WO2006041240A1 - Large-size oled manufacturing apparatus using ink- jet printing techniques and low molecule thermal deposition techniques - Google Patents

Large-size oled manufacturing apparatus using ink- jet printing techniques and low molecule thermal deposition techniques Download PDF

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Publication number
WO2006041240A1
WO2006041240A1 PCT/KR2005/000276 KR2005000276W WO2006041240A1 WO 2006041240 A1 WO2006041240 A1 WO 2006041240A1 KR 2005000276 W KR2005000276 W KR 2005000276W WO 2006041240 A1 WO2006041240 A1 WO 2006041240A1
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WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
chamber
substrate
manufacturing apparatus
carrier
set forth
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/KR2005/000276
Other languages
French (fr)
Inventor
Chang-Hun Hwang
Do-Gon Kim
Seung-Han Kim
Jin-Il Mok
Taek-Sang Kang
You-Tae Won
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Doosan Dnd Co., Ltd.
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Application filed by Doosan Dnd Co., Ltd. filed Critical Doosan Dnd Co., Ltd.
Publication of WO2006041240A1 publication Critical patent/WO2006041240A1/en

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Classifications

    • HELECTRICITY
    • H10SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES; ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • H10KORGANIC ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES
    • H10K71/00Manufacture or treatment specially adapted for the organic devices covered by this subclass
    • H10K71/10Deposition of organic active material
    • H10K71/12Deposition of organic active material using liquid deposition, e.g. spin coating
    • H10K71/13Deposition of organic active material using liquid deposition, e.g. spin coating using printing techniques, e.g. ink-jet printing or screen printing
    • H10K71/135Deposition of organic active material using liquid deposition, e.g. spin coating using printing techniques, e.g. ink-jet printing or screen printing using ink-jet printing
    • HELECTRICITY
    • H01ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01LSEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L21/00Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
    • H01L21/67Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
    • H01L21/67005Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
    • H01L21/67011Apparatus for manufacture or treatment
    • H01L21/67155Apparatus for manufacturing or treating in a plurality of work-stations
    • H01L21/67161Apparatus for manufacturing or treating in a plurality of work-stations characterized by the layout of the process chambers
    • H01L21/67173Apparatus for manufacturing or treating in a plurality of work-stations characterized by the layout of the process chambers in-line arrangement
    • HELECTRICITY
    • H01ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01LSEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L21/00Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
    • H01L21/67Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
    • H01L21/67005Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
    • H01L21/67011Apparatus for manufacture or treatment
    • H01L21/67155Apparatus for manufacturing or treating in a plurality of work-stations
    • H01L21/67207Apparatus for manufacturing or treating in a plurality of work-stations comprising a chamber adapted to a particular process
    • HELECTRICITY
    • H01ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01LSEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES NOT COVERED BY CLASS H10
    • H01L21/00Processes or apparatus adapted for the manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or solid state devices or of parts thereof
    • H01L21/67Apparatus specially adapted for handling semiconductor or electric solid state devices during manufacture or treatment thereof; Apparatus specially adapted for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor or electric solid state devices or components ; Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
    • H01L21/67005Apparatus not specifically provided for elsewhere
    • H01L21/67011Apparatus for manufacture or treatment
    • H01L21/67155Apparatus for manufacturing or treating in a plurality of work-stations
    • H01L21/67236Apparatus for manufacturing or treating in a plurality of work-stations the substrates being processed being not semiconductor wafers, e.g. leadframes or chips
    • HELECTRICITY
    • H10SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES; ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • H10KORGANIC ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES
    • H10K50/00Organic light-emitting devices
    • H10K50/80Constructional details
    • H10K50/84Passivation; Containers; Encapsulations
    • HELECTRICITY
    • H10SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES; ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
    • H10KORGANIC ELECTRIC SOLID-STATE DEVICES
    • H10K71/00Manufacture or treatment specially adapted for the organic devices covered by this subclass
    • H10K71/40Thermal treatment, e.g. annealing in the presence of a solvent vapour

Definitions

  • the present invention relates an in-line OLED manufacturing apparatus, in which chambers used to manufacture OLEDs are connected in a line so that the OLEDs are manufactured under the condition that substrates linearly moves.
  • the flat panel displays include liquid crystal displays, plasma display panels, and organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs).
  • OLEDs organic light emitting diodes
  • Organic light emitting diodes which exhibit a rapid response speed, power consumption lower than that of the conventional liquid crystal display, a light weight, and do not require a back light device, are advantageous in that they are manufactured to an ultra thin thickness and exhibit a high luminance, thus being increasingly used as next generation display elements.
  • Such an organic light emitting diode emits light due to a difference of energy formed in an organic thin film by coating a substrate with an anode film, the organic thin film, and a cathode film and applying voltage between the obtained anode and cathode. That is, light is emitted from excitation energy remaining after injected electrons and holes are recombined.
  • the wavelength of the light is adjusted by the amount of a dopant made of an organic substance, the organic light emitting diode is capable of displaying the full visible spectrum.
  • the organic light emitting diode is formed by sequentially stacking an anode, a hole injection layer, a hole transfer layer, an emitting layer, an e lectron transfer layer, an electron injection layer, and a cathode on a substrate.
  • the anode mainly employs indium tin oxide (ITO) having a low sheet resistance and a high permeability.
  • ITO indium tin oxide
  • the organic thin film has a multilayered structure including the hole injection layer, the hole transfer layer, the emitting layer, the electron transfer layer, the electron injection layer.
  • the emitting layer is made of an organic substance, such as AIq , TPD, PBD, m-MTDATA, or TCTA.
  • the cathode employs a metal layer made of LiF-Al. Since the organic thin film is has poor resistance to moisture and oxygen in air, in order to increase the life time of the diode, a sealing layer is formed on the uppermost layer of the diode. Disclosure of Invention Technical Problem
  • the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide an OLED manufacturing apparatus, which is suitably used to manufacture large-size organic light emitting diodes, minimizes the movement distance of substrates, thereby shortening the overall process time.
  • an OLED manufacturing apparatus comprising: a loading chamber, first, second, third, fourth, and fifth carrier chambers, and an unloading chamber arranged in a line; carrier robots respectively installed in the carrier chambers for carrying a substrate, and cassettes respectively installed in the loading and unloading chambers for loading the substrate; first, second, third, and fourth buffer chambers respectively sequentially interposed between the neighboring carrier chambers; a pre-treatment chamber disposed at one side of the first carrier chamber for preliminarily treating the substrate using plasma; an anode print chamber for printing an anode pattern on the substrate, and a first heating chamber for drying the substrate by heating, the anode print chamber and the first heating chamber being disposed at both sides of the second carrier chamber; a pixel print chamber for printing pixel patterns on the substrate, and a second heating chamber for drying the substrate by heating, said pixel print chamber and said second heating chamber being disposed at both sides of the third carrier chamber;
  • O /Ar or CF gas is supplied to the pre-treatment chamber to pre ⁇ liminarily treat the substrate, and the distance between an upper electrode and a lower electrode is adjusted in a plasma treatment so that a large-size substrate is uniformly treated.
  • the anode print chamber uses an ink-jet printer to print the anode pattern on the substrate, thereby minimizing the tact time therein.
  • the first heating chamber or the second heating chamber dries the substrate by heating the substrate in an atmospheric pressure state or a vacuum state, thereby drying the anode pattern printed on the substrate under optimum conditions.
