Patent application number | Description | Published |
20120327321 | DISPLAY PIXEL HAVING OXIDE THIN-FILM TRANSISTOR (TFT) WITH REDUCED LOADING - Disclosed embodiments relate to a thin-film transistor (TFT) for use in a display device. The display device may include a liquid crystal display (LCD) panel having multiple pixels arranged in rows and column, with each row corresponding to a gate line and each column corresponding to a source line. Each of the pixels includes a pixel electrode and a TFT. The TFT may include a metal oxide semiconductor channel between a source and drain. For each TFT, holes may be formed in the gate line in a region beneath the source and/or the drain. The holes may be formed such that the source and drain only partially overlap the holes. The presence of the holes reduces the area of the gate line, which may reduce parasitic capacitance and improve loading. This may provide improved panel performance, which may reduce the appearance of certain visual artifacts. | 12-27-2012 |
20130234919 | DEVICES AND METHODS FOR DISCHARGING PIXELS HAVING OXIDE THIN-FILM TRANSISTORS - Methods and devices for discharging a pixel of an electronic display to be turned off are provided. In one example, a method may include supplying an activation signal to the pixel to activate the pixel. The method may also include supplying a data signal of substantially ground to a pixel electrode of the pixel. The method may include controlling a common electrode voltage of the pixel toward substantially ground. The method may also include removing the activation signal from the pixel after the common electrode voltage reaches substantially ground. | 09-12-2013 |
20130235003 | GATE LINE DRIVER CIRCUIT FOR DISPLAY ELEMENT ARRAY - Gate line driver circuitry applies an output pulse to each of several gate lines for a display element array. The circuitry has a number of gate drivers each being coupled to drive a respective one of the gate lines. Each of the gate drivers has an output stage in which a high side transistor and a low side transistor are coupled to drive the respective gate line, responsive to at least one clock signal. A pull down transistor is coupled to discharge a control electrode of the output stage. A control circuit having a cascode amplifier is coupled to drive the pull down transistor as a function of a) at least one clock signal and b) feedback from the control electrode. Other embodiments are also described and claimed. | 09-12-2013 |
20130235020 | PIXEL INVERSION ARTIFACT REDUCTION - A system and device for driving high resolution monitors while reducing artifacts thereon. Utilization of Z-inversion polarity driving techniques to drive pixels in a display reduces power consumption of the display but tends to generate visible horizontal line artifacts caused by capacitances present between the pixels and data lines of the display. By introducing a physical shield between the pixel and data line elements, capacitance therebetween can be reduced, thus eliminating the cause of the horizontal line artifacts. The shield may be a common voltage line (Vcom) of the display. | 09-12-2013 |
20130335658 | Pixel Architecture for Electronic Displays - An electronic display for providing a visual or video output for an electronic device. The electronic device includes a transistor layer configured to activate a first pixel row and a second pixel row. For each pixel in the first pixel row and the second pixel row, the transistor layer includes a switch transistor, a pixel electrode, and a common electrode. The electronic device further includes a pixel controller for selectively activating each pixel. The pixel controller includes a first gate line, a first drive line, and a second drive line. During operation, the first gate line provides a charge to the pixel electrode for a first pixel in the first pixel row and for a second pixel in the second pixel row, and the first drive line activates the switch transistor for the first pixel, and the second drive line activates the switch transistor for the second pixel. | 12-19-2013 |
20140004704 | TFT Mask Reduction | 01-02-2014 |
20140042427 | Gate Insulator Loss Free Etch-Stop Oxide Thin Film Transistor - A method is provided for fabricating a thin-film transistor (TFT). The method includes forming a semiconductor layer over a gate insulator that covers a gate electrode, and depositing an insulator layer over the semiconductor layer, as well as etching the insulator layer to form a patterned etch-stop without losing the gate insulator. The method also includes forming a source electrode and a drain electrode over the semiconductor layer and the patterned etch-stop. The method further includes removing a portion of the semiconductor layer beyond the source electrode and the drain electrode such that a remaining portion of the semiconductor layer covers the gate insulator in a first overlapping area of the source electrode and the gate electrode and a second overlapping area of the drain electrode and gate electrode. | 02-13-2014 |
20140049721 | Displays with Shielding Layers - An electronic device may have a display such as a liquid crystal display. The display may have a color filter layer and a thin-film transistor layer. An opaque masking layer may be formed on the color filter layer. An active portion of the display may contain an array of display pixels that are controlled by control signals that are provided over intersecting gate lines and data lines. In an inactive portion of the display, gate driver circuits may be used to generate gate line signals for the gate lines. Portions of the gate lines in the gate driver circuitry, power supply lines, and common electrode lines may be formed on the thin-film-transistor layer. These lines may be electromagnetically shielded using indium tin oxide shielding layers to prevent electric fields from inducing charge in the opaque masking layer and thereby causing color artifacts. | 02-20-2014 |
