阅读说明：本技术 用于电光介质的聚合物制剂 (Polymer formulations for electro-optic media ) 是由 P·C·B·威吉 L·A·麦库拉芙 R·J·德维特 R·J·小保利尼 T·福韦尔 J·K· 于 2016-07-22 设计创作，主要内容包括：包含聚氨酯丙烯酸酯、粘合促进剂和导电单体的聚合物制剂。通过选择合适的导电单体,能够获得在25℃和50％的相对湿度下适应一周后具有10～6至10～(10)Ohm·cm的体积电阻率的制剂。这样的制剂适合加入电光材料中,如电光显示器或可变透射膜,例如用于建筑应用。在其他实施方案中,所述制剂另外包含金属氧化物纳米颗粒以改变折射率和/或电导率。某些金属纳米颗粒的添加另外促进了使用X-射线荧光光谱无损测量层厚度。(A polymer formulation comprising a urethane acrylate, an adhesion promoter, and a conductive monomer. By selecting a suitable conductive monomer, a 10 ° F after one week adaptation at 25 ℃ and 50% relative humidity can be obtained 6 To 10 10 Formulations with volume resistivity of Ohm cm. Such formulations are suitable for incorporation into electro-optic materials, such as electro-optic displays or variable transmission films, for example for use in architectural applications. In other embodiments, the formulation further comprises metal oxide nanoparticlesParticles to change the refractive index and/or electrical conductivity. The addition of certain metal nanoparticles additionally facilitates the non-destructive measurement of layer thickness using X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy.)

1. An electro-optic device comprising, in order:

a light-transmitting electrode layer;

an encapsulated electrophoretic medium layer;

a first adhesive layer; and

a back plate;

wherein the first adhesive layer is formed from a composition comprising:

a urethane acrylate;

an adhesion promoter;

a conductive monomer comprising an alkoxylated acrylate functional group;

wherein the composition has a 10 after one week acclimation at 25 ℃ and 50% relative humidity⁶To 10¹⁰Volume resistivity of Ohm cm.

2. The electro-optic device of claim 1, further comprising a second adhesive layer, wherein the second adhesive layer is disposed between the light-transmissive electrode layer and the encapsulated electrophoretic medium layer.

3. The electro-optic device of claim 1, wherein the composition has an adhesion promoter content of 5 to 45 weight percent, based on the weight of the composition.

4. The electro-optic device of claim 1, wherein the composition has a conductive monomer content of 15 to 70 weight percent, based on the weight of the composition.

5. The electro-optic device of claim 1, wherein the composition further comprises an ionic liquid.

6. The electro-optic device of claim 1, wherein the composition further comprises a photoinitiator.

7. The electro-optic device of claim 1, wherein the composition further comprises a crosslinking agent.

8. The electro-optic device of claim 1, wherein the composition further comprises 0.01 to 25 wt% of metal oxide particles, based on the weight of the composition.

9. The electro-optic device of claim 8, wherein the metal oxide particles have an average particle size of 100nm or less.

10. The electro-optic device of claim 8, wherein the metal oxide particles comprise a metal having an atomic number greater than 18.

11. The electro-optic device of claim 8, wherein the metal is selected from the group consisting of titanium, copper, indium, zinc, nickel, tin, lanthanum, cerium, and zirconium.

12. The electro-optic device of claim 1, wherein the composition comprises less than 1% metal.

13. The electro-optic device of claim 1, wherein the molecular weight of the electrically conductive monomer is less than 1000 g/mol.

14. The electro-optic device of claim 1, wherein the composition further comprises a non-conductive monomer having greater than 10 when cured as a homopolymer¹⁰Volume resistivity of Ohm cm.

15. The electro-optic device of claim 1, wherein the volume resistivity of the composition is 10 after one week of acclimation at 25 ℃ and 50% relative humidity⁷To 10⁹Ohm·cm。

16. The electro-optic device of claim 15, wherein the volume resistivity of the composition is 10 when cured at 25 ℃ for one week⁸To 10⁹Ohm·cm。

17. The electro-optic device of claim 1, wherein the composition has a glass transition temperature (T) of less than-25 ℃_g)。

18. The electro-optic device of claim 1, wherein the composition has a refractive index of 1.0 to 2.0 for visible light.

19. A layered assembly comprising, in order:

a light-transmitting electrode layer;

an encapsulated electrophoretic medium layer;

an adhesive layer; and

a peeling layer;

wherein the adhesive layer is formed from a composition comprising:

a urethane acrylate;

an adhesion promoter;

a conductive monomer comprising an alkoxylated acrylate functional group;

wherein the composition has a 10 after one week acclimation at 25 ℃ and 50% relative humidity⁶To 10¹⁰Volume resistivity of Ohm cm.

20. A layered assembly comprising, in order:

a first release sheet;

a first adhesive layer;

an encapsulated electrophoretic medium layer;

a second adhesive layer; and

a second release layer;

wherein one of the adhesive layers is formed from a composition comprising:

a urethane acrylate;

an adhesion promoter;

a conductive monomer comprising an alkoxylated acrylate functional group;

wherein the composition has a 10 after one week acclimation at 25 ℃ and 50% relative humidity⁶To 10¹⁰Volume resistivity of Ohm cm.

