This application is a Section 371 National Stage Application of International Application No. PCT/CN2020/075535, filed Feb. 17, 2020, which in turn claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 201910253178.X filed on Mar. 29, 2019 in the China National Intellectual Property Administration, the disclosure of which is hereby incorporated by reference in its entirety.
The present disclosure relates to a field of Micro LED manufacturing technology, and particularly, to a method and an apparatus for mass transfer of Micro LEDs.
Compared with liquid crystal display panels of related art, Micro LED (Micro Light Emitting Diode) display panels have the advantages of higher resolution, better contrast, faster response time and lower energy consumption, and are therefore regarded as the next generation display technology. After the manufacture of Micro LED chips is completed, tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands of Micro LED chips need to be transferred to a drive circuit board to form an LED array. This process is called “mass transfer”. Due to a small size of Micro LED, how to ensure the transfer efficiency and yield simultaneously has become a major problem in the industrialization process of Micro LED.
In the related art, for the mass transfer process of the red, blue and green (RGB) three-color Micro LEDs, the transfer method is generally performed in stages, that is, only Micro LED chips with one same color can be transferred at a time, and the corresponding shaped Micro LED chips fall into transfer cavities under actions of vibration and wind. Therefore, for the RGB three-color Micro LED chips of the same shape, a mass transfer process is required to be performed three times. Although this method is simple in process and high in yield, the efficiency is low.
Therefore, the current mass transfer technology of Micro LEDs still needs to be improved.
According to an aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method for mass transfer of Micro LEDs, comprising:
providing Micro LED chips, the Micro LED chips comprising first Micro LED chips capable of emitting a first color and second Micro LED chips capable of emitting a second color, the first color being different from the second color, a shape of the first Micro LED chip being different from a shape of the second Micro LED chip;
dumping at one time the first Micro LED chips and the second Micro LED chips onto a transfer surface of a transfer mold, the transfer surface being formed with first type transfer cavities and second type transfer cavities, the first type transfer cavity having a first shape that matches the shape of the first Micro LED chip, the second type transfer cavity having a second shape that matches the shape of the second Micro LED chip; and
vibrating the transfer mold to cause the first and second Micro LED chips to fall into shape-matched first and second type transfer cavities respectively, and tilting the transfer mold so that the Micro LED chips that have not fallen into the first and second type transfer cavities leave the transfer surface.
In some embodiments, a lateral section of the first Micro LED chip is different in shape from a lateral section of the second Micro LED chip.
In some embodiments, each of the first and second Micro LED chips has a substantially trapezoidal or triangular lateral section.
In some embodiment, each of the first and second Micro LED chips has a substantially trapezoidal longitudinal section.
In some embodiments, the trapezoidal longitudinal section of each of the first and second Micro LED chips has an included angle in a range of approximately 75° to approximately 85°.
In some embodiments, a ratio of the first Micro LED chips to the second Micro LED chips in quantity is approximately 1:1.
In an exemplary embodiment, the Micro LED chips further comprise third Micro LED chips capable of emitting a third color, the third color being different from the first color and the second color, a shape of the third Micro LED chip being different from the shape of the first Micro LED chip and the shape of the second Micro LED chip; and the transfer surface of the transfer mold is provided with third type transfer cavities, the third type transfer cavity having a third shape that matches the shape of the third Micro LED chip.
In an exemplary embodiment, a lateral section of the first Micro LED chip is different in shape from a lateral section of the second Micro LED chip, and a lateral section of the third Micro LED chip is different in shape from both the lateral section of the first Micro LED chip and the lateral section of the second Micro LED chip.
In an exemplary embodiment, each of the first, second and third Micro LED chips has a substantially trapezoidal or triangular lateral section.
In an exemplary embodiment, the first Micro LED chip has an isosceles trapezoidal lateral section, the second Micro LED chip has a right-angle-at-left trapezoidal lateral section, and the third Micro LED chip has a right-angle-at-right trapezoidal lateral section.
In an exemplary embodiment, each of the first, second and third Micro LED chips has a substantially trapezoidal longitudinal section.
In an exemplary embodiment, the trapezoidal longitudinal section of each of the first, second and third Micro LED chips has an included angle within a range of approximately 75° to approximately 85°.
In an exemplary embodiment, a ratio of the first Micro LED chips, the second Micro LED chips to the third Micro LED chips in quantity is approximately 1:1:1.
