JP2006066202A - Method and device of manufacturing vapor deposition component - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a method and device of manufacturing a vapor deposition component which are effective for forming a parted layer of a metal back film and a getter film in order to reduce damages due to discharge. <P>SOLUTION: When a vaporizing object vaporized from a vapor deposition source 100 is vapor deposited on the surface of a substrate 2, the surface of the substrate is arranged inclined to the main stream direction in which the vaporizing object flows, and the vapor deposition state of the vaporizing object is made to form a parting region 7b at the shadow portion of the surface of the substrate 2 against the main stream direction. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a method and an apparatus for manufacturing a vapor deposition part useful for obtaining a part of an image display device having a phosphor screen layer, and an invention that is effective when applied to a step of separately forming a metal back film, a getter film, and the like. It is.

  In recent years, as a next-generation image display device, development of a flat-type image display device in which a large number of electron-emitting devices are arranged and opposed to a phosphor screen has been advanced. There are various types of electron-emitting devices, all of which basically use field emission, and display devices using these electron-emitting devices are generally called field emission displays (hereinafter referred to as FED). )is called. A display device using a surface conduction type emitter among FEDs is also called a surface conduction type electron emission display (hereinafter referred to as SED). In this application, the term FED is used as a general term including SED.

The FED generally has a front substrate and a rear substrate that are arranged to face each other with a predetermined gap, and these substrates are joined together by connecting peripheral portions to each other through a rectangular frame-shaped side wall. Is configured. The inside of the vacuum vessel is maintained at a high vacuum with a degree of vacuum of about 10 ⁻⁴ Pa or less. Further, in order to support an atmospheric pressure load applied to the rear substrate and the front substrate, a plurality of support members are disposed between these substrates.

  A phosphor screen including red, blue, and green phosphor layers is formed on the inner surface of the front substrate, and a plurality of electron-emitting devices that emit electrons that excite the phosphor to emit light are provided on the inner surface of the rear substrate. ing. A large number of scanning lines and signal lines are formed in a matrix and connected to each electron-emitting device.

  An anode voltage is applied to the phosphor screen, and the electron beam emitted from the electron-emitting device is accelerated by the anode voltage and collides with the phosphor screen, whereby the phosphor emits light and an image is displayed.

  In such an FED, the gap between the front substrate and the rear substrate can be set to several millimeters or less, which is lighter than a cathode ray tube (CRT) currently used as a display of a television or a computer. Thinning can be achieved.

  In the FED configured as described above, in order to obtain practical display characteristics, a phosphor that uses a phosphor similar to a normal cathode ray tube and further has an aluminum thin film called a metal back on the phosphor. Must be used.

  In this case, the anode voltage applied to the phosphor screen is desired to be at least several kV, preferably 10 kV or more. However, the gap between the front substrate and the rear substrate cannot be made too large from the viewpoint of resolution, characteristics of the support member, etc., and needs to be set to about 1 to 2 mm. Therefore, in the FED, when a high anode voltage is applied to the phosphor screen, it is inevitable that a strong electric field is formed in a small gap between the front substrate and the rear substrate, and discharge (insulation breakdown) between the two substrates becomes a problem. .

  When discharge occurs, a current of 100 A or more may flow instantaneously, which may cause destruction or deterioration of the electron-emitting device and the phosphor screen, and further destruction of the drive circuit. These are collectively referred to as discharge damage. Such a discharge that leads to the occurrence of a defect is not allowed as a product. Therefore, in order to put the FED into practical use, it must be configured so that damage due to discharge does not occur over a long period of time. However, it is very difficult to completely suppress the discharge over a long period of time.

  On the other hand, instead of preventing the discharge from occurring, a measure to suppress the scale of the discharge is also conceivable so that the influence on the electron-emitting device can be ignored even if the discharge occurs. As a technique related to such a concept, for example, in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2000-31642, a notch is formed in a metal back provided on a phosphor screen to form a zigzag pattern, etc. A technique for increasing inductance and resistance is disclosed. Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 10-326583 discloses a technique for dividing or dividing a metal back.