  • the pixel print chamber uses an ink-jet printer to print R, G, and B pixel patterns on the substrate, thereby minimizing the tact time therein.
  • cooling means for cooling the substrate is installed in the second buffer chamber or the third buffer chamber, thereby shortening the overall process time.
  • substrate-reversing means for reversing the substrate is installed in the third buffer chamber or the fourth buffer chamber, or both in the third buffer chamber and the fourth buffer chamber.
  • the OLED manufacturing apparatus which comprises the organic matter print chamber for printing the organic sealing film, the inorganic matter deposition chamber for depositing the inorganic sealing film, and the hardening chamber for hardening the organic sealing film, is suited to manufacturing of large-size organic light emitting diodes.
  • the organic matter print chamber uses a screen printer to print the organic sealing film on the substrate, thereby shortening the tact time therein.
  • the inorganic matter deposition chamber uses a sputter to deposit the inorganic sealing film on the substrate, and, in the hardening chamber, ul ⁇ traviolet rays are irradiated onto the organic sealing film to harden the organic sealing film.
  • a glass sealing film is formed using a sealing glass substrate as well as the organic sealing film is hardened.
  • a sealing glass substrate cassette for loading a sealing glass substrate as well as a cassette for unloading the OLED substrate is installed in the unloading chamber, thereby reducing the footprint of the apparatus.
  • the unloading chamber serves to carry the sealing glass substrate to the inside of the fifth carrier chamber without an additional chamber for carrying the sealing glass substrate as well as to discharge the completed OLED substrate to the outside.
  • the fifth buffer chamber, and the sixth carrier chamber provided with carrying means for carrying the substrate are sequentially interposed between the third carrier chamber and the third buffer chamber; and a pixel patterning subsidiary chamber for depositing low molecular organic matter on the substrate is disposed at one side of the sixth carrier chamber, thereby allowing the low molecular weight organic matter as well as high molecular weight organic matter to be deposited on the substrate.
  • the pixel patterning subsidiary chamber uses a shadow mask to deposit the low molecular weight organic matter on the substrate.
  • OLED manufacturing apparatus comprising: a loading chamber, first, second, third, fourth, and fifth carrier chambers, and an unloading chamber arranged in a line; carrier robots respectively installed in the carrier chambers for carrying a substrate, and cassettes respectively installed in the loading and unloading chambers for loading the substrate; first, second, third, and fourth buffer chambers respectively sequentially interposed between the neighboring carrier chambers; a pre-treatment chamber disposed at one side of the first carrier chamber for preliminarily treating the substrate using plasma; an anode print chamber for printing an anode pattern on the substrate, and a first heating chamber for drying the substrate by heating, said anode print chamber and said first heating chamber being disposed at both sides of the second carrier chamber; a pixel print chamber for printing pixel patterns on the substrate, and a second heating chamber for drying the substrate by heating, said pixel print chamber and said second heating chamber being disposed at both sides of the third carrier chamber; a cathode deposition chamber for depositing a cathode layer on the substrate, and an
  • FlG. 1 is a schematic view illustrating the structure of an OLED
  • FIG. 2 illustrates the layout of an OLED manufacturing apparatus in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.
  • FIG. 3 illustrates the layout of an OLED manufacturing apparatus in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention. Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention
  • an OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 in accordance with this embodiment of the present invention is structured such that a plurality of carrier chambers and a plurality of buffer chambers are alternately arranged in a line, a loading chamber 30 and an unloading chamber 40 are respectively arranged at the carrier chambers located at both ends of the line, and process chambers, in which respective steps of a process for manufacturing an OLED substrate are performed, are respectively arranged at the carrier chambers.
  • a plurality of the carrier chambers are arranged in a line.
  • the carrier chambers serve as intermediate channels for transmitting a substrate from one neighboring chamber to another neighboring chamber.
  • a carrier robot (not shown) for carrying the substrate is installed in each of the carrier chambers.
  • the carrier robot includes a robot arm for loading the substrate, and a driving shaft for re ⁇ ciprocating or rotating the robot arm.
  • the carrier robot unloads the substrate from a designated chamber and loads the substrate to another chamber.
  • five carrier chambers including first, second, third, fourth, and fifth carrier chambers 11, 12, 13, 15, and 16 are arranged in a line.
  • One buffer chamber is interposed between the neighboring carrier chambers.
  • four buffer chambers including first, second, third, and fourth buffer chambers 21, 22, 24, and 25 are sequentially arranged between the cor ⁇ responding two carrier chambers.
  • each of the buffer chambers is interposed between the neighboring carrier chambers.
  • the buffer chambers serve as buffers for repairing the malfunctioned chamber without breaking a high degree of the vacuum states of the other chambers.
  • a substrate loader for temporarily loading a substrate is installed in each of the buffer chambers.
  • substrate-reversing means for reversing the position of the substrate is installed in the third buffer chamber 24. Further, preferably, in order to minimize the movement route of the substrate to shorten the overall process time, substrate-reversing means (not shown) is installed also in the fourth buffer chamber 25.
  • the loading chamber 30 serves to carry a substrate into the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1.
  • a cassette (not shown) for loading a plurality of substrates is installed in the loading chamber 30 of this embodiment. Accordingly, since a plurality of substrates are simultaneously carried into the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1, the loading chamber 30 remarkably shortens the process time compared to a loading chamber which carries substrates into the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 one by one. Since the loading chamber 30 is communicated with the outside, so long as the inside of the loading chamber 30 is rapidly and easily changed between a vacuum state and an atmospheric state, the loading chamber 30 shortens the overall process time.
  • pumping means for making the inside of the loading chamber 30 to the vacuum state by discharging gas in the loading chamber 30 and venting means for making the inside of the loading chamber 30 to the atmospheric state by injecting nitrogen gas to the inside of the loading chamber 30 in the vacuum state are simultaneously installed in the loading chamber 30 of this embodiment.
  • the unloading chamber 40 serves to unload the substrate, after the process is completed, from the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 to the outside.
  • a cassette (not shown) for loading a plurality of substrates, pumping means, and venting means are also installed in the unloading chamber 40 of this embodiment.
  • the unloading chamber 40 further serves to carry a sealing glass substrate into the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1. Accordingly, preferably, a sealing glass substrate cassette for loading a plurality of sealing glass substrates is further installed in the unloading chamber 40.
  • a pre-treatment chamber 51 is installed at one side of the first carrier chamber 11.
  • the pre-treatment chamber 51 serves to remove impurities from the substrate and render the substrate to a state proper to the process by processing the substrate carried into the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 using plasma.
  • the pre-treatment chamber 51 preliminarily treats the substrate under the condition that all regions of the substrate are uniformly t reated.
  • the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 of this embodiment is ad ⁇ vantageous in that it is suitable to treat a large-size substrate.
  • O / Ar or CF 4 gas is supplied to the pre-treatment chamber 51, thus preliminarily treating the substrate in the pre-treatment chamber 51.
  • An anode print chamber 52 and a first heating chamber 53 are installed at both sides of the second carrier chamber 12.
  • the anode print chamber 52 serves to print an anode pattern on the substrate, and, in this embodiment, the anode print chamber 52 prints the anode pattern on the substrate using an ink-jet printer. Accordingly, in this embodiment, it is possible to rapidly print the anode pattern in a uniform thickness on all regions of a large-size substrate. Thereby, since the tact time in the anode print chamber 52 is minimized, the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 of this embodiment is suited to manufacturing of large-size substrates.