In an exemplary embodiment, an angle of tilting of the transfer mold is within a range of approximately 15° to approximately 30°.
In an exemplary embodiment, the method may further comprises: detecting the transfer surface with an automatic optical inspection equipment, and filling, with a manipulator, empty transfer cavities with the shaped-matched Micro LED chips respectively; testing component function of the Micro LED chips on the transfer mold, removing, with the manipulator, defective Micro LED chips, and then filling non-defective shaped-matched Micro LED chips; and soldering and packaging the Micro LED chips on the transfer mold to a circuit board in position.
In another aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided an apparatus for mass transfer of Micro LEDs, comprising:
a transfer mold, having a transfer surface that is formed with transfer cavities of different types, the transfer cavities of different types having different shapes, the transfer cavities of each type having a shape suitable to match a shape of Micro LED chips with one same color; and
a vibrating source in contact with the transfer mold.
In some embodiments, each of the transfer cavities has a vacuum suction hole provided at a bottom thereof.
In some embodiments, each of the transfer cavities has a depth in a range of approximately 2.5 microns to approximately 5 microns.
Additional aspects and advantages of the present disclosure will be partially given in the following description, and some will become apparent from the following description, or be learned through practice of the present disclosure.
The embodiments of the present disclosure are described in detail below. Those skilled in the art will understand that the following embodiments are intended to explain the present disclosure, and should not be regarded as limiting the present disclosure. Unless specifically stated, specific technologies or conditions are not explicitly described in the following embodiments, those skilled in the art can follow the common technologies or conditions in the field or according to the product specification.
The present disclosure is based on the inventor's following findings.
In the course of research, the inventor of the present disclosure has proposed a method for mass transfer of Micro LEDs. Micro LED chips of different colors are designed to have different shapes, and multiple types of transfer cavities are formed on the transfer mold, each type of transfer cavities has a corresponding shape that matches the shape of the Micro LED chips of one color, so that the Micro LED chips of each color will only be filled into the type of transfer cavities having the corresponding shape, which can realize huge transfer process of Micro LED chips of many different colors at one time, so as to improve the transfer efficiency exponentially while ensuring a high transfer yield.
According to an inventive concept of the present disclosure, there is provided a method for mass transfer of Micro LEDs, comprising: providing Micro LED chips, the Micro LED chips comprising first Micro LED chips capable of emitting a first color and second Micro LED chips capable of emitting a second color, the first color being different from the second color, a shape of the first Micro LED chip being different from a shape of the second Micro LED chip; dumping at one time the first Micro LED chips and the second Micro LED chips onto a transfer surface of a transfer mold, the transfer surface being formed with first type transfer cavities and second type transfer cavities, the first type transfer cavity having a first shape that matches the shape of the first Micro LED chip, the second type transfer cavity having a second shape that matches the shape of the second Micro LED chip; and vibrating the transfer mold to cause the first and second Micro LED chips to fall into the shape-matched first and second type transfer cavities respectively, and tilting the transfer mold so that the Micro LED chips that have not fallen into the first and second type transfer cavities leave the transfer surface. Further, a lateral section of the first Micro LED chip is different in shape from a lateral section of the second Micro LED chip. For example, each of the first and second Micro LED chips has a substantially trapezoidal or triangular lateral section. Furthermore, each of the first and second Micro LED chips has a substantially trapezoidal longitudinal section. The trapezoidal longitudinal section of each of the first and second Micro LED chips has an included angle in a range of approximately 75° to approximately 85°. A ratio of the first Micro LED chips to the second Micro LED chips in quantity is approximately 1:1. An angle of tilting of the transfer mold in a range of approximately 15° to approximately 30°.
According to an aspect of the present disclosure, referring to
Step S100 is to provide Micro LED chips, the Micro LED chips comprising first Micro LED chips capable of emitting a first color and second Micro LED chips capable of emitting a second color, the first color being different from the second color, a shape of the first Micro LED chip being different from a shape of the second Micro LED chip.
In this step, Micro LED chips 100 of multiple colors are provided, and the shape of the Micro LED chip 110 capable of emitting the first color is different from the shape of the second Micro LED chip 120 capable of emitting the second color. In this way, the Micro LED chips 100 of different colors can have different shapes.
