Abstract: The invention provides a method and apparatus for depositing a soluble material, such as an organic polymer, onto a substrate using an inkjet print head. The substrate is provided with an array of alignment marks and the material in solution is deposited when substantially aligned with one of the alignment marks to provide an alignment dot of the material in solution. The alignment dot is viewed before the deposited material in solution has dried. Cross-shaped alignment marks are used to facilitate viewing of the positions of the alignment dot.

Abstract: An inkjet deposition apparatus includes a position encoder 128 in a translation stage 116. The position encoder provides encoder signals which are used as a clock signal for a pattern memory 136. Ejection of droplets of a material to be printed can therefore be synchronised with the speed of movement of the translation, providing improved accuracy and speed of deposition.

Abstract: A distributed Bragg reflector comprising a stack of alternate layers of a first material and a second material wherein the first and second materials are both organic materials. An organic electroluminescent light emitting element comprising: a transparent substrate, a transparent electrode formed on the substrate, a distributed Bragg reflector formed on the transparent electrode, an organic electroluminescent light emitting material formed on the distributed Bragg reflector, and an electrode formed on the light emitting material.

Abstract: The invention provides a method and apparatus for depositing soluble materials on flexible substrates. The apparatus comprises a drum, which is rotatable about its longitudinal axis, and an inkjet print head disposed over the drum and adapted to be moved relative to the drum in a direction substantially parallel to longitudinal axis of the drum. A substrate is mounted on the drum by vacuum means and a line of droplets of a solution of the selected material is deposited by the print head, which remains stationary as the drum is rotated. The print head is then moved relative to the drum, in the direction substantially parallel to longitudinal axis of the drum, prior to deposition of subsequent lines. In this way, electrical devices can be built up on the substrate and a large scale flexible display device can be fabricated.

Abstract: The invention provides a method and apparatus for depositing a soluble material, such as an organic polymer, onto a substrate using an inkjet print head. The substrate is viewed from the underside by a CCD microscope during the deposition of an organic polymer droplet onto a well provided in a bank structure. As the organic polymer droplets are viewed when in wet condition they are more clearly visible and any offset or deviation detected between the deposited droplet and the well can be used to reposition a platen supporting the substrate.

Abstract: The invention provides a method of depositing a soluble material on a substrate comprising the steps of: loading the soluble material into an ink-jet print head; providing a flow of gas between the ink-jet print head and the substrate or adjacent thereto; and ejecting the material from the print head so as to deposit it on the substrate. Also provided is an apparatus for depositing a soluble material on a substrate, comprising an ink-jet print head and gas flow means for providing a flow of gas between the ink-jet print head and the substrate or adjacent thereto. In a preferred arrangement, heating of the substrate during deposition is also provided. In a most preferred arrangement, the deposition is additionally conducted on the basis of continuous formation of a sequence of partially overlapping dots.

Abstract: The invention provides a method of pattering a substrate, in which a first material in solution is deposited on the substrate. The composition of the solution of the first material is selected so it dries to leave a residue of the first material on the substrate, the residue comprising a thin film in the centre and a ridge around the perimeter. The residue is etched to remove the thin film, leaving the ridge on the substrate. After etching the ridge is hydrophobic and the substrate is hydrophilic. An aqueous solution of a second material is then deposited on both sides of the ridge. After the aqueous solution has dried, the ridge is removed, leaving a layer of the second material on the substrate, the layer having a narrow gap therethrough. The layer may be used for the source and drain electrodes of an organic thin film transistor.

Abstract: A light emitting device formed of a substrate having first and second regions, a first non-transparent electrode formed on the substrate in the first region, a layer of organic light emitting material provided over the first non-transparent electrode in the first region, a layer of organic light emitting material provided over the substrate in the second region, the light emitting materials each having at least one planar surface which is corrugated, a second non-transparent electrode formed over the light emitting material in the first region, and a mirror formed over the light emitting material in the second region. A device having a stacked structure of electrodes and light emitting layers is also disclosed, as are various methods of fabricating the devices.

Abstract: A serial-to-parallel converter (130) samples serial data DA1 comprising a first data string, which includes one or more unit data strings each including a predetermined number of bits (00XXX . . . XXX) and which is input after a synchronization period, in accordance with a clock signal CL1 which has been used to generate the serial data by converting original parallel data into serial form, thereby converting the serial data to parallel data from one unit data string to another. Signal generation means (140) generates a synchronization signal corresponding to a synchronization period in accordance with the serial data DA1 and the clock signal CL1. The serial data includes a second data string (1100 . . . 000) which appears in each synchronization period and which includes one or more unit data strings having a predetermined bit pattern. If the signal generation means (140) detects a unit data string (11000 . . . 000) in the second data string, it generates a synchronization signal.

Abstract: A patterning method comprises selectively depositing droplets of a first material solvent solution onto a layer of a second material. The solvent is chosen to dissolve both materials, which are selected so as to exhibit phase separation upon the removal of the solution to provide domains of the first material embedded in and extending through the second material. By selection of appropriate materials the patterning method may be used, for example, to fabricate light emitting devices, optical colour filters, or vertical interconnects in electronic devices.