  • the first heating chamber 53 serves to dry the anode pattern printed on the substrate by the anode print chamber 52.
  • the first heating chamber 53 dries the printed anode pattern by applying heat to the substrate.
  • Heating means is installed in the first heating chamber 53, thus rapidly drying the anode pattern.
  • the inside of the first heating chamber 53 may be maintained in the at ⁇ mospheric pressure state or the vacuum state.
  • a pixel print chamber 54 and a second heating chamber 55 are installed at both sides of the third carrier chamber 13.
  • the pixel print chamber 54 serves to print R, G, and B patterns on the substrate, and, in this embodiment, the pixel print chamber 54 prints the R, G, and B patterns on the substrate using an ink-jet printer.
  • the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 of this embodiment is suited to manufacturing of large-size substrates.
  • the second heating chamber 55 serves to dry the pixel patterns printed on the substrate by the pixel print chamber 54.
  • the second heating chamber 55 dries the printed pixel patterns printed on the substrate by applying heat to the substrate.
  • Heating means is installed in the second heating chamber 55, thus rapidly drying the pixel patterns.
  • the inside of the second heating chamber 55 may be maintained in the atmospheric pressure state or the vacuum state.
  • cooling means for cooling the substrate are respectively installed in the second buffer chamber 22 and the third buffer chamber 23.
  • the substrate dried by the first heating chamber 53 passes through the second buffer chamber 22, and the substra te dried by the second heating chamber 55 passes through the third buffer chamber 23. That is, the substrate, which was heated to a high temperature, is carried to the second and third buffer chambers 22 and 23. Since the substrate must be cooled to a normal temperature so as to perform a next step, the cooling means cooling the substrate are respectively installed in the second and third buffer chambers 22 and 23, thereby rapidly cooling the substrate compared to a natural cooling method.
  • a cathode deposition chamber 57 is installed at one side of the fourth carrier chamber 15.
  • the cathode deposition chamber 57 serves to deposit a metal cathode film on the substrate.
  • the cathode deposition chamber 57 deposits a LiF-Al film on the substrate.
  • An organic matter print chamber 58, an inorganic matter deposition chamber 59, and a hardening chamber 60 are installed along the side of the fifth carrier chamber 16.
  • the organic matter print chamber 58 serves to form an organic sealing film on the substrate, on which all element were completely formed by depositing the metal cathode film thereon.
  • a screen printer is installed in the organic matter print chamber 58, thus rapidly and precisely forming the organic sealing film on a large-size substrate.
  • the inorganic matter deposition chamber 59 serves to form an inorganic sealing film on the substrate, on which the organic sealing film was formed.
  • a sputter is installed in the inorganic matter deposition chamber 59, thus forming the inorganic sealing film using a sputtering method.
  • the hardening chamber 60 serves to harden the organic sealing film formed by the organic matter print chamber 58.
  • ultraviolet ray irradiating means is installed in the hardening chamber 60, and irradiates ultraviolet rays to the organic sealing film so as to harden the organic sealing film.
  • the hardening chamber 60 further serves to receive a sealing glass substrate supplied from the outside and form a glass sealing film. Accordingly, it is possible to form the glass sealing film without any additional chamber, thus not increasing the footprint of the OLED manu ⁇ facturing apparatus 1.
  • a sealing film is obtained by stacking the organic sealing film, the inorganic sealing film, and the glass sealing film. Con ⁇ ventionally, only the glass sealing film was used. In this case, as the substrate has been large-sized, the central portion of the glass sealing film is sagged by gravity, and contacts the metal cathode film.
  • a three-layered sealing film consisting of the organic sealing film, the inorganic sealing film and the organic sealing film is first formed, and then the glass sealing film is formed on the three-layered sealing film, thus preventing the glass sealing film from contacting the metal cathode film in a large-size substrate.
  • the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 of this embodiment is suited to manu ⁇ facturing of large-size OLEDs, serving as next generation display element.
  • the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 of this embodiment further comprises a pixel patterning subsidiary chamber 56 for forming pixel patterns by depositing low molecular weight organic matter on the substrate.
  • the pixel print chamber 54 is used to form pixel patterns using high molecular weight organic matter.
  • the pixel patterning subsidiary chamber 56 is used to form pixel patterns using low molecular weight organic matter. Accordingly, the OLED manu ⁇ facturing apparatus 1 of this embodiment uses both high molecular weight organic matter and low molecular weight organic matter.
  • the fifth buffer chamber 23 and the sixth carrier chamber 14 are sequentially interposed between the third carrier chamber 13 and the third buffer chamber 24. Then, the pixel patterning subsidiary chamber 56 is installed at one side of the sixth carrier chamber 14.
  • the fifth buffer chamber 23 has the same structure and function as those of other buffer chambers
  • the sixth carrier chamber 14 has the same structure and function as those of other carrier chambers.
  • the pixel patterning subsidiary chamber 56 forms the pixel patterns using a shadow mask.
  • Gate valves G are respectively interposed between the neighboring chambers of all the chambers of the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 of this embodiment. That is, openings having a designated size are formed through side surfaces of the chambers facing the neighboring chambers, and the gate valves G having dimensions larger than those of the openings serve to open and close the openings.
  • the openings serve as channels, through which the substrate moves from one chamber to another chamber, and the gate valves G serve to isolate the chambers from each other during the process.
  • the loading chamber 30 uses the cassette for simultaneously loading a plurality of substrates, thereby being capable of carrying the plural substrates into the OLED man ⁇ ufacturing apparatus 1, thus shortening the process time.
  • the inside of the loading chamber 30 is vacuumized by discharging gas in the loading chamber 30 to the outside. Thereafter, the gate valve G interposed between the first carrier chamber 11 and the loading chamber 30 is opened, and a first carrier robot provided in the first carrier chamber 11 takes one substrate out of the substrates loaded in the loading chamber 30 and carries the substrate into the pre-treatment chamber 51.
  • a process gas is injected into the pre-treatment chamber 51, and RF power is applied to the pre-treatment chamber 51, thereby generating plasma in the pre- treatment chamber 51 so that the substrate is preliminarily treated.
  • the gate valve G interposed between the pre- treatment chamber 51 and the first carrier chamber 11 is opened, and the first carrier robot takes the substrate from the pre-treatment chamber 51 and carries the substrate into the first buffer chamber 21.
  • a second carrier robot provided in the second carrier chamber 12 carries the substrate into the anode print chamber 52.
  • An anode pattern is printed on the substrate using the ink-jet printer in the anode print chamber 52.
  • the second carrier robot carries the substrate into the first heating chamber 53. Then, heat is applied to the substrate in the first heating chamber 53, thereby drying the anode pattern printed on the substrate.
  • the second carrier robot carries the substrate into the second buffer chamber 22.
  • the cooling means in the second buffer chamber 22 is driven, thereby cooling the substrate.
  • a third carrier robot provided in the third carrier chamber 13 carries the substrate to the pixel print chamber 54. Then, R, G, and B pixel patterns are printed on the substrate in the pixel print chamber 54 using the ink-jet printer. Thereafter, the third carrier robot carries the substrate into the second heating chamber 55. Heat is applied to the substrate in the second heating chamber 55, thereby drying the pixel patterns printed on the substrate.
  • the cooling means in the third buffer chamber 23 is driven, thereby cooling the substrate. Then, the substrate is reversed, and a fourth carrier robot provided in the fourth carrier chamber 15 carries the substrate into the cathode deposition chamber 57. In the cathode deposition chamber 57, a metal cathode film is deposited on the substrate.