Background

The present invention relates to polymer formulations for use in the manufacture of electro-optic devices. Such devices may include a variety of electro-optic media including electrophoretic media, electrochromic media, light emitting diode media, or liquid crystal media. In particular, the invention is useful for improving the performance of layered assemblies comprising electro-optic media incorporated into electro-optic displays, such as those found in monitors, mobile devices, tablets, e-readers, and signs. The invention may also be used to make host materials (bulk materials) with electrically switchable optical properties, such as variable transmission media, which may be incorporated into windows, artwork, furniture or other building products.

Front Plane Laminates (FPLs), such as those described in U.S. patent No. 6,982,178, typically consist of at least a transparent electrode, an electro-optic medium, an adhesive layer, and a release layer. Assembling an electro-optic display using an FPL can be achieved by: the release sheet is removed from the FPL and the adhesive layer is brought into contact with the backplane under conditions that enable the adhesive layer to adhere to the backplane, thereby securing the adhesive layer, the electro-optic medium layer, and the conductive layer to the backplane. See fig. 1A. Because the front laminate panels can typically be mass produced using roll-to-roll coating techniques and then cut into sheets of any size required for a particular backsheet, the process is well suited for mass production. In some embodiments, the backplane is microfabricated as an active matrix comprising transistors.

As an alternative to the "simple" FPL described above, U.S. patent No. 7,561,324 describes a so-called "double release sheet," which is essentially a simplified version of the front laminate panel of U.S. patent No. 6,982,178. One form of dual release sheet comprises a layer of solid electro-optic medium sandwiched between two adhesive layers, one or both of which is covered by a release sheet. Another form of dual release sheet comprises a layer of solid electro-optic medium sandwiched between two release sheets. Both forms of the double release film are intended for use in a process substantially similar to that already described for assembling an electro-optic display from a front laminate panel (FPL), but involving two separate laminations; typically, in a first lamination, a double release sheet is laminated to the front electrode to form a front sub-assembly, and then in a second lamination, the front sub-assembly is laminated to the backplane to form the final display, although the order of the two laminations can be reversed if desired (see fig. 1C).

As an alternative configuration, U.S. patent No. 7,839,564 describes a so-called "inverted front laminate panel," which is a variation of the front laminate panel described in U.S. patent No. 6,982,178. The inverted front laminate panel comprises in sequence: at least one light-transmissive protective layer and a light-transmissive conductive layer; an adhesive layer; a solid electro-optic medium layer and a release sheet. See fig. 1B. The inverted front laminate panel is used to form an electro-optic display having a layer of a laminating adhesive between the electro-optic layer and a front electrode or front substrate; a second, generally thin, adhesive layer may or may not be present between the electro-optic layer and the backplane. Such an electro-optic display may combine good resolution with good low temperature performance (see fig. 1B).

As discussed in U.S. patent nos. 7,012,735 and 7,173,752, the selection of lamination adhesives for electro-optic displays (or front laminate panels, inverted front laminate panels, dual release films, or other subassemblies used to make such electro-optic displays) presents certain problems. Since the laminating adhesive is typically located between electrodes that apply the electric field required to change the electrical state of the electro-optic medium, the conductive properties of the adhesive can greatly affect performance.

In most cases, the volume resistivity of the lamination adhesive controls the overall voltage drop across the electro-optic medium, which is a key factor in the performance of the medium [ the voltage drop across the electro-optic medium is equal to the voltage drop across the electrodes minus the voltage drop across the lamination adhesive ]. On the one hand, if the resistivity of the adhesive layer is too high, a significant voltage drop will occur within the adhesive layer, requiring a higher voltage between the electrodes to create an operating voltage drop at the electro-optic medium. However, increasing the voltage across the electrodes in this manner is undesirable because it increases power consumption and may require the use of more complex and more expensive control circuitry to generate and switch the increased voltage. On the other hand, if the resistivity of the adhesive layer is too low, there may be undesirable cross-talk between adjacent electrodes (i.e., active matrix electrodes) or the device may be shorted altogether. Moreover, since the volume resistivity of most materials decreases rapidly with increasing temperature, if the volume resistivity of the adhesive is too low, the performance of the display will vary greatly with temperatures well above room temperature.

For these reasons, the lamination adhesives used for most electro-optic media have an optimum range of resistivity values that varies with the resistivity of the electro-optic medium. The volume resistivity of the encapsulated electrophoretic medium is typically about 10¹⁰Ohm cm, while the resistivity of other electro-optic media is typically in the same order of magnitude. Thus, assuming that the operating temperature of the display is typically about 20 ℃, the volume resistivity of the lamination adhesive should typically be about 10⁸To 10¹²Ohm cm or about 10⁹To 10¹¹Ohm cm. Preferably, the laminating adhesive will also have a volume resistivity that varies with temperature, similar to the electro-optic medium itself.

