JP2001244069A - Organic electroluminescent element - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an organic electroluminescent element having a narrow luminous range. SOLUTION: In an organic electroluminescent element which is formed on a transparent substrate 101 having a short side and a long side and which has at least one layer of luminous organic layer 103, by forming an electrode wiring pattern in which extracting terminals 108, 109 of an anode 102 and a cathode 104 are installed on the short side region of the transparent substrate, it is possible to get an organic electroluminescent element having a narrow luminous range.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an organic electroluminescent (hereinafter, EL) device having a narrow external width.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art An organic EL device having a structure in which at least one luminescent organic layer is sandwiched between an anode thin film and a cathode thin film,
The applied voltage can be greatly reduced as compared with the inorganic EL element, and the power consumption of the organic EL display device can be reduced as compared with the liquid crystal display device equipped with a backlight.
Therefore, development for obtaining a higher-performance organic EL device is being actively promoted through development and improvement of a new material, optimization of the device structure, and the like. With respect to organic EL elements, elements of various luminescent colors, and elements of high luminance and high efficiency have already been developed, and their use as pixels in display devices and light sources such as backlights are being promoted.

A conventional technique using an organic EL element as a light source is disclosed in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Hei 10-50124. This publication discloses a technique using an organic EL element having a linear light-emitting region as a light source of a front light for illuminating the liquid crystal display device from the front or a backlight for illuminating the liquid crystal display device from the back.

[0004]

However, the structure of the organic EL device in the above-mentioned prior art is difficult in terms of design. In particular, in an organic EL element having a light emitting region with a narrow width, there is a problem that it is difficult to provide an electrode extraction terminal and to secure an installation region.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention solves such a problem. An object of the present invention is to provide an organic EL device having an electrode pattern provided with an electrode lead-out terminal and having a narrow light-emitting region. It is.

[0006]

The present invention provides the following configurations.

(1) In an organic EL device in which at least one light-emitting organic thin film is sandwiched between an anode thin film and a cathode thin film on a transparent substrate, the outer shape of the transparent substrate is a first long side,
The organic EL element is a rectangle surrounded by a second long side, a first short side, and a second short side, wherein the luminescent organic thin film exists between the anode thin film and the cathode thin film. A first anode thin film terminal and a cathode, which are part of the anode thin film, comprising a light emitting portion, and a thin film terminal portion for connecting a wiring for supplying an external current to each of the anode thin film and the cathode thin film. An organic EL device, wherein a first cathode thin film terminal portion, which is a part of the thin film, is arranged side by side on the first short side.

[0010] According to the above configuration, since a wiring for supplying a current to the organic EL element can be connected to the thin film terminal portion disposed on the short side of the transparent substrate, the organic light emitting region having a narrow light emitting region can be connected.
This has the effect that an L element can be configured.

(2) In the organic EL device according to (1), the second substrate opposing the first short side of the transparent substrate.
A second anode thin film terminal portion which is a part of the anode thin film and a second cathode thin film terminal portion which is a part of the cathode thin film are further arranged side by side on the short side. Organic EL element.

According to the above structure, since the thin film terminals are arranged on both short sides of the transparent substrate, the element is likely to be generated when the thin film terminals are arranged only on one short side of the transparent substrate. This has the effect of suppressing the occurrence of uneven brightness due to uneven distribution of the current injected into the substrate.

(3) In the organic EL device according to the above (1) or (2), the cathode thin film and the light emitting region are arranged at positions near the first long side of the transparent substrate, and the width of the cathode thin film is Has the same width over the first cathode thin film terminal portion, the light emitting portion, and the second cathode thin film terminal portion, and the width of the anode thin film is the same as that of the cathode thin film region except for the anode thin film terminal portion. An organic EL element, wherein the width is obtained by adding at least the width of the anode thin film terminal portion to the width of the organic EL element.

[0012] According to the above configuration, since a wiring for supplying a current to the organic EL element can be connected to the thin-film terminal portion disposed on the short side of the transparent substrate, the organic EL having a narrow light-emitting region can be connected.
This has the effect that an L element can be configured.

(4) In the organic EL device according to any one of the above (1) to (3), the auxiliary electrode thin film having high conductivity is located on the anode thin film near the second long side of the transparent substrate. Wherein the organic E is formed at a position parallel to the cathode thin film and not overlapping with the cathode thin film.
L element.

According to the above configuration, since the auxiliary electrode having high conductivity is formed on the anode thin film, the voltage drop due to the electric resistance of the anode thin film, which generally uses a material having relatively high electric resistance, is reduced. And the driving voltage can be reduced.