  • the fourth carrier robot carries the substrate into the fourth buffer chamber 25.
  • the substrate in the fourth buffer chamber 25 is reversed, and a fifth carrier robot provided in the fifth carrier chamber 16 carries the substrate into the organic matter print chamber 58.
  • a fifth carrier robot provided in the fifth carrier chamber 16 carries the substrate into the organic matter print chamber 58.
  • an organic sealing film is formed on the substrate using a screen printer.
  • the fifth carrier robot carries the substrate into the hardening chamber 60.
  • ultraviolet rays are irradiated onto the substrate, thereby hardening the organic sealing film formed on the substrate.
  • the fifth carrier robot carries the substrate into the inorganic matter deposition chamber 59.
  • an inorganic sealing film is deposited on the organic sealing film on the substrate using a sputter.
  • the fifth carrier robot carries the substrate into the organic matter print chamber 58 again so that another organic sealing film is formed on the inorganic sealing film.
  • the fifth carrier robot carries the substrate into the hardening chamber 60, and in the hardening chamber 60, ultraviolet rays are irradiated onto the substrate, thereby hardening the organic sealing film formed on the inorganic sealing film.
  • the fifth carrier robot carries a sealing glass substrate loaded in the unloading chamber 40 to an area above the substrate in the hardening chamber 60. A glass sealing film is obtained by stacking the sealing glass substrate on the substrate.
  • the fifth carrier robot loads the substrate on the cassette in the unloading chamber 40. Thereby, the OLED substrate manufacturing process is completed.
  • an OLED manufacturing apparatus 100 in accordance with this embodiment of the present invention is structured such that a plurality of carrier chambers and a plurality of buffer chambers are alternately arranged in a line, a loading chamber 130 and an unloading chamber 140 are respectively arranged at the carrier chambers located at both ends of the line, and process chambers, in which respective steps of a process for manufacturing an OLED substrate are performed, are arranged at the carrier chambers.
  • the carrier chambers, the buffer chambers, and the process chambers of the OLED manufacturing apparatus 100 of this embodiment have the same structures and functions as those of the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 of the first embodiment, and the detailed description thereof will thus be omitted because it is considered to be unnecessary.
  • the OLED manufacturing apparatus 100 of this embodiment differs from the
  • OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 of the first embodiment in that an inorganic matter deposition chamber 158 is installed at one side of a fourth carrier chamber 115. Further, an organic matter print chamber 159, a hardening chamber 160, and the unloading chamber 140 installed along the side of a fifth carrier chamber 116.
  • an organic sealing film is printed on a substrate by the organic matter print chamber 159 and hardened by the hardening chamber 160, and the substrate is inserted into an inorganic matter deposition chamber 158 via a fourth buffer chamber 125 so that an inorganic sealing film is deposited on the organic sealing film. Then, the substrate is inserted into the organic matter print chamber 159 via the fourth buffer chamber 125 so that another organic sealing film is printed on the inorganic sealing film. Accordingly, except for the above-described step of forming the sealing film, the method using the OLED man ⁇ ufacturing apparatus 100 of this embodiment is the same as the method using the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 of the first embodiment.
  • the present invention provides an OLED manufacturing apparatus, in which steps of forming respective layers are rapidly and uniformly performed on all regions of a large-size substrate, thereby being suited to manufacturing of large-size OLEDs serving as next generation display elements.
  • the OLED manufacturing apparatus of the present invention forms a multi- layered sealing film including organic sealing films, an inorganic sealing film, and a glass sealing film, thereby preventing the glass sealing film from contacting a metal cathode film even in a large-size OLED. Accordingly, the OLED manufacturing apparatus of the present invention is suited to manufacturing of the large-size OLEDs.

Abstract

An in-line OLED manufacturing apparatus, in which chambers used to manufacture OLEDs are connected in a line so that the OLEDs are manufactured under the condition that substrates moves linearly. In the in-line OLED manufacturing apparatus, a plurality of carrier chambers and a plurality of buffer chambers are alternately disposed in a line, a loading chamber and an unloading chamber are respectively disposed at the carrier chambers of both ends of the line, and process chambers for performing steps of a process for manufacturing OLED substrates are disposed at the respective carrier chambers.

Description

Description
LARGE-SIZE OLED MANUFACTURING APPARATUS USING
INK- JET PRINTING TECHNIQUES AND LOW MOLECULE
THERMAL DEPOSITION TECHNIQUES
Technical Field
[1] The present invention relates an in-line OLED manufacturing apparatus, in which chambers used to manufacture OLEDs are connected in a line so that the OLEDs are manufactured under the condition that substrates linearly moves. Background Art
[2] In order to keep pace with the rapid progress of data communication technology and the expansion of a market thereof, flat panel displays are increasingly used as display elements. The flat panel displays include liquid crystal displays, plasma display panels, and organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs).
[3] Organic light emitting diodes, which exhibit a rapid response speed, power consumption lower than that of the conventional liquid crystal display, a light weight, and do not require a back light device, are advantageous in that they are manufactured to an ultra thin thickness and exhibit a high luminance, thus being increasingly used as next generation display elements.
[4] Such an organic light emitting diode emits light due to a difference of energy formed in an organic thin film by coating a substrate with an anode film, the organic thin film, and a cathode film and applying voltage between the obtained anode and cathode. That is, light is emitted from excitation energy remaining after injected electrons and holes are recombined. Here, since the wavelength of the light is adjusted by the amount of a dopant made of an organic substance, the organic light emitting diode is capable of displaying the full visible spectrum.
[5] As shown in FIG. 1, the organic light emitting diode is formed by sequentially stacking an anode, a hole injection layer, a hole transfer layer, an emitting layer, an e lectron transfer layer, an electron injection layer, and a cathode on a substrate. Here, the anode mainly employs indium tin oxide (ITO) having a low sheet resistance and a high permeability. In order to increase efficiency in emitting light, the organic thin film has a multilayered structure including the hole injection layer, the hole transfer layer, the emitting layer, the electron transfer layer, the electron injection layer. The emitting layer is made of an organic substance, such as AIq , TPD, PBD, m-MTDATA, or TCTA. The cathode employs a metal layer made of LiF-Al. Since the organic thin film is has poor resistance to moisture and oxygen in air, in order to increase the life time of the diode, a sealing layer is formed on the uppermost layer of the diode. Disclosure of Invention Technical Problem
[6] Accordingly, in order to manufacture the above organic light emitting diode, a plurality of chambers for forming all of the above-described various layers must be installed. Further, an OLED manufacturing apparatus for manufacturing the organic light emitting diode in a short process time under the condition that the chambers are properly disposed so that the movement route and time of a substrate are minimized is required.
[7] However, regardless of the above advantages, since equipment for mass-producing a large-size organic light emitting diode is not yet standardized, the organic light emitting diode is not yet secured as a next generation display element. Now, the liquid crystal display or the plasma display panel is rapidly increased in size and equipment for mass-producing a large-size panel has been developed and standardized. In order to secure the organic light emitting diode as a next generation display element, equipment for mass-producing a large-size organic light emitting diode is increasingly required.
Technical Solution
[8] Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide an OLED manufacturing apparatus, which is suitably used to manufacture large-size organic light emitting diodes, minimizes the movement distance of substrates, thereby shortening the overall process time.