In addition to electrical properties, the laminating adhesive must meet several mechanical and rheological criteria, including the strength, flexibility, ability to withstand and flow at the laminating temperature, etc. of the adhesive. The number of commercially available adhesives that can meet all relevant electrical and mechanical standards is small, and in practice the most suitable laminating adhesives are certain polyurethanes, such as those described in U.S. patent No. 7,342,068.

To improve the properties of commercially available polyurethanes, the polyurethanes may be doped with salts or other materials, such as those described in the aforementioned U.S. Pat. Nos. 7,012,735 and 7,173,752. A preferred dopant for this purpose is tetrabutylammonium hexafluorophosphate. It has been found empirically that adhesives formulated using such dopants damage active matrix backplanes, particularly those including transistors made from organic semiconductors. U.S. patent No. 8,188,942 indicates that in some embodiments, the salt dopant may be replaced with a polymer additive having hydroxyl groups, such as poly (ethylene glycol), to improve the volume resistivity of the adhesive formulation.

Unfortunately, polyurethane compositions containing salts and/or polymer additives have been found to form voids when applied to electro-optic media having irregular surfaces. To counteract voids, thicker adhesive layers are applied during the construction of electro-optic assemblies, such as front laminate panels or displays. Thicker layers prevent void formation and improve planarity between the electro-optic medium and the electrodes. The improved flatness results in a more uniform grey level on the surface of the display, however, the increased thickness reduces the sharpness of the display, since the field lines between the back plate and the front electrode are more diffuse. Co-pending application No. 14/692,854 filed on 22/4/2015 describes an effort to further improve the planarity of the adhesive layer while reducing void formation. Co-pending application No. 14/692,854 also discloses substantially solvent-free polyurethane formulations that can be used to produce adhesive layers with improved hardness and durability.

Summary of The Invention

The formulations of the present invention, i.e., as described herein, overcome the disadvantages of the prior art by providing an adhesive and/or planarization layer having improved electrical conductivity, adhesion, and optical properties. The formulations are well suited for use in a variety of electro-optic media.

In one aspect, the present invention provides a polymer composition comprising a urethane acrylate, an adhesion promoter, and a conductive monomer. The composition will typically yield 10 after one week acclimation at 25 ℃ and 50% relative humidity⁶To 10¹⁰Volume resistivity of Ohm cm. Typically, the formulation contains little or no solvent. The polymer compositions can be used in a variety of applications where low solvent, specific conductive coatings are beneficial, such as in the construction of electro-optic displays. The polymer composition may also comprise metal oxide particles, such as metal oxide nanoparticles. The metal oxide nanoparticles can be selected to modify the refractive index of the composition such that the overall refractive index of the layered active material, e.g., a front laminate panel (FPL), matches the refractive index of the substrate on which the FPL is placed. For example, the refractive index of the composition may be designed to be between 1.0 and 2.0 for visible light.

The polymer composition may additionally comprise a photoinitiator to facilitate UV curing, and/or a crosslinker to improve strength. The polymer composition may also comprise an ionic liquid, such as 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis [ (trifluoromethyl) sulfonyl ] imide (EMI TFSI). Exemplary urethane acrylates may contain aliphatic and/or aromatic functional groups. Exemplary conductive monomers include functionalized acrylate monomers (and/or oligomers), such as alkoxylated acrylates, caprolactone acrylates, and acrylic resins. As described herein, the polymer composition can be tailored to achieve specific conductive, optical, and/or mechanical properties. For example, a non-conductive diluent monomer may be added to obtain a particular volume resistivity of the composition.

The properties of the disclosed polymer formulations can be improved by varying the relative compositions of certain additives,as discussed below. Accordingly, it is possible to produce a polymer having a specific range of volume resistivity, such as 10 after one week acclimation at 25 ℃ and 50% relative humidity⁶To 10¹⁰Ohm cm, e.g. 10 after one week acclimation at 25 ℃ and 50% relative humidity⁷To 10⁹Ohm cm, e.g. 10 after one week acclimation at 25 ℃ and 50% relative humidity⁸To 10⁹Ohm cm polymer formulation. In some embodiments, the polymer composition has a glass transition temperature (T) of less than-25 ℃_g). In some embodiments, the composition has a refractive index for visible light between 1.0 and 2.0, such as between 1.2 and 1.7. Furthermore, by varying the composition of the formulation, adhesives for specific applications, such as pressure sensitive adhesives, can be formed.

The polymer compositions of the present invention can be used to planarize (smooth) surfaces having undesirable surface morphologies while preparing the surface for bonding or lamination with another structure. For example, the composition can be spread over an irregular surface and cured to form a bonding layer that is thin, smooth, and leaves substantially no voids between the irregular surface and the composition. Although any number of irregular surfaces may be smoothed with the formulations described, these formulations are well suited for the fabrication of microelectronic devices requiring careful control of the thickness and resistivity of the intervening adhesive layer. As described herein, the formulation can be distributed onto a surface by spraying, spreading, laminating, casting, or spin coating. Once applied, the composition may be cured, for example by heating, or activated by light, for example UV light. In some embodiments, the planarized layer may be less than 25 μm thick, i.e., less than 10 μm thick, i.e., less than 5 μm thick, i.e., less than 3 μm thick. The planarized layer may have less than 10¹⁰Ohm cm, i.e. about 10⁹Ohm cm bulk volume resistivity.