  When these techniques are applied, it is necessary to remove a part of the metal back formed in advance by some means. Or when forming a metal back, it is necessary to set it as the manufacturing method which masks, for example, performs and forms a metal back only in a predetermined area | region.

  In order to maintain the degree of vacuum over a long period of time, instead of exhausting the panel after sealing, a gas adsorption film, usually called a getter, is formed on the phosphor screen in a vacuum chamber and exposed to the atmosphere as it is. And a method of sealing the front substrate and the rear substrate is preferable.

  In such a case, even if the metal back is divided as described above, this time, the getter film becomes a continuous film, and the effect of dividing the metal back layer is substantially lost. Therefore, it is necessary to divide the getter film.

  The present invention is for solving such problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a method and apparatus for manufacturing a vapor deposition component effective for forming a divided metal back film or getter film layer. There is.

  In order to solve the above problems, in one embodiment of the present invention, when vaporized from a vapor deposition source is deposited on the surface of the substrate, the surface of the substrate is inclined with respect to the main flow direction in which the vaporized material flows. And the vapor deposition state of the vaporized material forms a segmented region in the shaded portion of the surface of the substrate with respect to the main flow direction.

  According to the above method, the metal dividing region can be formed relatively easily in the vapor deposition component.

  Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. First, an image display apparatus to which the present invention is applied will be described.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the FED includes a front substrate 2 and a rear substrate 1 each made of rectangular glass, and these substrates are arranged to face each other with a gap of 1 to 2 mm. The front substrate 2 and the rear substrate 1 are joined to each other through a rectangular frame-shaped side wall 3, and a flat rectangular vacuum envelope whose inside is maintained at a high vacuum of about 10 ⁻⁴ Pa or less. The device 4 is configured.

  A phosphor screen 6 is formed on the inner surface of the front substrate 2. As will be described later, the phosphor screen 6 is composed of a phosphor layer that emits red, green, and blue light and a matrix-shaped black light shielding layer. The phosphor layer is formed in stripes or dots. A metal back layer 7 that functions as an anode electrode is formed on the phosphor screen 6. During the display operation, a predetermined anode voltage is applied to the metal back layer 7.

  On the inner surface of the back substrate 1, a large number of electron-emitting devices 8 that emit an electron beam for exciting the phosphor layer are provided. These electron-emitting devices 8 are arranged in a plurality of columns and a plurality of rows corresponding to each pixel. The electron-emitting device is driven through a matrix wiring (not shown).

  In addition, a large number of spacers 10 formed in a plate shape or a column shape are disposed between the back substrate 1 and the front substrate 2 in order to support the atmospheric pressure acting on these substrates.

  An anode voltage is applied to the phosphor screen 6 via the metal back layer 7, and the electron beam emitted from the electron emitter 8 is accelerated by the anode voltage and collides with the phosphor screen 6. Thereby, the corresponding phosphor layer emits light and an image is displayed.

  Moreover, said metal back layer 7 is manufactured by the manufacturing method of this invention, and is divided | segmented into stripe form. As a result, even if an unnecessary discharge occurs, the discharge is small and does not damage the element.

  Next, the phosphor screen 6 and the metal back layer 7 in the FED will be described in detail. In the present invention, the term “metal back layer” is used. However, this layer is not limited to metal, and various materials can be used. However, in this application, the term metal back layer is used for convenience.

As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, the phosphor screen 6 provided on the inner surface of the front substrate 2 has phosphor layers R, G, B, and a black light shielding layer 22, and is made of an electrically insulating material. Is formed. The black light shielding layer 22 is formed by, for example, a large number of stripe portions 22 a arranged in parallel with a predetermined gap and a rectangular frame portion 22 e extending along the periphery of the phosphor screen 6. The black light shielding layer 22 is formed, for example, by applying a mixture of carbon and a binder, and the binder content is set to 80% or less. Also, a large number of phosphor layers R that emit red, blue, and green light. , G, and B are formed between the stripe portions 22 a of the black light shielding layer 22. The phosphor layers R, G, and B may be arranged in a stripe shape, a vertical and horizontal matrix shape, a staggered shape, or a lattice shape.