[9] In accordance with one aspect of the present invention, the above and other objects can be accomplished by the provision of an OLED manufacturing apparatus comprising: a loading chamber, first, second, third, fourth, and fifth carrier chambers, and an unloading chamber arranged in a line; carrier robots respectively installed in the carrier chambers for carrying a substrate, and cassettes respectively installed in the loading and unloading chambers for loading the substrate; first, second, third, and fourth buffer chambers respectively sequentially interposed between the neighboring carrier chambers; a pre-treatment chamber disposed at one side of the first carrier chamber for preliminarily treating the substrate using plasma; an anode print chamber for printing an anode pattern on the substrate, and a first heating chamber for drying the substrate by heating, the anode print chamber and the first heating chamber being disposed at both sides of the second carrier chamber; a pixel print chamber for printing pixel patterns on the substrate, and a second heating chamber for drying the substrate by heating, said pixel print chamber and said second heating chamber being disposed at both sides of the third carrier chamber; a cathode deposition chamber disposed at one side of the fourth carrier chamber for depositing a cathode layer on the substrate; an organic matter print chamber for printing an organic sealing film on the substrate, an inorganic matter deposition chamber for depositing an inorganic sealing film on the substrate, and a hardening chamber for hardening the organic sealing film formed on the substrate, said organic matter print chamber, said inorganic matter deposition chamber, and said hardening chamber being disposed along the side of the fifth carrier chamber; and gate valves respectively provided in all the chambers for opening and closing openings respectively formed through the chambers.
[10] Preferably, O /Ar or CF gas is supplied to the pre-treatment chamber to pre¬ liminarily treat the substrate, and the distance between an upper electrode and a lower electrode is adjusted in a plasma treatment so that a large-size substrate is uniformly treated.
[11] Further, preferably, the anode print chamber uses an ink-jet printer to print the anode pattern on the substrate, thereby minimizing the tact time therein.
[12] The first heating chamber or the second heating chamber dries the substrate by heating the substrate in an atmospheric pressure state or a vacuum state, thereby drying the anode pattern printed on the substrate under optimum conditions.
[13] Preferably, the pixel print chamber uses an ink-jet printer to print R, G, and B pixel patterns on the substrate, thereby minimizing the tact time therein.
[14] Since the first heating chamber or the second heating chamber dries the substrate by applying heat to the substrate, preferably, cooling means for cooling the substrate is installed in the second buffer chamber or the third buffer chamber, thereby shortening the overall process time.
[15] Further, preferably, substrate-reversing means for reversing the substrate is installed in the third buffer chamber or the fourth buffer chamber, or both in the third buffer chamber and the fourth buffer chamber.
[16] The OLED manufacturing apparatus, which comprises the organic matter print chamber for printing the organic sealing film, the inorganic matter deposition chamber for depositing the inorganic sealing film, and the hardening chamber for hardening the organic sealing film, is suited to manufacturing of large-size organic light emitting diodes.
[17] Preferably, the organic matter print chamber uses a screen printer to print the organic sealing film on the substrate, thereby shortening the tact time therein.
[18] Further, preferably, the inorganic matter deposition chamber uses a sputter to deposit the inorganic sealing film on the substrate, and, in the hardening chamber, ul¬ traviolet rays are irradiated onto the organic sealing film to harden the organic sealing film.
[19] In the hardening chamber, a glass sealing film is formed using a sealing glass substrate as well as the organic sealing film is hardened. Preferably, a sealing glass substrate cassette for loading a sealing glass substrate as well as a cassette for unloading the OLED substrate is installed in the unloading chamber, thereby reducing the footprint of the apparatus.
[20] Preferably, the unloading chamber serves to carry the sealing glass substrate to the inside of the fifth carrier chamber without an additional chamber for carrying the sealing glass substrate as well as to discharge the completed OLED substrate to the outside.
[21] Further, preferably, the fifth buffer chamber, and the sixth carrier chamber provided with carrying means for carrying the substrate are sequentially interposed between the third carrier chamber and the third buffer chamber; and a pixel patterning subsidiary chamber for depositing low molecular organic matter on the substrate is disposed at one side of the sixth carrier chamber, thereby allowing the low molecular weight organic matter as well as high molecular weight organic matter to be deposited on the substrate.
[22] The pixel patterning subsidiary chamber uses a shadow mask to deposit the low molecular weight organic matter on the substrate.
[23] In accordance with another aspect of the present invention, there is provided an
OLED manufacturing apparatus comprising: a loading chamber, first, second, third, fourth, and fifth carrier chambers, and an unloading chamber arranged in a line; carrier robots respectively installed in the carrier chambers for carrying a substrate, and cassettes respectively installed in the loading and unloading chambers for loading the substrate; first, second, third, and fourth buffer chambers respectively sequentially interposed between the neighboring carrier chambers; a pre-treatment chamber disposed at one side of the first carrier chamber for preliminarily treating the substrate using plasma; an anode print chamber for printing an anode pattern on the substrate, and a first heating chamber for drying the substrate by heating, said anode print chamber and said first heating chamber being disposed at both sides of the second carrier chamber; a pixel print chamber for printing pixel patterns on the substrate, and a second heating chamber for drying the substrate by heating, said pixel print chamber and said second heating chamber being disposed at both sides of the third carrier chamber; a cathode deposition chamber for depositing a cathode layer on the substrate, and an inorganic matter deposition chamber for depositing an inorganic sealing film on the substrate, said cathode deposition chamber and said inorganic matter deposition chamber being disposed at both sides of the fourth carrier chamber; an organic matter print chamber for printing an organic sealing film on the substrate, and a hardening chamber for hardening the organic sealing film formed on the substrate, said organic matter print chamber and said hardening chamber being disposed along the side of the fifth carrier chamber; and gate valves respectively provided in all the chambers for opening and closing openings respectively formed through the chambers. Brief Description of the Drawings
[24] The above and other objects, features and other advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which:
[25] FlG. 1 is a schematic view illustrating the structure of an OLED;
[26] FIG. 2 illustrates the layout of an OLED manufacturing apparatus in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention; and
[27] FIG. 3 illustrates the layout of an OLED manufacturing apparatus in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention. Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention
[28] Now, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.
[29]
[30] <First Embodiment
[31] As shown in FIG. 2, an OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 in accordance with this embodiment of the present invention is structured such that a plurality of carrier chambers and a plurality of buffer chambers are alternately arranged in a line, a loading chamber 30 and an unloading chamber 40 are respectively arranged at the carrier chambers located at both ends of the line, and process chambers, in which respective steps of a process for manufacturing an OLED substrate are performed, are respectively arranged at the carrier chambers.
[32] First, a plurality of the carrier chambers are arranged in a line. In this embodiment, the carrier chambers serve as intermediate channels for transmitting a substrate from one neighboring chamber to another neighboring chamber. Here, a carrier robot (not shown) for carrying the substrate is installed in each of the carrier chambers. The carrier robot includes a robot arm for loading the substrate, and a driving shaft for re¬ ciprocating or rotating the robot arm. The carrier robot unloads the substrate from a designated chamber and loads the substrate to another chamber. In this embodiment, five carrier chambers including first, second, third, fourth, and fifth carrier chambers 11, 12, 13, 15, and 16 are arranged in a line.
