Invented by LEE; JEONGHYUN, KWAK; NARAE, KIM; MIKYUNG, PARK; YONGSUNG, JUNG; JOOHYE

Let’s get right to it. In today’s world, screens are everywhere. This new patent application is about making those screens much better. It brings a smart way to keep colors crisp and clear, helps make screens last longer, and keeps your phone or TV looking its best. Let’s break down how this invention works, why it matters, and what makes it so special.

Background and Market Context

We live in a world full of screens—phones, tablets, TVs, and computers follow us everywhere. The quality of these displays can make or break your experience. When you watch a movie, play a game, or just check your messages, you want sharp, bright, and accurate colors. You want the reds to be red, the blues to be blue, and you don’t want colors to bleed into each other. But making this happen is tougher than it seems.

In modern displays, each pixel acts like a tiny light bulb. Every pixel is split into smaller parts that glow red, green, or blue. All these dots work together to create the images and colors you see. But there’s a catch: when these colors mix in the wrong way, the picture gets blurry. This happens when the electricity that lights up one pixel “leaks” into its neighbor, causing the colors to mix. This problem is called “color mixing,” and it leads to fuzzy, less vibrant images.

As devices get thinner and screens get packed with more pixels, the risk of color mixing gets worse. Plus, people want displays that last longer, use less power, and don’t get stuck with lines or dead spots. Companies are always searching for new tricks to keep up with these demands. If a display can stop color mixing, it can show sharper images, last longer, and use less battery, making it perfect for everything from smartwatches to huge TVs.

The market for display technology is gigantic. Big names like Samsung, LG, Apple, and Sony spend billions to get ahead. Any small improvement can mean millions in sales and can set a brand apart. New inventions that boost clarity or power savings get a lot of attention, both from customers and from companies looking to license or buy new tech.

That’s where this new patent application steps in. It promises a smart way to keep colors separate by stopping the electric “leak” between pixels. It also helps the display work better right from the moment you turn it on, cutting down on unwanted flashiness or brightness spikes. In a field where every pixel counts, these are big wins.

Scientific Rationale and Prior Art

To understand why this invention matters, let’s look at how displays usually work and what problems have come up before.

A typical display, like the one on your phone, uses tiny light sources. Each pixel is split into three parts—one glows red, one green, and one blue. When these are mixed in the right way, you see the full range of colors. Usually, thin layers of special materials are placed on top of a base, and electricity runs through them to make them glow.

To shape each pixel, engineers use something called a “pixel-defining film.” Think of this as a stencil that leaves spaces (called pixel openings) where the light can shine through. The rest blocks the light and keeps the pixels separate. This film is very important. If it’s not shaped well, colors bleed into each other. If it’s too thick or thin, the display may not work right or could even break.

Traditionally, making these films and layers is tricky. One common way puts the light-emitting layer down using a “shadow mask,” which is like a tiny metal stencil. But these masks can bend or sag during manufacturing, making the layers uneven. When that happens, the pixels are not fully separated, and the color can mix. To fix this, some makers try to use a big open mask and cover all the pixels with the same organic layer. But this can lead to another issue: the same layer connects neighboring pixels, letting electricity leak sideways—a “lateral leakage current.” This leakage is the main culprit for color mixing and makes the screen less bright or causes it to look washed out.

Over the years, people have tried many fixes. Some added extra blocking layers, but these can make the display thicker or use more power. Others tried different ways to cut out the pixel shapes, but often the leaks still happened, especially as displays got smaller and more packed.

The industry also faced problems at startup. Sometimes, when you first turn on a display, a burst of current causes the screen to get too bright for a split second—an “overshoot.” This is not just annoying; it can shorten the screen’s life.

In summary, the main pain points in the prior art are:

• Color mixing due to electrical leaks between pixels
• Defects caused by uneven or sagging masks
• Extra power use or thickness from added blocking layers
• Initial overshoot when turning the display on

What’s needed is a way to keep the pixels really separate, stop the side leaks, and do it without adding bulk or complexity. That’s where this new patent comes in.

Invention Description and Key Innovations

This new patent describes a clever way to shape the pixel-defining film so it not only blocks the unwanted current but also helps organize the layers above it. At the heart of this idea is what the patent calls a “valley pattern.”

Imagine the pixel-defining film as a flat surface with special grooves or valleys built into it. These valleys are not just for show. They are shaped in a careful way—sometimes in an S-pattern or other repeating shapes—around the edges of each pixel. The valleys are deeper than the flat parts, and this depth is chosen carefully (about 100 to 500 nanometers, which is very thin, but enough to matter). The side walls of these valleys are also angled just right (about 70 to 90 degrees) so that the next layers will form correctly.

Why does this work? The valleys force the organic and electrode layers above to be thinner in those spots. When the layers are thinner, their electrical resistance goes up. This means that any current that tries to sneak sideways—trying to move from one pixel to its neighbor—hits a “speed bump.” The current can’t easily cross, so it stays where it’s supposed to. This simple change in shape makes a big difference in keeping colors from mixing.

Each pixel is surrounded by these valley patterns, but not in a closed loop. There are openings (“open portions”) in the valley pattern, but the patent makes sure that these openings never face each other between neighboring pixels. This is important. If two openings lined up, there would be a direct path for current to leak through. But by offsetting them, the design forces any leak to take a much longer and harder path, which almost never happens.

The patent goes further by describing how these valleys can be repeated in different shapes—sometimes as S-curves, sometimes mirrored or arranged in pairs. In some cases, three valleys can be stacked beside each other between two pixels, making it even harder for current to jump across.

This approach is smart because it uses the natural shape and thickness of the layers to control the current, instead of adding more materials or complicating the design. The patent also makes sure there is still enough space (the “common region”) for the light-emitting layers to work well, so the display stays bright and even.

During manufacturing, these valley patterns can be made using common techniques (like photolithography), which means companies can use this idea without having to buy new machines. The depth and angle are easy to control, and the patterns can be repeated across the whole display.

What about the start-up overshoot? By having these valleys, the area where current can “rush in” is limited, so the risk of a bright flash when the display turns on is much lower. The display works smoothly from the start, which helps it last longer.

A few other key points in the patent:

• The valleys can be used with any color pixel—red, green, blue, or others.
• The valleys can be mirrored or arranged in repeating shapes to fit the layout of the screen.
• The thickness of the layers in the valleys is much less than on the flat parts, which is what stops the current from leaking.
• The pattern ensures that even as screens get smaller and more packed, the colors stay sharp.

In short, this invention uses a smart pattern of grooves in the pixel-defining film to block unwanted current, keep colors pure, and make screens look better and last longer. It’s a simple idea, but it solves many of the big problems that have bothered engineers for years.

Conclusion

This patent offers a fresh approach to one of the toughest problems in display technology: keeping colors sharp by stopping electrical leaks between pixels. By shaping the pixel-defining film with special valley patterns, the invention cuts down on color mixing, keeps the display bright, and prevents early-life glitches. It does all this without making screens thicker or harder to build.

For companies making phones, TVs, or any device with a screen, this is a powerful tool. It can help them deliver better images, save power, and keep customers happy. For people using these devices, it means movies look crisp, games are more exciting, and your screen lasts longer. That’s a win for everyone.

Click here https://ppubs.uspto.gov/pubwebapp/ and search 20250338722.