(5) In the organic EL device according to any one of the above (1) to (3), the auxiliary electrode thin film is between the anode thin film and the transparent substrate, and An organic EL device, wherein the organic EL device is formed at a position near the long side in parallel with the cathode thin film.

According to the above configuration, since the highly conductive auxiliary electrode is formed in contact with the anode thin film, the voltage drop due to the electrical resistance of the anode thin film, which generally uses a material having a relatively high electrical resistance, is reduced. This has the effect that the size can be reduced and the driving voltage can be reduced.

(6) In the organic EL device of (4),
The auxiliary electrode thin film is made of the same material as the cathode thin film,
An organic EL device formed simultaneously with the cathode thin film.

According to the above structure, the auxiliary electrode made of the same material as the cathode, which is generally made of a material having relatively high conductivity, can be formed simultaneously with the cathode. Has the effect that can be.

(7) The organic EL device according to any one of (1) to (6), wherein the width of the light emitting region is 2 mm or less.

According to the above configuration, when the organic EL element is disposed on the end face of the light guide plate as a backlight or the like of a liquid crystal display device, light is emitted to the end face of the light guide plate by setting the width of the light emitting region to 2 mm or less. Can be introduced effectively.

[0021]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS A mobile phone according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below.

(First Embodiment) FIG. 1A is a plan view of a first embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
It is AB sectional drawing of (a). In FIG. 1A, some components are omitted for easy viewing.

The first embodiment has an outer shape of 6 mm × 50 m.
An anode 102 is formed on a transparent substrate 101 having a thickness of 0.7 mm and a thickness of 0.7 mm, at least one organic layer 103 having a light emitting function is formed thereon, and a cathode 104 and an auxiliary electrode 107 are formed thereon. It is one obtained by performing a sealing process with a transparent sealing substrate 106.

In the present embodiment, a general soda glass is used as a transparent substrate having a light transmitting property and a light guiding property, but other materials such as quartz, multi-component, rare-earth element-doped quartz, and rare-earth element-doped multi-component may be used. Glass materials can be used.

The anode is often used as an electrode on the light extraction side, and is not an exception in the present invention. Therefore, transparent or translucent electrodes are preferred. In the present invention, ITO (tin-doped indium oxide) is used as the transparent electrode 103, but IZO (zinc-doped indium oxide) is also used.
Etc. can be used.

The thickness of the anode is 50 to 500 nm, especially 5
A range from 0 to 300 nm is preferred. The upper limit is not particularly limited. However, if the thickness is too large, transmittance may drop or peeling may occur, and if the thickness is too small, a sufficient effect as an electrode may not be obtained, and the film at the time of manufacturing may not be obtained. There is also a problem in strength and the like.

In this embodiment, the width WA of the anode 102 is 4.5 mm, and the width wa of the anode thin film terminal 108 is 1.5 m.
m, and the width wc of the cathode thin film terminal 109 is 2 mm, but is not limited thereto.

In general, it is desirable that the organic layer 103 having a light emitting function is separated in function from a hole transport layer, a light emitting layer, and an electron transport layer. In the present embodiment, N, N′-diphenyl-N, N′-dinaphthyl-1,
1'-biphenyl-4,4'-diamine is formed into a thin film having a thickness of 50 nm by vacuum evaporation. A 50 nm thin film of a tris (8-hydroxyquinoline) aluminum complex, which is generally known as an electron transporting luminescent material, is formed on the hole transporting layer by vacuum evaporation. However, the organic material used for the organic layer and the configuration of the organic layer are not limited to this.

The thickness of the organic layer is not particularly limited, and varies depending on the forming method.
It is desirable that the thickness be about 00 nm, particularly 10 to 300 nm.

Further, for the organic layer having a light emitting function, various film forming techniques such as sputtering, spin coating, dipping, and ink jet method can be selected in addition to vacuum deposition, regardless of whether the organic layer is low molecular or high molecular.

The cathode 104 and the auxiliary electrode 107 may be made of a conductive material. In this embodiment, an alloy (magnesium and silver) obtained by mixing magnesium and silver in a ratio of 10: 1 by vacuum evaporation is used.
00 nm). However, the material of the cathode and the auxiliary electrode is not limited to this, and aluminum, lithium,
Simple metals such as calcium, or two components containing them,
A three-component alloy system is exemplified.

Further, in this embodiment, since the auxiliary electrode can be formed simultaneously with the cathode, the manufacturing process of the element can be simplified.