20140084292 | Connection to First Metal Layer in Thin Film Transistor Process - A method of connecting to a first metal layer in a semiconductor flow process. Disclosed embodiments connect to the first metal layer by etching a first portion of a viahole through an etch stop layer and a gate insulation layer to reach a first metal layer, depositing a second metal layer such that the second metal layer contacts the first metal layer within the viahole, and etching a second portion of the viahole through a first passivation layer and an organic layer to reach the second metal layer. | 03-27-2014 |
20140118666 | Display with Column Spacer Structures Resistant to Lateral Movement - A display may have a color filter layer and a thin-film transistor layer. A layer of liquid crystal material may be located between the color filter layer and the thin-film transistor layer. Column spacers may be formed on the color filter layer to maintain a desired gap between the color filter and thin-film transistor layers. Support pads may be used to support the column spacers. Different column spacers may be located at different portions of the support pads to allow the support pad size to be reduced while ensuring adequate support. Lateral movement blocking structures such as circular rings may be used to prevent column spacer lateral movement. Subspacers located over pads may be used to create friction that retards lateral movement. Lateral movement may also be retarded by receiving column spacers in trenches or other recesses formed on a thin-film transistor layer. | 05-01-2014 |
20140120657 | Back Channel Etching Oxide Thin Film Transistor Process Architecture - A method is provided for fabricating a back channel etching (BCE) oxide thin film transistor (TFT) for a liquid crystal display. The method includes forming a first metal layer having a first portion and a second portion over a substrate, depositing a gate insulator over the first metal layer, and disposing a semiconductor layer over the gate insulator. The method also includes depositing a half-tone photoresist to cover a first portion of the semiconductor layer and the first portion of the first metal layer. The half-tone photoresist has a first portion and a second portion thicker than the first portion. The first portion has a via hole above the second portion of the first metal layer. The second portion of the half-tone photoresist covers the first portion of the first metal layer. The method further includes etching a portion of the gate insulator through the via hole such that the second portion of the first metal layer is exposed, removing the first portion of the half-tone photoresist while remaining the second portion of the half-tone photoresist, and etching to remove a second portion of the semiconductor layer that is not covered by the half-tone photoresist. | 05-01-2014 |
20140141565 | GATE INSULATOR UNIFORMITY - Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to display devices and methods for manufacturing display devices. Specifically, embodiments of the present disclosure employ an enhanced etching process to create uniformity in the gate insulator of thin-film-transistor (TFTs) by using an active layer to protect the gate insulator from inadvertent etching while patterning an etch stop layer. | 05-22-2014 |
20140370655 | Gate Insulator Loss Free Etch-Stop Oxide Thin Film Transistor - A method is provided for fabricating a thin-film transistor (TFT). The method includes forming a semiconductor layer over a gate insulator that covers a gate electrode, and depositing an insulator layer over the semiconductor layer, as well as etching the insulator layer to form a patterned etch-stop without losing the gate insulator. The method also includes forming a source electrode and a drain electrode over the semiconductor layer and the patterned etch-stop. The method further includes removing a portion of the semiconductor layer beyond the source electrode and the drain electrode such that a remaining portion of the semiconductor layer covers the gate insulator in a first overlapping area of the source electrode and the gate electrode and a second overlapping area of the drain electrode and gate electrode. | 12-18-2014 |
20150054799 | Display Driver Circuitry For Liquid Crystal Displays With Semiconducting-Oxide Thin-Film Transistors - An electronic device may include a display having an array of display pixels on a substrate. The display pixels may be organic light-emitting diode display pixels or display pixels in a liquid crystal display. In an organic light-emitting diode display, hybrid thin-film transistor structures may be formed that include semiconducting oxide thin-film transistors, silicon thin-film transistors, and capacitor structures. The capacitor structures may overlap the semiconducting oxide thin-film transistors. Organic light-emitting diode display pixels may have combinations of oxide and silicon transistors. In a liquid crystal display, display driver circuitry may include silicon thin-film transistor circuitry and display pixels may be based on oxide thin-film transistors. A single layer or two different layers of gate metal may be used in forming silicon transistor gates and oxide transistor gates. A silicon transistor may have a gate that overlaps a floating gate structure. | 02-26-2015 |
20150055047 | Liquid Crystal Displays with Oxide-Based Thin-Film Transistors - An electronic device may include a display having an array of display pixels on a substrate. The display pixels may be organic light-emitting diode display pixels or display pixels in a liquid crystal display. In an organic light-emitting diode display, hybrid thin-film transistor structures may be formed that include semiconducting oxide thin-film transistors, silicon thin-film transistors, and capacitor structures. The capacitor structures may overlap the semiconducting oxide thin-film transistors. Organic light-emitting diode display pixels may have combinations of oxide and silicon transistors. In a liquid crystal display, display driver circuitry may include silicon thin-film transistor circuitry and display pixels may be based on oxide thin-film transistors. A single layer or two different layers of gate metal may be used in forming silicon transistor gates and oxide transistor gates. A silicon transistor may have a gate that overlaps a floating gate structure. | 02-26-2015 |