers the insulating layer 230 of the semiconductor device region R1 for providing a path for the movement of the charged carrier. The ohmic contact layer 242 is overlying a portion of the semiconductor layer 241. The multilayer conductive layer 250 includes a lower barrier layer 251, a middle layer 252, and an upper barrier layer 253 formed on the substrate 210, and substantially corresponds to the upper barrier layer 253. In the semiconductor element region R1. In a preferred embodiment, the material of the lower barrier layer 251 and the upper barrier layer 253 includes: molybdenum, niobium, molybdenum niobium, molybdenum nitride, Titanium, titanium nitride, tantalum, chromium or a combination of the foregoing, but not limited thereto. The lower barrier layer 251 and the upper barrier layer 253 are used to provide good adhesion between the intermediate layer 252 and adjacent material layers, slowing the diffusion of the material of the intermediate layer 252 to adjacent material layers to avoid adjacent materials. Layer formation The phenomenon of goldation and the problem of deterioration in electrical connection quality between the intermediate layer 252 and adjacent material layers. In a preferred embodiment, the material of the intermediate layer 252 includes: aluminum, neodymium, and aluminum neodymium, but is not limited thereto. The multilayer conductive layer 250 can be used as a source electrode and a drain dlectrode of a thin film transistor. In a preferred embodiment, the multilayer conductive layer 250 exposes a portion of the semiconductor layer 241 and the ohmic contact layer 242, particularly the region between the source and the drain, but is not limited thereto.

Next, as shown in FIG. 2C, a protective layer 260 and an organic photoresist layer 270 are formed. The organic photoresist layer 270 is coated on the multilayer conductive layer 250, and the protective layer 260 is formed between the organic photoresist layer 270 and the multilayer conductive layer 250. In this embodiment, in a preferred embodiment, the protective layer 260 is made of tantalum nitride (SiN _x ), yttrium oxide (SiO _y ) or yttrium oxynitride (SiN _x O _y ) to provide protective multilayer. The function of the conductive layer 250 is not limited to the above materials.

Then, as shown in FIG. 2D, the organic photoresist layer 270 is etched to form at least one first opening 270a on the organic photoresist layer 270. The first opening 270a exposes a portion of the protective layer 260. In this embodiment, in a preferred embodiment, the first opening 270a has two, which are respectively corresponding to the corresponding semiconductor device region R1 and corresponding to the signal input region R2, but are not limited thereto.

Next, as shown in FIG. 2E, the protective layer 260 exposing the first opening 270a is etched to form at least one third opening 260a on the protective layer 260. The position and shape of the third opening 260a corresponds to the first opening The position and shape of the port 270a, and the third opening 260a is substantially slightly smaller than the first opening 270a. In this embodiment, in a preferred embodiment, the third opening 260a has two, corresponding to the third opening 260a in the semiconductor device region R1, which exposes a portion of the upper barrier layer 253, and corresponds to The third opening 260a of the signal input region R2 exposes a portion of the insulating layer 230, but is not limited thereto.

Next, as shown in FIG. 2F, in the signal input region R2, the insulating layer 230 exposed by the first opening 270a and the third opening 260a is etched to form a contact window on the insulating layer 230. C, and in the semiconductor device region R1, the upper barrier layer 253 exposed by the first opening 270a and the third opening 260a is etched to form a second opening 253a in the upper barrier layer 253. The second opening 253a corresponds to the position of the first opening 270a in the semiconductor element region R1, and the first opening 270a is substantially slightly larger than the second opening 253a, and the second opening 253a also exposes the intermediate layer 252. In the present embodiment, in a preferred embodiment, the step of etching the upper barrier layer 253 is performed by plasma etching at an operating pressure of substantially 150 mTorr or less. But it is not limited to this. In addition, the contact window C corresponds to the electrode layer 220 located below the signal input region R2.