As a material of the sealing substrate 106, a flat and transparent or translucent material may be used. In this embodiment, general soda glass is used. But that's not all.

Adhesive 1 used for bonding sealing substrate
It is desirable that 05 is generally transparent or translucent, and has a property of hardly allowing moisture, active gas, and the like to pass through. In this embodiment, a photocurable epoxy resin is used. However, this is not a limitation, and a thermosetting epoxy resin or the like can also be used. Although not shown, when the bonding step deteriorates the organic thin film, a means for protecting the organic thin film is provided.

In this embodiment, the wiring pattern of the auxiliary electrode is not limited to this, but it is preferable that the auxiliary electrode does not overlap the cathode region.

In this embodiment, the light 110 generated in the organic layer is emitted to the transparent substrate side. In addition, the transparent substrate 10
It is also possible to use the light 111 emitted from the end face of the first.

Further, by providing the auxiliary electrode on the anode, the voltage drop due to the electric resistance of the anode is reduced, and the resistance value of the anode is reduced to about one tenth. Therefore, an organic EL element having lower driving voltage and less luminance unevenness can be obtained.

According to this embodiment, an anode thin film terminal portion 108 and a cathode thin film terminal portion 109 are provided on the short side of the transparent substrate.
An organic EL device having a linear light emitting region of mx 45 mm is obtained. Such a linear light source can be used as a backlight light source for illuminating a liquid crystal display element.

When the light source of this embodiment is disposed on the end face of the light guide plate as a light source for a backlight or a front light, the width of the light emitting region is preferably narrow in order to effectively introduce light to the end face of the light guide plate. The width of the light emitting region is preferably 2 mm or less, more preferably 1 mm or less.

In this embodiment, since the anode thin film terminal portion and the cathode thin film terminal portion are concentrated on both sides of the transparent substrate, the wiring from the power supply can be simplified, and the device can be reduced in size and thickness. Becomes

(Second Embodiment) FIG. 2A is a plan view of a second embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
(A) is CD sectional drawing. In FIG. 2A, some components are omitted.

The second embodiment has an outer shape of 6 mm × 50 m.
m, an auxiliary electrode 107 on a transparent substrate 101 having a thickness of 0.7 mm.
Is formed, an anode 102 is formed, at least one organic layer 103 having a light-emitting function is formed thereon, and a cathode 104 is formed, and the resultant structure is sealed with a transparent or translucent sealing substrate 106. Things.

In the present embodiment, the wiring pattern of the auxiliary electrode is not limited to this, but since the auxiliary electrode is provided on the side from which light is extracted, it is desirable that the auxiliary electrode does not overlap the light emitting portion.

According to the present embodiment, since the auxiliary electrode is provided between the anode and the transparent substrate, the voltage drop due to the electric resistance of the anode is reduced, the driving voltage is lower, and the organic EL element with less luminance unevenness is obtained. can get.

Further, since the auxiliary electrode is provided between the transparent substrate and the anode, the area of the auxiliary electrode can be increased, and the voltage drop due to the electric resistance of the anode can be further reduced.

According to this embodiment, an anode thin film terminal portion and a cathode thin film terminal portion are provided on the short side of the transparent substrate and have a size of 2 mm × 45 mm.
An organic EL device having a linear light emitting region is obtained.

In this embodiment, since the anode thin film terminal portion and the cathode thin film terminal portion are concentrated on the short side of the transparent substrate, the wiring from the power supply can be simplified, and the device can be reduced in size and thickness. Is possible.

The element constituting materials of the organic EL element in the present embodiment are the same as those in the first embodiment, but are not limited thereto.

(Third Embodiment) FIG. 3A is a plan view of a third embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
It is an EF sectional view of (a). In FIG. 3A, some components are omitted for easy viewing.

The third embodiment has an outer shape of 6 mm × 50 m.
m, an anode 102 is formed on a transparent substrate 101 having a thickness of 0.7 mm, at least one organic layer 103 having a light emitting function is formed thereon, and a cathode 104 and an auxiliary electrode are further formed. It is obtained by performing a sealing process with a transparent or translucent sealing substrate 106.

In this embodiment, since the anode thin film terminal portion and the cathode thin film terminal portion are provided on both short sides of the transparent substrate, the current injected into the organic EL element is evenly distributed. Further, since the auxiliary electrode is formed, an organic EL element having a low driving voltage and no luminance unevenness can be obtained.

Further, in this embodiment, since the auxiliary electrode can be formed simultaneously with the cathode, the manufacturing process of the element can be simplified.