According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the lateral section of the first Micro LED chip 110 is different in shape from the lateral section of the second Micro LED chip 120. The specific shape of the lateral section of the Micro LED chips 100 can be designed accordingly by those skilled in the art according to the specific arrangement of the Micro LED component array, such as a triangle or a quadrilateral. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the lateral section of the Micro LED chip 100 may be trapezoidal, for example, a trapezoid of which upper, lower, left, and right sides are asymmetrical, so that the shape of the Micro LED chips 100 may be different even after being flipped or turned, therefore, the matching of Micro LED chips 100 of different colors with different types of transfer cavities 220 on the transfer mold 200 can be made higher.
According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the specific color number of the Micro LED chips 100 is also not particularly limited, and those skilled in the art can design accordingly according to the color design of the Micro LED component array.
In an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, referring to
In some specific examples, the longitudinal section of the Micro LED chip 100 may be rectangular. Thus, the prismatic Micro LED chip 100 of equal width at the top and bottom will not easily fall out of the transfer cavities 220 on the transfer mold 200. Even if the transfer mold is subsequently tilted at a large angle, the Micro LED chips 100 have fallen into the transfer cavities 220 are not easy to come off.
In some other specific examples, referring to
According to the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure, referring to
A step S200 is to dump at one time the first Micro LED chips and the second Micro LED chips onto a transfer surface of a transfer mold.
In this step, excess Micro LED chips 100 are dumped onto the transfer surface 210 of the transfer mold 200. Referring to
In an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure, for the Micro LED chips 100 of three colors, referring to
In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the ratio of the first Micro LED chips 110, the second Micro LED chips 120 to the third Micro LED chips 130 in quantity may be approximately 1:1:1. Thus, for the transfer mold 200 arranged in a R/G/B sequential array as shown in
A step S300 is to vibrate the transfer mold to cause the first and second Micro LED chips to fall into shape-matched first and second type transfer cavities respectively, and to tilt the transfer mold so that the Micro LED chips that have not fallen into the first and second type transfer cavities leave the transfer surface.
In this step, the Micro LED chips 100 scattered on the transfer surface 210 are fallen into the transfer cavities 220 by vibrating, and the transfer mold 200 is tilted to make the Micro LED chips 100 that have not fallen into the transfer cavities 220 leave the transfer surface 210. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the Micro LED chips 100 that have fallen into the transfer cavities 220 can also be suctioned by the vacuum suction holes 230 at the bottom of the transfer cavities 220, so tilting of the transfer mold 200 will not cause the Micro LED chips 100 that have fallen into the transfer cavities 200 to be easy to come off.
In some embodiments of the present disclosure, an angle of tilting of the transfer mold is in a range of approximately 15° to approximately 30°. In this way, by tilting the transfer mold 200 in the above-mentioned small angle range, the Micro LED chips 100 that have not fallen into the transfer cavities 220 can be separated from the transfer surface 210, so that no Micro LED chips 100 that have not fallen into the transfer cavities 220 will remain on the transfer surface 210.
In some embodiments of the present disclosure, as shown in
A step S400 is to detect the transfer surface with an automatic optical inspection equipment, and to fill, with a manipulator 300, empty transfer cavities with the shape-matched Micro LED chips respectively.
In this step, the automatic optical inspection equipment detects the transfer surface 210 and, referring to
A step S500 is to test component function of the Micro LED chips on the transfer mold, to remove, with the manipulator 300, defective Micro LED chips, and then to fill good Micro LED chips of the same shape.
In this step, the transfer mold 200 that has filled with the Micro LED chips 100 in the step S400 is connected to a test substrate to test the functions of the components, and then the manipulator 300 is used to remove the defective Micro LED chips 100 and then refill good Micro LED chips 100, as such, the inspection before soldering is completed.
A step S600 is to solder and package a circuit board to the Micro LED chips on the transfer mold in position.
In this step, a substrate for complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) or thin-film transistor (TFT) fabricated with the pixel drive circuit is soldered and packaged to the Micro LED chips 100 detected in step S500. In this way, addressing control and individual driving of each pixel can be realized, and the manufacturing method can allow Micro LED chips 100 of three or more different colors to be fabricated on the Micro LED substrate through one mass transfer, one soldering and packaging.
In summary, according to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the present disclosure proposes a mass transfer method, firstly Micro LED chips of different colors are designed to be different shapes, and then various types of transfer cavities on the transfer mold are designed to be different shapes, so that a mass transfer process of Micro LED chips of at least two colors can be realized at one time, and the shape of one type of transfer cavities on the transfer mold only matches the shape of Micro LED chips of one color, so as to improve the transfer efficiency exponentially, while ensuring a high transfer yield.