Then, a transparent conductive layer 280 is formed on the organic photoresist layer 270 to complete the display device according to the first embodiment of the present invention. Please refer to FIG. 3, which is a schematic diagram showing a first embodiment of a display device in accordance with the present invention. As shown in FIG. 3, the transparent conductive layer 280 is in contact with the upper barrier layer 253 and the intermediate layer 252. In more detail, the transparent conductive layer 280 is via the first The opening 270a and the third opening 260a are in contact with the upper barrier layer 253, and are in contact with the intermediate layer 252 via the first opening 270a, the second opening 260a, and the third opening 253a.

Referring to FIG. 4, a plan view of the first opening 270a corresponding to the semiconductor element region R1 in FIG. 3 is shown. In this embodiment, in a preferred embodiment, the first opening 270a, the second opening 253a, and the third opening 260a are circular, and the first opening 270a, the second opening 253a, and the third opening 260a are formed. Ring structure, but not limited to this. In practical applications, in the size design of each opening, in a preferred embodiment, the diameter D1 of one of the first openings 270a is substantially between 9.5 and 10.5 microns, and the diameter D2 of the second opening 253a is substantially between Between 7.5 and 8.5 microns, the diameter D3 of one of the third openings 260a is between D1 and D2, but is not limited thereto. In addition, in a relative relationship between the upper barrier layer 253 and the first opening 270a, in a preferred embodiment, the upper barrier layer 253 protrudes substantially from the edge of the first opening 270a by between 0.3 and 2.0 microns. The upper barrier layer 253 has a sufficient area to effectively contact the transparent conductive layer 280, but is not limited thereto.

In addition, the display device 200 can include a pair of substrates, a liquid crystal layer, and a backlight module. The opposite substrate is disposed on one side of the substrate 210, and the liquid crystal layer is disposed between the substrate 210 and the opposite substrate. The substrate 210, the counter substrate, and the liquid crystal layer form a liquid crystal display panel. The backlight module is disposed on the other side of the liquid crystal display panel to provide a backlight required for the liquid crystal display panel.

The display device and the method for fabricating the same according to the first embodiment of the present invention are etched for the organic photoresist layer 270 and the protective layer 260, and then etched for the insulating layer 230 of the signal input region R2, and simultaneously for the semiconductor device. The barrier layer 253 over the region R1 is etched to form a second opening 253a, thereby exposing a portion of the intermediate layer 252. Since the first opening 270a is substantially slightly larger than the second opening 253a, the transparent conductive layer 280 can simultaneously contact the upper barrier layer 253 and the intermediate layer 252. In this way, the transparent conductive layer 280 can still contact the upper barrier layer 253 without being increased in thickness of the upper barrier layer 253, and thereby adhere to the multilayer conductive layer 250 to achieve cost saving. In addition, the present embodiment is applied to the conventional multi-layer conductive layer 250 having a three-layer structure, and does not require a new process step, so that it can be compatible with a conventional display device having a multi-layer conductive layer.

Second embodiment

The same components as those in the first embodiment described above are denoted by the same reference numerals. Please refer to FIG. 5, which is a schematic diagram of a display device according to a second embodiment of the present invention. In the manufacturing method of the display device 200' of the present embodiment, first, the substrate 210 is provided, the lower conductive layer 220, the insulating layer 230, the semiconductor layer 241, the ohmic contact layer 242, and the multilayer conductive layer 250 are formed on the substrate 210. The steps. The contents of these steps are the same as those of the above-described manufacturing method according to the first embodiment of the present invention, and therefore the description will not be repeated.

After forming the multilayer conductive layer 250, the fabrication method of this embodiment then forms an organic photoresist layer 270' on the multilayer conductive layer 250. In this In an embodiment, the organic photoresist layer 270' is used to provide protection for the multilayer conductive layer 250.

Next, the organic photoresist layer 270' is etched to form at least one first opening 270a' on the organic photoresist layer 270'. In this embodiment, in a preferred embodiment, the first openings 270a are respectively disposed in the corresponding semiconductor device region R1 and corresponding to the signal input region R2', but are not limited thereto. The first opening 270a' corresponding to the semiconductor element region R1 exposes a portion of the upper barrier layer 253, and the first opening 270a' corresponding to the signal input region R2 exposes a portion of the insulating layer 230.