According to this embodiment, an anode thin film terminal portion and a cathode thin film terminal portion are provided on both short sides of a transparent substrate.
An organic EL device having a linear light emitting region of 0 mm is obtained.

Further, in this embodiment, since the anode thin film terminal portion and the cathode thin film terminal portion are concentrated on both sides of the transparent substrate, the wiring from the power supply can be simplified, and the device can be reduced in size and thickness. Is possible.

The element constituting materials of the organic EL element in this embodiment are the same as those in the first embodiment, but are not limited thereto.

[0056]

As described above, the organic EL of the present invention
The element has an anode thin film terminal portion and a cathode thin film terminal portion arranged on at least one short side of a transparent substrate having a short side and a long side, and has a light emitting region with a narrow width. The organic EL linear light source using the organic EL element can be used as a light source for a backlight or a front light of a liquid crystal display device, and is a linear light source. Display with high brightness and no brightness unevenness is possible. In addition, since the terminal portions for taking out both electrodes are concentrated on the short side of the transparent substrate, the wiring from the power supply can be simplified, and the device can be reduced in size and thickness.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIGS. 1A and 1B are diagrams showing a structure of an organic EL element (light source) according to a first embodiment of the present invention, wherein FIG. 1A is a plan view, and FIG. It is sectional drawing which followed the B line.

FIGS. 2A and 2B are diagrams showing a structure of an organic EL element (light source) according to a second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2A is a plan view, and FIG. It is sectional drawing along the D line.

FIGS. 3A and 3B are diagrams showing a structure of an organic EL element (light source) according to a third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3A is a plan view, and FIG. It is sectional drawing along the F line.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 101 ... Transparent substrate 102 ... Anode 103 ... Emissive organic layer 104 ... Cathode 105 ... Sealant 106 ... Sealing substrate 107 ... Auxiliary electrode 108 ... Anode thin film terminal 109 ... Cathode thin film terminal 110 ... Radiation light 111 ... Edge radiation light WA ... Width of anode wa ... Width of anode thin film terminal wc ... Width of cathode thin film terminal

Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Osamu Yokoyama 3-3-5 Yamato, Suwa-shi, Nagano Seiko Epson Corporation F-term (reference) 3K007 AB18 BA01 CA01 CB01 DA02 EB00 FA01 5G435 AA18 BB05 EE26 FF11 GG24 GG25 KK07 LL07

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. An organic electroluminescent device comprising at least one luminescent organic thin film sandwiched between an anode thin film and a cathode thin film on a transparent substrate, wherein the outer shape of the transparent substrate is a first long side and a second long side. The organic electroluminescent element is a rectangle surrounded by a long side, a first short side, and a second short side, and the organic electroluminescence element has a light emitting organic thin film between the anode thin film and the cathode thin film. And a thin film terminal portion for connecting a wiring for supplying an external current to each of the anode thin film and the cathode thin film, and a first anode thin film terminal and a cathode thin film which are a part of the anode thin film. An organic electroluminescent element, wherein a first cathode thin film terminal portion as a part is arranged side by side on the first short side. 2. A second anode thin film terminal part which is a part of the anode thin film and a part of the cathode thin film on the second short side of the transparent substrate opposite to the first short side. 2. The organic electroluminescence device according to claim 1, wherein certain second cathode thin film terminals are further arranged side by side. 3. The cathode thin film and the light emitting region are arranged at positions near the first long side of the transparent substrate, and the width of the cathode thin film is equal to the first cathode thin film terminal portion, the light emitting portion and The width of the anode thin film is the same as the width of the anode thin film in a region other than the anode thin film terminal portion, and is at least the width of the cathode thin film plus the width of the anode thin film terminal portion. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein
Alternatively, the organic electroluminescent device according to any one of the above items 2. 4. An auxiliary electrode thin film having high conductivity is formed on the anode thin film at a position near the second long side of the transparent substrate, at a position parallel to the cathode thin film and not overlapping with the cathode thin film. The organic electroluminescent device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein 5. A method according to claim 1, wherein said auxiliary electrode thin film is located between said anode thin film and said transparent substrate,
The organic electroluminescence device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the organic electroluminescence device is formed at a position near the long side in parallel with the cathode thin film. 6. The organic electroluminescence device according to claim 4, wherein said auxiliary electrode thin film is made of the same material as said cathode thin film and is formed simultaneously with said cathode thin film. 7. The organic electroluminescent device according to claim 1, wherein the width of the light emitting region is 2 mm or less.