Alternatively, the polymer compositions of the present invention may be incorporated into an electro-optic display. Such displays comprise an electro-optic medium, an electrically conductive layer and the polymer composition of the invention (i.e. urethane acrylate, adhesion promoter and electrically conductive monomer). The electro-optic medium may comprise liquid crystals, electrochromic materials or electrophoretic materials. In particular, the use of the polymer composition of the present invention as a planarizing adhesive improves electro-optic displays using Encapsulated Electrophoretic Media (EEM). Typically, during the manufacture of a display using EEMs, the EEM layer is spread onto a release sheet or conductive material and dried or cured. Once spread, the EEM layer exhibits an irregular surface morphology and is not well suited for bonding with another release layer or electrode layer. The polymer composition of the present invention can be used to smooth the rough surface of the EEM layer and prepare the EEM layer for bonding to another substrate or electrode. Furthermore, since the volume resistivity of the polymer composition can be adjusted, the resistivity between the electrodes can be varied for optimum performance under the target operating conditions.

In an embodiment, an electro-optic display may be manufactured by: providing an electro-optic medium and contacting the electro-optic medium with a polymer composition of the invention, i.e., comprising a urethane acrylate, an adhesion promoter and a conductive monomer, having 10⁷To 10¹⁰An Ohm cm volume resistivity of the polymer composition. In some cases, the electro-optic medium will have surface irregularities that are eliminated (planarized) by the polymer composition of the present invention. The method of manufacture may additionally include curing the polymer composition, such as using heat or UV light. Additional steps may include laminating a release sheet or conductive layer to the polymer composition. The invention also extends to a front laminate panel, an inverted front laminate panel or a double release sheet incorporating the polymer composition of the invention.

Alternatively, the polymer composition may be incorporated into a Variable Transmission (VT) medium, the light transmission of which may be varied as desired. Typically, the VT medium will comprise a transparent substrate, an electro-optic medium, a first transparent electrode, a second transparent electrode, and a polymer composition of the invention (i.e., a urethane acrylate adhesion promoter, a difunctional crosslinker, a non-conductive diluent, and a conductive monomer, having a 10 when cured⁷To 10¹⁰Homopolymer of volume resistivity of Ohm cm). Upon application of an electrical signal, the electro-optic medium will change state, resulting in a change in the refractive index of the VT medium. According to the requirements of the user,the VT medium may vary from transparent to translucent, transparent to frosted, or transparent to opaque. Additional components may include color pigments or filters, thereby effecting a change in both color and light transmission. The VT medium may be used for variable transmission windows, such as installed inside or outside buildings. Alternatively, the VT medium may be a signal or a filter.

Compositions of the invention comprising nanoparticles, such as metal oxide nanoparticles, are suitable for evaluation using X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy. It was determined that the XRF intensity of compositions of the invention comprising certain nanoparticles (e.g. zirconia) has a roughly linear dependence on the thickness of the layer comprising the formulation. This enables non-destructive evaluation of the thickness and regularity of a laminated structure, such as a front laminate panel (FPL), during or after manufacture.

By varying the amount and type of conductive monomer and/or nanoparticle additive, binders with specific refractive indices can be obtained, enabling the use of a variety of electro-optic media and substrates depending on the needs of the application. In embodiments, the electro-optic medium may comprise a polymer dispersed electrophoretic medium or an encapsulated electrophoretic medium. In some embodiments, the polymer composition will additionally comprise, for example, a low concentration of ionic liquid.

Brief description of the drawings

FIG. 1A illustrates a cross-section of an electro-optic display produced using a front laminate panel and a conventional adhesive.

FIG. 1B illustrates a cross-section of an electro-optic display that can be produced using an inverted front laminate panel and a conventional adhesive.

FIG. 1C illustrates a cross-section of an electro-optic display produced using a dual release sheet and a conventional adhesive.

Figure 2A illustrates a cross-section of an electro-optic display similar to that of figure 1A but incorporating the formulation (planarization layer) of the present invention.

Figure 2B illustrates a cross-section of an electro-optic display similar to that of figure 1B but incorporating the formulation (planarization layer) of the present invention.

Figure 2C illustrates a cross-section of an electro-optic display similar to that of figure 1C but incorporating the formulation (planarization layer) of the present invention.

Fig. 3 shows the resistivity of various formulations of the present invention as a function of temperature.

FIG. 4 illustrates the use of a formulation of the present invention to improve the planarity of an electro-optic layer in an inverted front laminate panel (FPL).

Fig. 5A depicts the use of a formulation of the present invention in the manufacture of FPL.

Fig. 5B depicts an alternative use of the formulation of the present invention in the manufacture of an inverted front laminate panel.

Fig. 5C depicts the use of a formulation of the present invention in the manufacture of FPL.

Figure 6 compares surface interferometry of an electro-optic medium without a formulation of the invention as a planarizing layer and an electro-optic medium using a formulation of the invention as a planarizing layer.