[33] One buffer chamber is interposed between the neighboring carrier chambers. Ac¬ cordingly, in this embodiment, four buffer chambers including first, second, third, and fourth buffer chambers 21, 22, 24, and 25 are sequentially arranged between the cor¬ responding two carrier chambers. In this embodiment, each of the buffer chambers is interposed between the neighboring carrier chambers. When one carrier chamber or the process chamber disposed close to the carrier chamber malfunctions, the buffer chambers serve as buffers for repairing the malfunctioned chamber without breaking a high degree of the vacuum states of the other chambers. A substrate loader for temporarily loading a substrate is installed in each of the buffer chambers.
[34] Preferably, substrate-reversing means (not shown) for reversing the position of the substrate is installed in the third buffer chamber 24. Further, preferably, in order to minimize the movement route of the substrate to shorten the overall process time, substrate-reversing means (not shown) is installed also in the fourth buffer chamber 25.
[35] The loading chamber 30 serves to carry a substrate into the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1. A cassette (not shown) for loading a plurality of substrates is installed in the loading chamber 30 of this embodiment. Accordingly, since a plurality of substrates are simultaneously carried into the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1, the loading chamber 30 remarkably shortens the process time compared to a loading chamber which carries substrates into the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 one by one. Since the loading chamber 30 is communicated with the outside, so long as the inside of the loading chamber 30 is rapidly and easily changed between a vacuum state and an atmospheric state, the loading chamber 30 shortens the overall process time. Accordingly, preferably, pumping means for making the inside of the loading chamber 30 to the vacuum state by discharging gas in the loading chamber 30 and venting means for making the inside of the loading chamber 30 to the atmospheric state by injecting nitrogen gas to the inside of the loading chamber 30 in the vacuum state are simultaneously installed in the loading chamber 30 of this embodiment.
[36] The unloading chamber 40 serves to unload the substrate, after the process is completed, from the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 to the outside. A cassette (not shown) for loading a plurality of substrates, pumping means, and venting means are also installed in the unloading chamber 40 of this embodiment. In this embodiment, the unloading chamber 40 further serves to carry a sealing glass substrate into the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1. Accordingly, preferably, a sealing glass substrate cassette for loading a plurality of sealing glass substrates is further installed in the unloading chamber 40.
[37] A pre-treatment chamber 51 is installed at one side of the first carrier chamber 11.
The pre-treatment chamber 51 serves to remove impurities from the substrate and render the substrate to a state proper to the process by processing the substrate carried into the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 using plasma. By vertically moving a lower electrode in the pre-treatment chamber 51, the pre-treatment chamber 51 preliminarily treats the substrate under the condition that all regions of the substrate are uniformly t reated. Accordingly, the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 of this embodiment is ad¬ vantageous in that it is suitable to treat a large-size substrate. In this embodiment, O / Ar or CF 4 gas is supplied to the pre-treatment chamber 51, thus preliminarily treating the substrate in the pre-treatment chamber 51.
[38] An anode print chamber 52 and a first heating chamber 53 are installed at both sides of the second carrier chamber 12. Here, the anode print chamber 52 serves to print an anode pattern on the substrate, and, in this embodiment, the anode print chamber 52 prints the anode pattern on the substrate using an ink-jet printer. Accordingly, in this embodiment, it is possible to rapidly print the anode pattern in a uniform thickness on all regions of a large-size substrate. Thereby, since the tact time in the anode print chamber 52 is minimized, the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 of this embodiment is suited to manufacturing of large-size substrates.
[39] The first heating chamber 53 serves to dry the anode pattern printed on the substrate by the anode print chamber 52. In this embodiment, the first heating chamber 53 dries the printed anode pattern by applying heat to the substrate. Heating means is installed in the first heating chamber 53, thus rapidly drying the anode pattern. During the drying process, the inside of the first heating chamber 53 may be maintained in the at¬ mospheric pressure state or the vacuum state.
[40] A pixel print chamber 54 and a second heating chamber 55 are installed at both sides of the third carrier chamber 13. Here, the pixel print chamber 54 serves to print R, G, and B patterns on the substrate, and, in this embodiment, the pixel print chamber 54 prints the R, G, and B patterns on the substrate using an ink-jet printer. Ac¬ cordingly, in this embodiment, it is possible to rapidly print the R, G, and B pixel patterns in a uniform thickness on all regions of a large-size substrate using high molecular weight organic matter. Thereby, since the tact time in the pixel print chamber 54 is minimized, the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 of this embodiment is suited to manufacturing of large-size substrates.
[41] The second heating chamber 55 serves to dry the pixel patterns printed on the substrate by the pixel print chamber 54. In this embodiment, in the same manner as the first heating chamber 53, the second heating chamber 55 dries the printed pixel patterns printed on the substrate by applying heat to the substrate. Heating means is installed in the second heating chamber 55, thus rapidly drying the pixel patterns. During the drying process, the inside of the second heating chamber 55 may be maintained in the atmospheric pressure state or the vacuum state.
[42] Preferably, cooling means for cooling the substrate are respectively installed in the second buffer chamber 22 and the third buffer chamber 23. The substrate dried by the first heating chamber 53 passes through the second buffer chamber 22, and the substra te dried by the second heating chamber 55 passes through the third buffer chamber 23. That is, the substrate, which was heated to a high temperature, is carried to the second and third buffer chambers 22 and 23. Since the substrate must be cooled to a normal temperature so as to perform a next step, the cooling means cooling the substrate are respectively installed in the second and third buffer chambers 22 and 23, thereby rapidly cooling the substrate compared to a natural cooling method.
[43] A cathode deposition chamber 57 is installed at one side of the fourth carrier chamber 15. The cathode deposition chamber 57 serves to deposit a metal cathode film on the substrate. In this embodiment, the cathode deposition chamber 57 deposits a LiF-Al film on the substrate.
[44] An organic matter print chamber 58, an inorganic matter deposition chamber 59, and a hardening chamber 60 are installed along the side of the fifth carrier chamber 16. Here, the organic matter print chamber 58 serves to form an organic sealing film on the substrate, on which all element were completely formed by depositing the metal cathode film thereon. In this embodiment, a screen printer is installed in the organic matter print chamber 58, thus rapidly and precisely forming the organic sealing film on a large-size substrate.
[45] The inorganic matter deposition chamber 59 serves to form an inorganic sealing film on the substrate, on which the organic sealing film was formed. In this embodiment, a sputter is installed in the inorganic matter deposition chamber 59, thus forming the inorganic sealing film using a sputtering method.
[46] The hardening chamber 60 serves to harden the organic sealing film formed by the organic matter print chamber 58. In this embodiment, ultraviolet ray irradiating means is installed in the hardening chamber 60, and irradiates ultraviolet rays to the organic sealing film so as to harden the organic sealing film. In this embodiment, the hardening chamber 60 further serves to receive a sealing glass substrate supplied from the outside and form a glass sealing film. Accordingly, it is possible to form the glass sealing film without any additional chamber, thus not increasing the footprint of the OLED manu¬ facturing apparatus 1.
[47] In this embodiment, as described above, a sealing film is obtained by stacking the organic sealing film, the inorganic sealing film, and the glass sealing film. Con¬ ventionally, only the glass sealing film was used. In this case, as the substrate has been large-sized, the central portion of the glass sealing film is sagged by gravity, and contacts the metal cathode film. On the other hand, in this embodiment of the present invention, a three-layered sealing film consisting of the organic sealing film, the inorganic sealing film and the organic sealing film is first formed, and then the glass sealing film is formed on the three-layered sealing film, thus preventing the glass sealing film from contacting the metal cathode film in a large-size substrate. Ac¬ cordingly, the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 of this embodiment is suited to manu¬ facturing of large-size OLEDs, serving as next generation display element.