Further, the barrier layer 253 is exposed on the exposed first opening 270a' in the semiconductor device region R1 to form a second opening 253a on the upper barrier layer 253. Then, a transparent conductive layer 280' is formed on the organic photoresist layer 270', and the transparent conductive layer 280' is in contact with the upper barrier layer 253 and the intermediate layer 252. In more detail, the transparent conductive layer 280' is in contact with the upper barrier layer 253 via the first opening 270a' and is in contact with the intermediate layer 252 via the first opening 270a' and the second opening 253a.

Referring to Fig. 6, there is shown a plan view of the first opening 270a' corresponding to the semiconductor element region R1 in Fig. 5. In this embodiment, in a preferred embodiment, the first opening 270a' and the second opening 253a are circular, and the first opening 270a' and the second opening 253a are formed into a ring structure, but This is limited. The second opening 253a is disposed corresponding to the first opening 270a', and one of the diameters D1' of the first opening 270a' is substantially slightly larger than the diameter D2 of one of the second openings 253a.

The display device according to the first embodiment and the second embodiment of the present invention and the method for fabricating the same according to the present invention are characterized in that, when the contact window is etched, the organic photoresist layer is etched to form a first opening, and the upper barrier layer is formed. Etching, in a manner of forming a second opening, such that the transparent conductive layer can simultaneously contact the upper barrier layer and the intermediate layer, thereby improving adhesion of the transparent conductive layer to the multilayer conductive layer, thereby slowing diffusion of the material of the intermediate layer to adjacent The material layer avoids the phenomenon of alloying of adjacent material layers and improves the electrical connection quality between the intermediate layer and the adjacent material layer. The display device and the manufacturing method thereof according to the first embodiment and the second embodiment of the present invention have the advantage of not increasing the thickness of the upper barrier layer, so that cost can be saved. Furthermore, since the display device and the method of fabricating the same according to the embodiments of the present invention apply a multilayer conductive layer having a three-layer structure, it is not necessary to add an additional etching process step, and is compatible with a conventional display device manufacturing method. .

In the above, the present invention has been disclosed in the preferred embodiments, and is not intended to limit the present invention. Any variation and refinement can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, the scope of the invention is defined by the scope of the appended claims.

100, 200, 200'‧‧‧ display devices

110, 210‧‧‧ substrate

130, 230‧‧‧ insulation

150, 250‧‧‧Multilayer conductive layer

151, 251‧‧‧ lower barrier layer

152, 252‧‧‧ middle layer

153, 253‧‧‧ upper barrier layer

160, 260‧ ‧ protective layer

170, 270, 270' ‧ ‧ organic photoresist layer

180, 280, 280' ‧ ‧ transparent conductive layer

120, 220‧‧‧ under conductive layer

141, 241‧‧ ‧ semiconductor layer

142, 242‧‧ ‧ ohmic contact layer

253a‧‧‧ second opening

260a‧‧‧ third opening

270a, 270a’‧‧‧ first opening

C‧‧‧Contact window

D1, D1'‧‧‧ diameter of the first opening

D2‧‧‧ diameter of the second opening

D3‧‧‧Diameter of the third opening

R1‧‧‧Semiconductor component area

R2‧‧‧ signal input area

1 is a schematic view showing a conventional display device using an ultra-high aperture ratio technique; and FIGS. 2A to 2F are schematic views respectively showing steps of a method for manufacturing a display device according to a first embodiment of the present invention; 1 is a schematic view showing a display device according to a first embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 4 is a plan view showing a first opening corresponding to a semiconductor element region in FIG. 3; A schematic view of a display device of the second embodiment; and a sixth drawing showing a top view of the first opening corresponding to the semiconductor element region in FIG.