Figure 7A shows surface morphology measurements of an electro-optic medium without the formulation of the present invention as a planarizing layer.

Figure 7B shows surface morphology measurements of an electro-optic medium using the formulation of the present invention as a planarizing layer.

Fig. 8A compares the response time to achieve a white state for an electrophoretic display using a conventional binder (control), and an electrophoretic display using a formulation of the present invention (planarized).

Fig. 8B compares the response time to achieve a black state for an electrophoretic display using a conventional binder (control), and an electrophoretic display using a formulation of the present invention (planarized).

Fig. 9 shows the dynamic range at low temperatures L x increased in an electro-optic display (left) using the formulation of the invention as an adhesive layer, and in an electro-optic display using a conventional adhesive layer.

Fig. 10A shows a cross-section through an active laminate using a formulation of the present invention as a planarization layer/adhesive.

Fig. 10B shows a cross-section through an active laminate using a formulation of the present invention as a planarization layer/adhesive.

Fig. 11A shows a cross-section through a variable reflection device using the formulation of the present invention as a planarization layer/adhesive.

Fig. 11B shows a cross-section through a variable reflection device using the formulation of the present invention as a planarization layer/adhesive.

Fig. 12 shows the conductivity as a function of temperature for four exemplary compositions.

Fig. 13 shows the correlation between the measured zirconia X-ray fluorescence signal intensity and thickness of the layer comprising zirconia nanoparticles, as measured using SEM.

Detailed Description

As noted above, the present invention provides polymer formulations for use in a variety of electro-optic media. The polymer formulations improve the performance of devices comprising electro-optic media because they provide certain adhesive layers with electrical conductivity, mechanical adhesion, and refractive index that match the electro-optic medium and operating conditions. The polymer formulation also improves performance by enabling a thinner and flatter layer of electro-optic medium between the electrodes, for example between the front electrode and the back plate, or between two transparent electrodes.

The polymer formulations of the present invention are designed for use in Variable Transmission (VT) media, such as electro-optic displays, signage, and architectural applications. In order to work with electro-optic media, the formulation must meet three requirements: they must provide a relatively matched refractive index, they must provide good adhesion between the different layers (e.g. between the ITO and the electro-optic medium), and they must provide an appropriate volume resistivity to achieve accurate optical state switching. However, each of these values (refractive index, bond strength, and optimum electrical conductivity) can vary widely depending on the nature, application, and operating conditions of the electro-optic medium.

The term "electro-optic", when applied to a material or display, is used herein in its conventional meaning in the imaging arts to refer to a material having first and second display states differing in at least one optical property, the material changing from its first display state to its second display state by application of an electric field to the material. Although the optical property is typically a color that is perceptible by the human eye, it may also be another optical property, such as light transmission, reflectance and fluorescence, or in the case of displays intended for machine-reading, a false color in the sense of a change in reflectance of electromagnetic wavelengths outside the visible range.

The term "gray state" is used herein in its conventional meaning in the imaging art to refer to an intermediate state of two extreme optical states of a pixel, and does not necessarily imply a black-to-white transition between the two extreme states. For example, several of the imperial (E Ink) patents and published applications cited herein describe electrophoretic displays (EPIDs) in which the extreme states are white and dark blue, so that the intermediate "gray state" will actually be pale blue. In fact, as already mentioned, the change in optical state may not be a color change at all. The terms "black" and "white" may be used hereinafter to refer to the two extreme optical states of the display, and should be understood to generally include the non-strict extreme optical states of black and white, such as the white state and the deep blue state described above. The term "monochrome" may be used hereinafter to denote a drive scheme that drives a pixel only to its extreme optical states, without intervening grey states.

The terms "bistable" and "bistability" are used herein in their conventional meaning in the art to refer to displays comprising display elements having first and second display states that differ in at least one optical property, and such that after any given element is driven by means of an addressing pulse of finite duration to assume either its first or second display state, that state will continue for at least several times, e.g. at least 4 times, the minimum addressing pulse duration required to change the state of the display element after the addressing pulse has terminated. It is shown in U.S. patent No. 7,170,670 that some particle-based electrophoretic displays capable of gray scale display are stable not only in their extreme black and white states, but also in their intermediate gray states, as is the case for some other types of electro-optic displays. Although for convenience the term "bistable" may be used herein to encompass both bistable and multi-stable displays, such displays are more suitably referred to as "multi-stable" rather than "bistable".

Several types of electro-optic displays are known. One type of electro-optic display is a rotating bichromal member type, for example, as shown at 5,808,783; 5,777,782, respectively; 5,760,761, respectively; 6,054,071, respectively; 6,055,091; 6,097,531, respectively; 6,128,124, respectively; 6,137,467, respectively; and 6,147,791 (although this type of display is commonly referred to as a "rotating bichromal ball" display, the term "rotating bichromal member" is preferred for greater accuracy because in some of the above patents the rotating members are not spherical). Such displays use a large number of small bodies (usually spherical or cylindrical) having two or more sections with different optical properties and an internal dipole. The bodies are suspended in liquid-filled vacuoles within the matrix, which are filled with liquid, so that the bodies are free to rotate. The appearance of the display is changed by applying an electric field to the display, thereby rotating the corpuscles into various positions and changing which of the parts of the corpuscles are seen through the viewing surface. This type of electro-optic medium is generally bistable.