[48] Preferably, the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 of this embodiment further comprises a pixel patterning subsidiary chamber 56 for forming pixel patterns by depositing low molecular weight organic matter on the substrate. The pixel print chamber 54 is used to form pixel patterns using high molecular weight organic matter. On the other hand, the pixel patterning subsidiary chamber 56 is used to form pixel patterns using low molecular weight organic matter. Accordingly, the OLED manu¬ facturing apparatus 1 of this embodiment uses both high molecular weight organic matter and low molecular weight organic matter.
[49] In this embodiment, in order to dispose the pixel patterning subsidiary chamber 56 at a proper position, the fifth buffer chamber 23 and the sixth carrier chamber 14 are sequentially interposed between the third carrier chamber 13 and the third buffer chamber 24. Then, the pixel patterning subsidiary chamber 56 is installed at one side of the sixth carrier chamber 14. Here, the fifth buffer chamber 23 has the same structure and function as those of other buffer chambers, and the sixth carrier chamber 14 has the same structure and function as those of other carrier chambers. The pixel patterning subsidiary chamber 56 forms the pixel patterns using a shadow mask.
[50] Gate valves G are respectively interposed between the neighboring chambers of all the chambers of the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 of this embodiment. That is, openings having a designated size are formed through side surfaces of the chambers facing the neighboring chambers, and the gate valves G having dimensions larger than those of the openings serve to open and close the openings. Here, the openings serve as channels, through which the substrate moves from one chamber to another chamber, and the gate valves G serve to isolate the chambers from each other during the process.
[51] Hereinafter, a process for manufacturing an OLED using the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 of the above embodiment will be described.
[52] First, substrates are loaded by the loading chamber 30. In this embodiment, the loading chamber 30 uses the cassette for simultaneously loading a plurality of substrates, thereby being capable of carrying the plural substrates into the OLED man¬ ufacturing apparatus 1, thus shortening the process time.
[53] The inside of the loading chamber 30 is vacuumized by discharging gas in the loading chamber 30 to the outside. Thereafter, the gate valve G interposed between the first carrier chamber 11 and the loading chamber 30 is opened, and a first carrier robot provided in the first carrier chamber 11 takes one substrate out of the substrates loaded in the loading chamber 30 and carries the substrate into the pre-treatment chamber 51.
[54] A process gas is injected into the pre-treatment chamber 51, and RF power is applied to the pre-treatment chamber 51, thereby generating plasma in the pre- treatment chamber 51 so that the substrate is preliminarily treated. When the pre- treatment of the substrate is finished, the gate valve G interposed between the pre- treatment chamber 51 and the first carrier chamber 11 is opened, and the first carrier robot takes the substrate from the pre-treatment chamber 51 and carries the substrate into the first buffer chamber 21.
[55] After the substrate is rotated in the first buffer chamber 21, a second carrier robot provided in the second carrier chamber 12 carries the substrate into the anode print chamber 52. An anode pattern is printed on the substrate using the ink-jet printer in the anode print chamber 52. Thereafter, the second carrier robot carries the substrate into the first heating chamber 53. Then, heat is applied to the substrate in the first heating chamber 53, thereby drying the anode pattern printed on the substrate.
[56] Thereafter, the second carrier robot carries the substrate into the second buffer chamber 22. Here, the cooling means in the second buffer chamber 22 is driven, thereby cooling the substrate.
[57] A third carrier robot provided in the third carrier chamber 13 carries the substrate to the pixel print chamber 54. Then, R, G, and B pixel patterns are printed on the substrate in the pixel print chamber 54 using the ink-jet printer. Thereafter, the third carrier robot carries the substrate into the second heating chamber 55. Heat is applied to the substrate in the second heating chamber 55, thereby drying the pixel patterns printed on the substrate.
[58] Thereafter, the third carrier robot carries the substrate into the third buffer chamber
23. The cooling means in the third buffer chamber 23 is driven, thereby cooling the substrate. Then, the substrate is reversed, and a fourth carrier robot provided in the fourth carrier chamber 15 carries the substrate into the cathode deposition chamber 57. In the cathode deposition chamber 57, a metal cathode film is deposited on the substrate.
[59] Then, the fourth carrier robot carries the substrate into the fourth buffer chamber 25.
The substrate in the fourth buffer chamber 25 is reversed, and a fifth carrier robot provided in the fifth carrier chamber 16 carries the substrate into the organic matter print chamber 58. In the organic matter print chamber 58, an organic sealing film is formed on the substrate using a screen printer. Thereafter, the fifth carrier robot carries the substrate into the hardening chamber 60. In the hardening chamber 60, ultraviolet rays are irradiated onto the substrate, thereby hardening the organic sealing film formed on the substrate.
[60] Thereafter, the fifth carrier robot carries the substrate into the inorganic matter deposition chamber 59. In the inorganic matter deposition chamber 59, an inorganic sealing film is deposited on the organic sealing film on the substrate using a sputter. The fifth carrier robot carries the substrate into the organic matter print chamber 58 again so that another organic sealing film is formed on the inorganic sealing film. Then, the fifth carrier robot carries the substrate into the hardening chamber 60, and in the hardening chamber 60, ultraviolet rays are irradiated onto the substrate, thereby hardening the organic sealing film formed on the inorganic sealing film. [61] Thereafter, the fifth carrier robot carries a sealing glass substrate loaded in the unloading chamber 40 to an area above the substrate in the hardening chamber 60. A glass sealing film is obtained by stacking the sealing glass substrate on the substrate.
[62] When the sealing film is formed by the above procedure, the fifth carrier robot loads the substrate on the cassette in the unloading chamber 40. Thereby, the OLED substrate manufacturing process is completed.
[63]
[64] <Second embodiment
[65] As shown in FIG. 3, an OLED manufacturing apparatus 100 in accordance with this embodiment of the present invention is structured such that a plurality of carrier chambers and a plurality of buffer chambers are alternately arranged in a line, a loading chamber 130 and an unloading chamber 140 are respectively arranged at the carrier chambers located at both ends of the line, and process chambers, in which respective steps of a process for manufacturing an OLED substrate are performed, are arranged at the carrier chambers.
[66] The carrier chambers, the buffer chambers, and the process chambers of the OLED manufacturing apparatus 100 of this embodiment have the same structures and functions as those of the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 of the first embodiment, and the detailed description thereof will thus be omitted because it is considered to be unnecessary.
[67] The OLED manufacturing apparatus 100 of this embodiment differs from the
OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 of the first embodiment in that an inorganic matter deposition chamber 158 is installed at one side of a fourth carrier chamber 115. Further, an organic matter print chamber 159, a hardening chamber 160, and the unloading chamber 140 installed along the side of a fifth carrier chamber 116.
[68] In order to form a sealing film when a large-size OLED is manufactured using the
OLED manufacturing apparatus 100 of this embodiment, an organic sealing film is printed on a substrate by the organic matter print chamber 159 and hardened by the hardening chamber 160, and the substrate is inserted into an inorganic matter deposition chamber 158 via a fourth buffer chamber 125 so that an inorganic sealing film is deposited on the organic sealing film. Then, the substrate is inserted into the organic matter print chamber 159 via the fourth buffer chamber 125 so that another organic sealing film is printed on the inorganic sealing film. Accordingly, except for the above-described step of forming the sealing film, the method using the OLED man¬ ufacturing apparatus 100 of this embodiment is the same as the method using the OLED manufacturing apparatus 1 of the first embodiment. Industrial Applicability [69] As apparent from the above description, the present invention provides an OLED manufacturing apparatus, in which steps of forming respective layers are rapidly and uniformly performed on all regions of a large-size substrate, thereby being suited to manufacturing of large-size OLEDs serving as next generation display elements.