200‧‧‧ display device

210‧‧‧Substrate

220‧‧‧lower conductive layer

230‧‧‧Insulation

241‧‧‧Semiconductor layer

242‧‧‧Ohm contact layer

250‧‧‧Multilayer conductive layer

251‧‧‧low barrier layer

252‧‧‧Intermediate

253‧‧‧Upper barrier layer

253a‧‧‧ second opening

260‧‧‧protection layer

260a‧‧‧ third opening

270‧‧‧Organic photoresist layer

270a‧‧‧ first opening

280‧‧‧Transparent conductive layer

Claims (18)

A display device comprising: a substrate; a multilayer conductive layer comprising: a lower barrier layer disposed on the substrate; an intermediate layer disposed on the lower barrier layer; and an upper barrier layer disposed On the intermediate layer; an organic photoresist layer disposed on the multilayer conductive layer; and a transparent conductive layer disposed on the organic photoresist layer, wherein the transparent conductive layer contacts the intermediate layer and the upper resistance a barrier layer, wherein the organic photoresist layer has a first opening, the upper barrier layer has a second opening, and the second opening is disposed corresponding to the first opening, the first opening is substantially slightly larger than the second An opening, the upper barrier layer substantially protruding from an edge of the first opening. The display device of claim 1, wherein the transparent conductive layer contacts the upper barrier layer via the first opening. The display device of claim 1, wherein the transparent conductive layer contacts the intermediate layer via the first opening and the second opening. The display device of claim 1, wherein one of the first openings has a diameter substantially between 9.5 and 10.5 microns. The display device of claim 1, wherein one of the second openings has a diameter substantially between 7.5 and 8.5 microns. The display device of claim 1, wherein the upper display The barrier layer extends generally between 0.3 and 2.0 microns of the edge of the first opening. The display device of claim 1, further comprising: a protective layer disposed between the organic photoresist layer and the upper barrier layer. The display device of claim 7, wherein the protective layer has a third opening, and the third opening is disposed corresponding to the first opening and the second opening. The display device of claim 8, wherein the shape of the third opening corresponds to a shape of the first opening, and the third opening is substantially smaller than the first opening. The display device of claim 1, wherein the material of the lower barrier layer is molybdenum, niobium, molybdenum-niobium alloy, molybdenum nitride, titanium, titanium nitride, tantalum, chromium or a combination thereof. The display device of claim 1, wherein the intermediate layer is made of aluminum, tantalum or aluminum-bismuth alloy. The display device of claim 1, wherein the upper barrier layer is made of molybdenum, niobium, molybdenum-niobium alloy, molybdenum nitride, titanium, titanium nitride, tantalum, chromium or a combination thereof. A manufacturing method of a display device, comprising: providing a substrate; forming a multilayer conductive layer on the substrate, the multilayer conductive layer comprising a lower barrier layer, an intermediate layer and a layer sequentially formed on the substrate a barrier layer; forming an organic photoresist layer on the multilayer conductive layer; Etching the organic photoresist layer to form a first opening on the organic photoresist layer; etching the upper barrier layer to form a second opening on the upper barrier layer, wherein the second opening The opening is corresponding to the first opening, the first opening is substantially larger than the second opening, the upper barrier layer protrudes substantially from an edge of the first opening; and a transparent conductive layer is formed on the organic light On the resist layer, the transparent conductive layer is in contact with the upper barrier layer and the intermediate layer. The manufacturing method of claim 13, wherein the step of etching the upper barrier layer comprises: performing plasma etching on the upper barrier layer at an operating pressure of substantially less than or equal to 150 mTorr. The manufacturing method of claim 13, wherein in the step of forming the transparent conductive layer, the transparent conductive layer is in contact with the upper barrier layer via the first opening. The manufacturing method according to claim 13, wherein in the step of forming the transparent conductive layer, the transparent conductive layer is in contact with the intermediate layer via the first opening and the second opening. The manufacturing method of claim 13, further comprising: forming a protective layer on the multilayer conductive layer after the step of forming the multilayer conductive layer. The manufacturing method described in claim 17 of the patent application, further comprising: After the step of etching the organic photoresist layer, the protective layer is etched to form a third opening on the protective layer.