Another type of electro-optic display uses an electrochromic medium, for example in the form of: a nano color-changing film including an electrode at least partially formed of a semiconductor metal oxide and a plurality of dye molecules capable of reversibly changing color attached to the electrode; see, e.g., O' Regan, B, et al,Nature1991,353,737, respectively; and Wood, d.d.,Information Display18, (3),24 (3 months 2002). See also Bach, u, et al,Adv.Mater.,2002,14(11),845. Nano-chromic films of this type are described, for example, at 6,301,038; 6,870,657 and 6,950,220 are also described. This type of media is also generally bistable.

Another type of electro-optic display is the philips developed electro-wetting display, which is known as "Video-Speed Electronic Paper Based on electric wetting" by Hayes, r.a. et al,Nature425,383-385 (2003). In us patent No. 7,420,549 it is shown that such electrowetting displays can be made bistable.

One type of electro-optic display that has been the subject of intensive research and development for many years is the particle-based electrophoretic display, in which a plurality of charged particles move through a fluid under the influence of an electric field. Electrophoretic displays may have characteristics of good brightness and contrast, wide viewing angles, stable bistability, and low power consumption, as compared to liquid crystal displays. However, the problem of long-term image quality of these displays has prevented their widespread use. For example, the particles that make up electrophoretic displays tend to settle, resulting in insufficient lifetime of these displays.

As mentioned above, electrophoretic media require the presence of a fluid. In most prior art electrophoretic media, this fluid is a liquid, but the electrophoretic medium can be produced from a gaseous fluid; see, for example, Kitamura, T.et al, "electric tuner movement for electronic Paper-like display", IDW Japan,2001, Paper HCSl-1, and Yamaguchi, Y.et al, "tuner display using insulating substrates charged switchgear", IDW Japan,2001, Paper AMD 4-4). See also us 7,321,459 and 7,236,291. Such gas-based electrophoretic media appear to be susceptible to the same types of problems due to particle settling as liquid-based electrophoretic media when the media is used in a direction that allows such settling to occur, such as in a billboard in which the media is disposed in a vertical plane. In fact, particle settling presents a more serious problem in gas-based electrophoretic media than in liquid-based electrophoretic media, because the viscosity of a gaseous suspending fluid is lower than that of a liquid suspending fluid, resulting in faster settling of the electrophoretic particles.

A number of patents and applications assigned to or in the name of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and yingke corporation describe various techniques for use in encapsulated electrophoretic media and other electro-optic media. The encapsulated medium comprises a plurality of capsules, each capsule itself comprising an internal phase of electrophoretically mobile particles contained in a fluid medium and a capsule wall surrounding the internal phase. Typically, the capsule itself is held in a polymeric binder to form an adhesive layer between the two electrodes. The techniques described in these patents and applications include:

(a) electrophoretic particles, fluids, and fluid additives; see, e.g., U.S. Pat. nos. 7,002,728 and 7,679,814;

(b) a bladder, adhesive and encapsulation process; see, e.g., U.S. patent nos. 6,922,276 and 7,411,719;

(c) films and sub-assemblies comprising electro-optic material; see, e.g., U.S. Pat. nos. 6,982,178 and 7,839,564;

(d) a backplane, adhesive and other auxiliary layers and methods for a display; see, e.g., U.S. patent nos. 7,116,318 and 7,535,624;

(e) color formation and color adjustment; see, e.g., U.S. patent No. 7,075,502 and U.S. published patent application No. 2007/0109219;

(f) an application for a display; see, e.g., U.S. patent No. 7,312,784 and U.S. published patent application No. 2006/0279527; and

(g) non-electrophoretic displays, such as 6,241,921; 6,950,220, respectively; 7,420,549, and 2009/0046082.

Many of the above patents and applications recognize that the walls surrounding discrete microcapsules can be replaced by a continuous phase in an encapsulated electrophoretic medium, thereby creating a so-called polymer dispersed electrophoretic display (PDEPID), wherein the electrophoretic medium comprises a plurality of discrete electrophoretic fluid droplets and a continuous phase of a polymeric material, and the discrete electrophoretic fluid droplets in such a polymer dispersed electrophoretic display can be considered as capsules or microcapsules, even if the discrete capsule membranes are not associated with each individual droplet; see, for example, the aforementioned U.S. patent No. 6,866,760. Thus, for the purposes of this application, such polymer-dispersed electrophoretic media are considered to be a subcategory of encapsulated electrophoretic media.

One related type of electrophoretic display is the so-called "microcell electrophoretic display". In a micro-area electrophoretic display, the charged particles and the fluid are not encapsulated in microcapsules, but are held in a plurality of cavities formed in a carrier medium, typically a polymer film. See, for example, U.S. patent nos. 6,672,921 and 6,788,449, assigned to Sipix Imaging, inc.