[70] Further, the OLED manufacturing apparatus of the present invention forms a multi- layered sealing film including organic sealing films, an inorganic sealing film, and a glass sealing film, thereby preventing the glass sealing film from contacting a metal cathode film even in a large-size OLED. Accordingly, the OLED manufacturing apparatus of the present invention is suited to manufacturing of the large-size OLEDs.
[71] Although the preferred embodiments of the present invention have been disclosed for illustrative purposes, those skilled in the art will appreciate that various modi¬ fications, additions and substitutions are possible, without departing from the scope and spirit of the invention as disclosed in the accompanying claims.

Claims

Claims
[1] An OLED manufacturing apparatus comprising: a loading chamber, first, second, third, fourth, and fifth carrier chambers, and an unloading chamber arranged in a line; carrier robots respectively installed in the carrier chambers for carrying a substrate, and cassettes respectively installed in the loading and unloading chambers for loading the substrate; first, second, third, and fourth buffer chambers respectively sequentially interposed between the neighboring carrier chambers; a pre-treatment chamber disposed at one side of the first carrier chamber for pre¬ liminarily treating the substrate using plasma; an anode print chamber for printing an anode pattern on the substrate, and a first heating chamber for drying the substrate by heating, said anode print chamber and said first heating chamber being disposed at both sides of the second carrier chamber; a pixel print chamber for printing pixel patterns on the substrate, and a second heating chamber for drying the substrate by heating, said pixel print chamber and said second heating chamber being disposed at both sides of the third carrier chamber; a cathode deposition chamber disposed at one side of the fourth carrier chamber for depositing a cathode layer on the substrate; an organic matter print chamber for printing an organic sealing film on the substrate, an inorganic matter deposition chamber for depositing an inorganic sealing film on the substrate, and a hardening chamber for hardening the organic sealing film formed on the substrate, said organic matter print chamber, said inorganic matter deposition chamber, and said hardening chamber being disposed along the side of the fifth carrier chamber; and gate valves respectively provided in all the chambers for opening and closing openings respectively formed through the chambers.
[2] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein O /Ar or CF
4 gas is supplied to the pre-treatment chamber to preliminarily treat the substrate.
[3] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the anode print chamber uses an ink-jet printer to print the anode pattern on the substrate.
[4] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the first heating chamber or the second heating chamber dries the substrate by heating the substrate in an atmospheric pressure state or a vacuum state.
[5] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the pixel print chamber uses an ink-jet printer to print R, G, and B pixel patterns on the substrate.
[6] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein cooling means for cooling the substrate is installed in the second buffer chamber or the third buffer chamber.
[7] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein substrate- reversing means for reversing the substrate is installed in the third buffer chamber.
[8] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 7, wherein substrate- reversing means for reversing the substrate is installed in the fourth buffer chamber.
[9] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the organic matter print chamber uses a screen printer to print the organic sealing film on the substrate.
[10] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein, in the hardening chamber, ultraviolet rays are irradiated onto the organic sealing film to harden the organic sealing film.
[11] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein the inorganic matter deposition chamber uses a sputter to deposit the inorganic seal ing film on the substrate.
[12] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein a sealing glass substrate cassette for loading a sealing glass substrate is installed in the unloading chamber.
[13] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 12, wherein the unloading chamber serves as a channel for carrying the sealing glass substrate to the inside of the fifth carrier chamber.
[14] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 1, wherein: the fifth buffer chamber, and the sixth carrier chamber provided with carrying means for carrying the substrate are sequentially interposed between the third carrier chamber and the third buffer chamber; and a pixel patterning subsidiary chamber for depositing low molecular weight organic matter on the substrate is disposed at one side of the sixth carrier chamber.
[15] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 14, wherein the pixel patterning subsidiary chamber uses a shadow mask to deposit the low molecular weight organic matter on the substrate.
[16] An OLED manufacturing apparatus comprising: a loading chamber, first, second, third, fourth, and fifth carrier chambers, and an unloading chamber arranged in a line; carrier robots respectively installed in the carrier chambers for carrying a substrate, and cassettes respectively installed in the loading and unloading chambers for loading the substrate; first, second, third, and fourth buffer chambers respectively sequentially interposed between the neighboring carrier chambers; a pre-treatment chamber disposed at one side of the first carrier chamber for pre¬ liminarily treating the substrate using plasma; an anode print chamber for printing an anode pattern on the substrate, and a first heating chamber for drying the substrate by heating, said anode print chamber and said first heating chamber being disposed at both sides of the second carrier chamber; a pixel print chamber for printing pixel patterns on the substrate, and a second heating chamber for drying the substrate by heating, said pixel print chamber and said second heating chamber being disposed at both sides of the third carrier chamber; a cathode deposition chamber for depositing a cathode layer on the substrate, and an inorganic matter deposition chamber for depositing an inorganic sealing film on the substrate, said cathode deposition chamber and said inorganic matter deposition chamber being disposed at both sides of the fourth carrier chamber; an organic matter print chamber for printing an organic sealing film on the substrate, and a hardening chamber for hardening the organic sealing film formed on the substrate, said organic matter print chamber and said hardening chamber being disposed along the side of the fifth carrier chamber; and gate valves respectively provided in all the chambers for opening and closing openings respectively formed through the chambers.
[17] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 16, wherein O /Ar or
CF 4 gas is supplied to the pre-treatment chamber to preliminarily treat the substrate.
[18] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 16, wherein the anode print chamber uses an ink-jet printer to print the anode pattern on the substrate.
[19] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 16, wherein the first heating chamber or the second heating chamber dries the substrate by heating the substrate in an atmospheric pressure state or a vacuum state.
[20] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 16, wherein the pixel print chamber uses an ink-jet printer to print R, G, and B pixel patterns on the substrate.
[21] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 16, wherein cooling means for cooling the substrate is installed in the second buffer chamber or the third buffer chamber.
[22] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 16, wherein substrate- reversing means for reversing the substrate is installed in the third buffer chamber.
[23] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 22, wherein substrate- reversing means for reversing the substrate is installed in the fourth buffer chamber. [24] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 16, wherein the organic matter print chamber uses a screen printer to print the organic sealing film on the substrate. [25] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 16, wherein, in the hardening chamber, ultraviolet rays are irradiated onto the organic sealing film to harden the organic sealing film. [26] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 16, wherein the inorganic matter deposition uses a sputter to deposit the inorganic sealing film on the substrate. [27] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 16, wherein a sealing glass substrate cassette for loading a sealing glass substrate is installed in the unloading chamber. [28] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 27, wherein the unloading chamber serves as a channel for carrying the sealing glass substrate to the inside of the fifth carrier chamber. [29] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 16, wherein: the fifth buffer chamber, and the sixth carrier chamber provided with carrying means for carrying the substrate are sequentially interposed between the third carrier chamber and the third buffer chamber; and a pixel patterning subsidiary chamber for depositing low molecular weight organic matter on the substrate is disposed at one side of the sixth carrier chamber. [30] The OLED manufacturing apparatus as set forth in claim 29, wherein the pixel patterning subsidiary chamber uses a shadow mask to deposit the low molecular weight organic matter on the substrate.
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