Abstract: In order to facilitate control of the polarization plane of a laser beam emerging from a surface-emitting-type semiconductor laser in a specific direction and to suppress occurrence of fluctuations and switching of the polarization plane depending on the optical output and the environmental temperature, a strain generating section (19) is arranged adjacent to a resonator (10B) of a semiconductor laser. The strain generating section (19) impresses anisotropic stress to the resonator (10B) to generate strain, resulting in birefringence and dependence of the gain on the polarization in the resonator (10A). This enables stabilized control of the polarization plane.

Abstract: The invention provides a display device (26) including a plurality of discrete display segments (2). Each display segment (2) is provided with a drive circuit for driving the display elements arranged within the display area. The display device may be provided either as a passive, active or direct pixel addressed array. By interconnecting a number of display segments, a large area display can be achieved without the requirement for long electrodes. This reduces the electrical resistance and parasitic capacitance of the addressing electrodes, enabling the display to provide improved luminance in a displayed image and to operate at higher speeds, providing improved resolution. An active matrix addressing scheme can also be implemented using relatively low mobility organic thin film transistors.

Abstract: A method for forming an integrated circuit including at least two interconnected electronic switching devices, the method comprising forming at least part of the electronic switching devices by ink-jet printing.

Abstract: A method for forming an electronic device, comprising: forming a first conductive or semiconductive layer; forming a sequence of at least on insulating layer and at least one semiconducting layer over the first conductive or semiconductive layer; locally depositing solvents at a localised region of the insulating layer so as to dissolve the sequence of insulating and semiconducting layers in the region to leave a void extending through the sequence of layer; and depositing conductive or semiconductive material in the void.

Abstract: A method for forming on a substrate an electronic device including an electrically conductive or semiconductive material in a plurality or regions, the operation of the device utilising current flow from a first region to a second region, the method comprising: forming a mixture by mixing the material with a liquid; forming on the substrate a confinement structure including a first zone in a first area of the substrate and a second zone in a second area of the substrate, the first zone having a greater repellence for the mixture than the second zone, and a third zone in a third area of the substrate spaced from the second area by the first area, the first zone having a greater repellence for the mixture than the third zone, and depositing the material on the substrate by applying the mixture over the substrate whereby the deposited material may be confined by the relative repellence of the first zone to spaced apart regions defining the said first and second regions of the device and being electrically separa

Abstract: A method for forming a transistor, comprising: depositing a first material from solution in a first solvent to form a first layer of the transistor; and subsequently whilst the first material remains soluble in the first solvent, forming a second layer of the transistor by depositing over the first material a second material from solution in a second solvent in which the first material is substantially insoluble.

Abstract: A method is provided for etching a pattern in a material in precise target areas comprising depositing selectively onto the material a substance for dissolving or reacting chemically with the material. Droplets may be deposited from a print head of the type having a nozzle from which the material may be ejected as a series of droplets, such as an ink jet print head. In a preferred application, a series of ridges (40) can be etched from an organic insulator layer overlying a photoemissive organic polymer (6). A conductive layer (42) is then deposited and the ridges (40) of organic insulator are dissolved by solvent washing to provide an array of conductive stips which can be used as a cathode for an electroluminescent display device. In combination, both anode and cathode can be fabricated for a display device without the need for photolithography, which is particularly advantageous for the fabrication of large area display devices.

Abstract: The invention provides a method of depositing a soluble material on a substrate comprising the steps of: loading the soluble material into an ink-jet print head; providing a flow of gas between the ink-jet print head and the substrate or adjacent thereto; and ejecting the material from the print head so as to deposit it on the substrate. Also provided is an apparatus for depositing a soluble material on a substrate, comprising an ink-jet print head and gas flow means for providing a flow of gas between the ink-jet print head and the substrate or adjacent thereto. In a preferred arrangement, heating of the substrate during deposition is also provided. In a most preferred arrangement, the deposition is additionally conducted on the basis of continuous formation of a sequence of partially overlapping dots.

Abstract: The present invention provides an organic light emitting device having a first electrode and a transparent electrode with an organic light emitting layer therebetween; characterized by a waveguide provided on the opposite side of the transparent electrode compared to the organic light emitting layer. The present invention also provides a device incorporating at least two such organic light emitting devices so as to provide a pulsed modulation output or a multi-color output.

Abstract: When recording using magnetic field modulation recording, the magneto-optical recording medium which is disclosed is capable of satisfactory recording with a low magnetic field. This recording medium is a layered superposition of a recording layer 13 and an auxiliary recording layer 14 having a film thickness of less than or equal to 100 angstroms. The recording layer 13 is a film having an easy perpendicular axis of magnetization whose value of magnetization at room temperature is at least 150 emu/cc, and for example a heavy rare earth—transition metal alloy, a magnetic multilayer film which employs a precious metal, an oxide like a garnet or Spinel ferrite, or some other magnetic alloy may be used. The auxiliary recording layer 14 is typically a heavy rare earth—transition metal alloy, and has a Curie temperature higher (desirably at least 30K higher) than that of the recording layer 13.