Although electrophoretic media are typically opaque (because, for example, in many electrophoretic media, the particles substantially block visible light from passing through the display), and operate in a reflective mode, many electrophoretic displays can be made to operate in a so-called "shutter mode" in which one display state is substantially opaque and one display state is light-transmissive. See, for example, U.S. patent nos. 5,872,552, 6,130,774, 6,144,361, 6,172,798, 6,271,823, 6,225,971, and 6,184,856. Dielectrophoretic displays, which are similar to electrophoretic displays but rely on changes in electric field strength, can operate in a similar mode; see U.S. patent No. 4,418,346. Other types of electro-optic displays can also operate in a shutter mode. Electro-optic media operating in shutter mode may be used in multilayer structures for full color displays; in this configuration, at least one layer adjacent to the viewing surface of the display operates in a shutter mode to expose or hide a second layer that is further from the viewing surface.

Encapsulated electrophoretic displays generally do not suffer from the aggregation and settling failure modes of conventional electrophoretic devices and provide additional advantages such as the ability to print or coat the display on a wide variety of flexible and rigid substrates (the use of the word "printing" is intended to include all forms of printing and coating including, but not limited to, premeasured coating such as slot die coating, slot or extrusion coating, slide or cascade coating, curtain coating, roll coating such as knife over roll coating, forward and reverse roll coating, gravure coating, dip coating, spray coating, meniscus coating, spin coating, air knife coating, screen printing processes, electrostatic printing processes, thermal printing processes, ink jet printing processes, electrophoretic deposition (see U.S. patent No. 7,339,715), and other similar techniques). Thus, the resulting display may be flexible. Moreover, since the display medium can be printed (using various methods), the display itself can be manufactured in an inexpensive manner.

Other types of electro-optic media may also be used in the displays of the present invention. The bistable or multistable behavior of particle-based electro-optic displays, and other electro-optic displays that exhibit similar behavior (such displays may be referred to hereinafter for convenience as "impulse-driven displays") is in sharp contrast to that of conventional liquid crystal ("LC") displays. Twisted nematic liquid crystals are not bistable or multistable but act as voltage sensors, so that the application of a given electric field to a pixel of such a display produces a particular grey level at that pixel, regardless of the grey level that previously appeared at that pixel. Furthermore, the LC display is driven in only one direction (from non-transmissive or "dark" to transmissive or "bright"), and the reverse transition from the lighter state to the darker state is affected by the reduction or elimination of the electric field. Finally, the grey levels of the pixels of an LC display are not sensitive to the polarity of the electric field, but only to its magnitude, and in practice, for technical reasons, commercial LC displays often reverse the polarity of the driving electric field at relatively frequent time intervals. In contrast, bistable electro-optic displays generally act as pulse translators, so that the final state of a pixel depends not only on the applied electric field and the time for which the field is applied, but also on the state of the pixel prior to application of the electric field.

Whether or not the electro-optic medium used is bistable, in order to achieve a high resolution display, individual pixels of the display must be addressable without interference from adjacent pixels. One way of achieving this is to provide an array of non-linear elements, such as transistors or diodes, at least one of which is associated with each pixel to form an "active matrix" display. The addressing or pixel electrode addressing a pixel is connected to a suitable voltage supply via the associated non-linear element. In general, when the nonlinear element is a transistor, the pixel electrode is connected to a drain of the transistor, and this configuration will be presented in the following description, but it is basically arbitrary and the pixel electrode may be connected to a source of the transistor. Typically, in high resolution arrays, pixels are arranged in a two-dimensional array of rows and columns such that any particular pixel is uniquely defined by the intersection of a particular row and a particular column. The sources of all transistors in each column are connected to a single column electrode, while the gates of all transistors in each row are connected to a single row electrode; again, the source to row and gate to column assignments are conventional, but are essentially arbitrary and can be reversed if desired. The row electrodes are connected to a row driver which essentially ensures that only one row is selected at any given time, i.e. a voltage is applied to the selected row electrodes to ensure that all transistors in the selected row are conductive, while voltages are applied to the other rows to ensure that all transistors in these non-selected rows remain non-conductive. The column electrodes are connected to a column driver which applies a selected voltage to the various column electrodes to drive the pixels in a selected row to their desired optical states (the aforementioned voltages being associated with a common front electrode which is typically disposed on the opposite side of the electro-optic medium from the non-linear array and which extends across the entire display). After a pre-selection time interval called the "line addressing time", the selected row is deselected, the next row is selected, and the voltage on the column driver is changed so that the next row of the display is written. This process is repeated so that the entire display is written in a row-by-row fashion.

The present invention includes a polymer composition comprising a urethane acrylate, an adhesion promoter, and a conductive monomer. The conductive monomer is typically of low molecular weight (<1000g/mol) of a monofunctional monomer which imparts high ionic conductivity characteristics to the cured film. In some embodiments, the monomers include polar functional groups and exhibit moderate affinity for water. The conductive properties of the monomer (or formulation) are determined by exposing the cured film, e.g., a "homopolymer," to 25 ℃ and 50% Relative Humidity (RH) for one week, and then measuring the volume resistivity of the cured film. The conductive monomer generally exhibits less than 10¹⁰Ohm cm, more usually 1X 10⁸And 9X 10⁹Volume resistivity between Ohm cm.