  Further, a convex insulating layer 22 b is provided on the stripe portion 22 a of the black light shielding layer 22, and this convex insulating layer 22 b is used for obtaining a divided state of the metal back layer 7. Various methods can be used to form the convex insulating layer 22b. Although the figure shows a single peak shape as a convex shape, it is not limited to this number or shape. In short, the convex insulating layer 22b may have a function of obtaining a division of the metal back layer 7.

  The metal back layer 7 is collectively formed on almost the entire phosphor screen 6 by a vacuum thin film process. For example, the metal back layer 7 is formed by evaporating or sputtering aluminum on the phosphor screen 6 in a vacuum atmosphere.

  At this time, if the film is formed directly on the phosphor layers R, G, and B, the vapor deposition surface of the phosphor layer is uneven, so that a mirror surface cannot be formed. Therefore, a method of forming the metal back layer 7 after smoothing the surfaces of the phosphor layers R, G, B with lacquer or the like is well known. The smoothing process using the lacquer is selectively performed only on the phosphor layers R, G, and B, and the convex surface on the black light shielding layer 22 is maintained.

  A region of the metal back layer 7 that overlaps the phosphor layers R, G, and B constitutes an electrically continuous stripe-shaped conductive thin film 7a. On the other hand, a region of the metal back layer 7 that overlaps the black light shielding layer 22 is formed as a discontinuous divided region 7b. That is, when the metal back layer 7 is formed on the black light-shielding layer 22 by vapor deposition or the like, a large number of shadow portions that are not deposited by the convex insulating layer 22b are generated. As a result, the discontinuous divided region 7b is surely formed, and the metal back layer 7 becomes an electrically divided thin film.

  The metal back layer 7 is formed including a terminal portion 31 for energizing the metal back layer. The film thickness of the metal back layer 7 is preferably about 50 to 200 nm in consideration of electron beam transmittance and film strength.

  According to the FED configured as described above, the metal back layer 7 as the conductive thin film has the electrically discontinuous dividing region 7b in the region overlapping with the black light shielding layer 22, and thus the front substrate. Even when a discharge occurs between 2 and the back substrate 1, the discharge current at that time can be sufficiently suppressed, and damage due to the discharge can be avoided.

  As a result, the anode voltage can be increased, the gap between the front substrate and the rear substrate can be reduced, and an image display device with improved display characteristics such as luminance and resolution can be obtained. In addition, phosphor degradation becomes a problem as the anode voltage is low. However, since the anode voltage can be set higher as described above, phosphor degradation can be mitigated and the life of the product can be extended.

  Further, by forming the metal back layer 7 by a vacuum film formation process, a metal back layer including an electrically discontinuous region located on the light shielding layer is formed on the entire surface of the phosphor screen by a single film formation process. It can be formed in a lump. As a result, it is possible to manufacture an image display device that is not damaged by electric discharge at a low cost.

  FIG. 6 shows a characteristic deposition process of the present invention. In the present invention, when vapor deposition is performed in a vacuum chamber (in this example, vapor deposition for forming the metal back layer 7), the arrangement is as shown in FIG. That is, metal (aluminum) is vaporized from the vapor deposition source 100 such as a crucible, and the fluorescent surface 6 side of the front substrate 2 is not arranged so as to be orthogonal to the upward mainstream direction (vertical direction). They are arranged. With this arrangement, the convex insulating film 22b can obtain a shadow on the upper surface when the vapor deposition source 100 is viewed as a light source, for example. Even if the metal is not deposited or is deposited, the shaded portion (referred to as the shaded portion) is in a dotted state (coarse state), and is electrically insulated. Of course, it is also necessary to appropriately select the deposition time. Note that the means for supporting or transporting the front substrate 2 can use the one originally in the chamber, and it is only necessary to adjust the posture of the front substrate 2 or the holder.

