Prof. Hwang Chang-Hoon, CEO of OLEDON, a venture laboratory of Dankook University, presented a plane source FMM deposition technology capable of implementing 2250 ppi at iMiD 2017 held on the 28th.

According to Prof. Hwang Chang-Hoon’s presentation, the plane source deposition technology developed by OLEDON differs from the existing organic material deposition method. The plane source FMM deposition technique is that the organic material is first deposited on the metal surface to form a donor film and then re-evaporate it to form an organic thin film on the substrate. Applying this technique, organic matter forms a vertical gas beam due to plane evaporation. (Source patent: 1012061620000 Republic of Korea)

The shadow distance when organics are deposited with a plane source developed by OLEDON is 0.38 μm – 0.59 μm. This is a level at which a 2250ppi device having a pattern size of 4 um can be manufactured.

Prof. Hwang Chang-Hoon explained ‘applying the plane source deposition technique reduces the incidence angle of the organic material and dramatically reduces the shadow caused by the mask’. In addition, ‘using a plane source, the perpendicular organic gas beam can form a completely zero incident angle, so theoretically, the shadow distance can be zero um’.

<Principle of plane source deposition technology developed by OLEDON>

In addition, Prof. Hwang Chang-Hoon emphasized that ‘plane source deposition technology is essential for high-resolution shadow masks’.

For linear source FMMs currently in production, the shadow mask opening distance is 80 μm. As a result, the incidence angle of the organic material gas is inevitably large, making it difficult to produce a shadow mask having a high density pattern.

Prof. Hwang Chang-Hoon explained, ‘Using plane source deposition technology, shadow mask taping angle is 80 ° level’, and the distance between openings can be reduced to less than 20 μm so that plane source deposition techniques can solve the mask pattern density problems of linear sources’.

OLEDON is challenging fully shadow-free patterning conditions with plane source deposition technology, and plan to develop and install a plane source FMM evaporator capable of manufacturing 11K class micro OLED devices in cooperation with Prof. Jin Byung-Doo in Dankook University. (Reference: Homepage of OLEDON www.oledon.co.kr)

The opening density change of the shadow mask when the plane source FMM deposition technique is used

Meanwhile, OLEDON has 13 registered patents for plane source FMM deposition for mass production. Based on recent research results, they filed 7 new patents for mass production equipment in Korea and 3 applications are filed for PCT international application.