In an aspect of the present disclosure, the present disclosure provides an apparatus for mass transfer of Micro LEDs.
According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the apparatus for mass transfer of Micro LEDs comprises a transfer mold 200 and a vibrating source. A transfer surface of the transfer mold 200 is formed with transfer cavities 220 of different types, the transfer cavities 220 of different types have different shapes, and the transfer cavities 220 of each type having a shape suitable to match a shape of Micro LED chips of one color. The vibrating source is in contact with the transfer mold.
In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the apparatus for mass transfer of Micro LEDs may further comprise a blower, and the blower is disposed on one side of the transfer mold. In this way, the wind can assist the vibration to make the Micro LED chips fall into the transfer cavities 200 faster.
In some embodiments of the present disclosure, a bottom of each transfer cavity 220 may be provided with a vacuum suction hole 230. In this way, the Micro LED chip 100 of truncated pyramid shape falls into the transfer cavities 220 and can be suctioned by vacuum, so that tilting of the transfer mold 200 does not cause the problem that the Micro LED chips 100 come off the transfer cavities 220.
In some embodiments of the present disclosure, each transfer cavity 220 has a depth in a range of approximately 2.5 microns to approximately 5 microns. In this way, the Micro LED chip 100 with a thickness in a range of approximately 2.5 μm to approximately 5 μm can fall into the transfer cavities 220 at this depth, thereby making the one-time mass transfer shorter in time and more efficient.
According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the mass transfer apparatus may further include a vacuum component, the automatic optical inspection component, the manipulator 300, a test substrate, a soldering component, a packaging component, etc., those skilled in the art may supplement accordingly according to specific steps of the mass transfer method, which will not be repeated herein.
In summary, according to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the present disclosure proposes a mass transfer apparatus, in which multiple types of transfer cavities on the transfer surface of the transfer mold are designed into different shapes, and one type of transfer cavities has a shape suitable to match a shape of Micro LED chips of one color. In this way, the mass transfer apparatus can realize the transfer of Micro LED chips of multiple colors at a time, thereby enabling the Micro LED component array to be manufactured in shorter period and more efficient.
In the description of the present disclosure, it should be understood that the terms “center”, “longitudinal”, “transverse”, “length”, “width”, “thickness”, “upper”, “lower”, “front”, “rear”, “left”, “right”, “vertical”, “horizontal”, “top”, “bottom”, “inner”, “outer”, “clockwise”, “counterclockwise”, “axial”, “radial”, “circumferential”, etc. indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the drawings, only for the convenience of describing the present disclosure and simplifying the description, rather than indicating or implying the apparatus or elements must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be construed as limiting the present disclosure.
In addition, the terms “first”, “second”, and “third” are for descriptive purposes only, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of indicated technical features. Thus, the features defined as “first”, “second”, and “third” may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of the features. In the description of the present disclosure, the meaning of “plurality” is at least two, for example, two, three, etc., unless specifically defined otherwise.
In the description of this specification, the description referring to the terms “one embodiment”, “some embodiments”, “examples”, “specific examples”, or “some examples” means specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described in conjunction with the embodiment(s) or example(s), is/are included in at least one embodiment or example of the present disclosure. In this specification, the schematic representation of the above terms does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Moreover, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in any one or more embodiments or examples. In addition, without contradicting each other, those skilled in the art may combine and link different embodiments or examples and features of the different embodiments or examples described in this specification.
Although the embodiments of the present disclosure have been shown and described above, it should be understood that the above-mentioned embodiments are exemplary and cannot be construed as limiting the present disclosure. Those skilled in the art may make changes, modifications, substitutions, and variations to the above-described embodiments within the scope of the present disclosure.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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201910253178.X | Mar 2019 | CN | national |
Filing Document | Filing Date | Country | Kind |
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PCT/CN2020/075535 | 2/17/2020 | WO | 00 |
Publishing Document | Publishing Date | Country | Kind |
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WO2020/199771 | 10/8/2020 | WO | A |
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First Chinese Office Action dated Jun. 2, 2020, received for corresponding Chinese Application No. 201910253178.X, 23 pages. |
Number | Date | Country | |
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20210233795 A1 | Jul 2021 | US |