  Here, the main flow direction in which the vaporized material from the vapor deposition source 100 flows is the direction indicated by the arrow 100A. The vaporized material also flows in the spreading direction (directions of arrows 100B, 100C, etc.) including the surrounding area in addition to the mainstream direction. However, since the density of the vapor flowing in the mainstream direction is higher than the density of the vapor flowing in the surrounding diffusion direction, the deposition result is more influenced by the vapor flowing in the mainstream direction than the influence of the vapor flowing in the diffusion direction. . Therefore, if the fluorescent screen 6 side of the front substrate 2 is disposed to be inclined with respect to the mainstream direction, the object of the present invention can be achieved.

  Further, when it is desired to eliminate the influence of the vapor flowing in the diffusion direction, the vapor flowing in the diffusion direction may be suppressed by using the limiting plate 120 having an opening through which the vapor flowing in the main flow direction passes. . That is, the limiting plate 120 is provided between the deposition source 100 and the position of the front substrate 2, and only the vaporized material in the main flow direction 100 </ b> A reaches the substrate 2 through the opening of the limiting plate 120.

  The above description has described an example in which the discontinuous divided region 7b located on the black light shielding layer 22 is formed when the metal back layer 7 is formed. Various methods can be used for forming the discontinuous divided regions 7b.

  FIG. 7 shows another example of forming the discontinuous divided region 7b. That is, in this example, the upper portion of the stripe portion 22a of the black light shielding layer is formed lower than the upper surfaces of the phosphor layers R, G, and B. When formed in this way, when the vapor deposition method of the present invention is used, the substrate surface is inclined with respect to the direction in which the vaporized material flows, and in the shadow portion (corresponding to the dividing region 7b) of the substrate surface. The vapor deposition state of the vaporized material can form the divided region 7b.

  The above vaporized material may not be left as it naturally flows in a vacuum, but the mainstream direction in which it actively flows may be controlled by an electric field or a magnetic field. Thereby, the dividing region 7b can be formed more effectively.

  In the above example, the front substrate 2 is assumed to be stationary. However, as shown in FIG. 8, for example, as shown in FIG. Even if vapor deposition is realized while being moved, a similar divided region 7a can be formed. Also in this case, it is more effective that the substrate 2 does not move horizontally but has an inclination angle with respect to the direction of vaporization. Further, the moving speed and the number of times of vapor deposition are arbitrarily selected according to the interval between the divided regions 7b, the thickness of the vapor deposition film, and the like.

  In the above description, the method for obtaining the divided region 7 b for the metal back layer 7 has been described. However, it is a matter of course that the same method can be used to obtain the getter film dividing region by the same method. Next, a method for obtaining the divided region of the getter film will be described.

As shown in FIG. 9, in this example, first, in the metal back layer 7 (aluminum (Al)), the layer on the black light shielding layer 22 is oxidized to form an aluminum oxide (Al ₂ O ₃ ) film 7c. By making it high resistance. In order to obtain the aluminum oxide film 7c, a chemical cut material film 50 exists on the upper surface thereof. Even with such a configuration, the metal back layer 7 having discontinuous conductive portions can be formed. In the example of FIG. 9A, the chemical cut material film 50 is formed on the metal back layer 7, but as shown in FIG. 9B, the chemical cut material film 50 is formed first, and the upper surface thereof is formed. Even if the metal back layer 7 is formed, the metal back layer 7 can be divided.

  When the getter film is formed on the substrate on which the metal back layer 7 is thus formed, the vapor deposition method described above is employed. That is, as shown in FIG. 10, first, a resist film 120 is applied over the entire metal back layer 7. In this state, the getter agent is deposited by the deposition method described with reference to FIGS. Then, since the chemical cut material film 50 is formed in a convex shape, a shadow is formed during the vapor deposition process, and a segmented region of the getter film 130 can be obtained in the shaded portion. Thereafter, the exposed resist film 120 is washed. The formation of the resist film 120 may be omitted. Although the convex insulating layer is a chemical cut agent, it may be formed by printing a mixture of several tens of nanometers of silica spheres and a binder.

  In addition, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the present invention. The dimensions, materials, and the like of each component are not limited to the numerical values and materials shown in the above-described embodiments, and can be variously selected as necessary.

  As described above, according to the present invention, even when a discharge occurs between the front substrate and the rear substrate, the discharge current at that time can be sufficiently suppressed, and the vapor deposition component capable of greatly reducing damage caused by the discharge. A manufacturing method and apparatus can be provided.

The perspective view which shows FED which concerns on embodiment of this invention. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the FED taken along line AA in FIG. 1. The top view which shows the fluorescent screen and metal back layer of the front substrate in said FED. Sectional drawing along line BB of FIG. Sectional drawing which expands and shows the said fluorescent screen and a metal back layer. Explanatory drawing shown in order to demonstrate the principle in which the division | segmentation area | region of the metal back layer which concerns on this invention is formed. Explanatory drawing shown in order to demonstrate the other principle in which the division | segmentation area | region of the metal back layer which concerns on this invention is formed. Furthermore, explanatory drawing shown in order to demonstrate the principle in which the division | segmentation area | region of the metal back layer which concerns on this invention is formed. Explanatory drawing shown in order to demonstrate the other Example in which the division | segmentation area | region of the metal back layer which concerns on this invention is formed. Explanatory drawing shown in order to demonstrate the example in which the division | segmentation area | region of the getter film based on this invention is formed.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Back substrate, 2 ... Front substrate, 3 ... Side wall, 4 ... Vacuum envelope, 6 ... Phosphor screen, 7 ... Metal back layer, 7a ... Conductive thin film, 7b ... Dividing area | region, 8 ... Electron emission element, 22 ... black light shielding layer, 22a ... stripe part, 22b ... convex insulating part, 50 ... chemical cut material film, 130 ... getter film.

Claims (8)

  When vaporizing vaporized from a vapor deposition source is vapor-deposited on the surface of the substrate, the surface of the substrate is arranged to be inclined with respect to the mainstream direction in which the vaporized material flows, and in a shadow portion of the surface of the substrate with respect to the mainstream direction. A method for producing a vapor-deposited component, wherein the vapor deposition state of the vaporized material forms a divided region.   The substrate is a front substrate of an image display device, and has a phosphor screen layer, and the phosphor screen layer includes a stripe phosphor layer and a stripe light shielding layer located between the phosphor layers. A method for producing a vapor-deposited component, which is a phosphor screen layer, wherein the shadow portion is generated by a convex insulating layer formed on the light shielding layer.   The vapor deposition component manufacturing method according to claim 1, wherein a gas containing aluminum is vaporized from the vapor deposition source.   3. The method for manufacturing a vapor-deposited component according to claim 2, wherein the convex insulating layer that causes the shadow portion is a chemical cut agent, and a getter film is formed on one surface of the convex insulating layer. In the vacuum chamber,
A deposition source;
Arrange the surface of the substrate to be inclined with respect to the main flow direction in which the vaporized material from the vapor deposition source flows so that the vapor deposition state of the vaporized material from the vapor deposition source with respect to the shadow portion of the surface of the substrate forms a divided region. Means to
An apparatus for producing a vapor-deposited part, comprising:   The substrate is a front substrate of an image display device, and has a phosphor screen layer, and the phosphor screen layer includes a stripe phosphor layer and a stripe light shielding layer located between the phosphor layers. 6. The apparatus for manufacturing a vapor-deposited component according to claim 5, which is a phosphor screen layer, and the shadow portion is generated by a convex insulating layer formed on the light shielding layer.   The said vapor deposition source vaporizes the gas containing aluminum, The manufacturing apparatus of the vapor deposition components of Claim 5 characterized by the above-mentioned. The convex insulating layer that produces the shadow portion is a chemical cut agent,
The said vapor deposition source vaporizes a getter agent, The manufacturing apparatus of the vapor deposition components of Claim 5 characterized by the above-mentioned.

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