In addition to the conductive monomer, the formulation of the present invention may also include a non-conductive diluent monomer, a crosslinking agent, a photoinitiator, and a plasticizer, among other ingredients. Like the conductive monomer, the non-conductive monomer is typically of low molecular weight (<1000g/mol) of a monofunctional monomer. However, the same as that ofThe conductivity measured by non-conductive diluent monomer is higher than 10¹¹Ohm cm, e.g. above 10¹²Ohm cm. Table 1 lists that can be added to polymer formulations to affect glass transition temperature (T)_g) Refractive index and electrical conductivity.

Table 1 glass transition temperature (Tg), refractive index (nN) and specific gravity of monomers that can be added to the formulations of the present invention. The descriptions and commercial sources of each additive are set forth in table 1 below.

	SR9087	SR339	SR495B	SR9038	CN966H90	SR349	CD9055	CN131B	SR531	CN3108	CN9782
												Tg(℃)	-24	5	-53	-42	-35	67	70	13	10	25	-32
nN(RI)	1.5038	1.516	1.4637	1.4933	1.4718	1.5425	1.4549	1.5247	1.4624	1.513	1.4900
												Specific gravity of	1.1101	1.103	1.1	1.128	1.1	1.145	1.21	1.156	1.09	1.16	1.177

Sartomer SR 9087-a commercially available alkoxylated phenol acrylate monomer. Sartomer, Exton, PA.

Sartomer SR 339-commercially available 2-phenoxyethyl acrylate monomer. Sartomer, Exton, PA.

Sartomer SR 495B-commercially available caprolactone acrylate monomer. Sartomer, Exton, PA.

Sartomer SR 9038-a commercially available ethoxylated (30) bisphenol A diacrylate monomer. Sartomer, Exton, PA.

Sartomer CN966H 90-a commercially available aliphatic polyester urethane diacrylate oligomer mixed with 10% 2- (2-ethoxyethoxy) ethyl acrylate. Sartomer, Exton, PA.

Sartomer SR 349-commercially available ethoxylated (3) bisphenol A diacrylate monomer. Sartomer, Exton, PA.

Sartomer CD 9055-a commercially available acidic acrylate adhesion promoter. Sartomer, Exton, PA.

Sartomer SR 531-a commercially available Cyclic Trimethylolpropane Formal Acrylate (CTFA) monomer. Sartomer, Exton, PA.

Sartomer CN 3108-a commercially available acrylate oligomer. Sartomer, Exton, PA.

Sartomer SR 256-a commercially available acrylate oligomer. Sartomer, Exton, PA.

Sartomer CN 9782-a commercially available aromatic urethane acrylate oligomer. Sartomer, Exton, PA.

Sartomer CN 131B-a commercially available low viscosity acrylic oligomer. Sartomer, exton pa.

In addition to the components listed in Table 1, other additives may be included to adjust volume resistivity, such as Sartomer SR440 (commercially available isooctylacrylate monomer), Sartomer SR395 (commercially available isodecyl acrylate monomer), and Rahn M166 (commercially available polyether acrylate; Rahn AG, Zurich, Switzerland). The composition may additionally comprise a cross-linking agent, such as Sartomer CN96 (a commercially available urethane diacrylate oligomer); photoinitiators, for example diphenyl (2,4, 6-trimethylbenzoyl) phosphine oxide and 1-hydroxycyclohexyl-phenyl-ketone (both from Sigma-Aldrich, Milwaukee, WI) and/or plasticizers, such as glycerol, propylene carbonate or phthalate (from Sigma-Aldrich). In some cases, additional binder resins, such as Sartomer CN964 (a commercially available urethane acrylate oligomer), may be added. In some embodiments, the formulation will comprise 0 to 70% (wt/wt) conductive monomer, such as 5 to 50% (wt/wt), for example 10 to 40% (wt/wt). In some embodiments, the formulation will comprise 0 to 50% (wt/wt) of the non-conductive monomer, such as 5 to 45% (wt/wt), for example 10 to 40% (wt/wt). In some embodiments, the formulation will comprise 0 to 40% (wt/wt) crosslinker, for example 5 to 15% (wt/wt), for example 10 to 15% (wt/wt). In some embodiments, the formulation will comprise 0 to 50% (wt/wt) adhesion promoter, for example 5 to 45% (wt/wt), for example 10 to 40% (wt/wt). In some embodiments, the formulation will contain less than 2% (wt/wt) photoinitiator, such as about 1% (wt/wt) photoinitiator, for example about 0.5% (wt/wt) photoinitiator. In some embodiments, the formulation will comprise less than 2% (wt/wt) plasticizer, such as about 1% (wt/wt) plasticizer, such as about 0.5% (wt/wt) plasticizer. In some embodiments, the formulation will comprise less than 1% (wt/wt) ionic liquid, for example less than 0.5% (wt/wt) ionic liquid, for example less than 0.1% (wt/wt) ionic liquid.

In some embodiments, the formulations of the present invention are substantially solvent-free, i.e., they do not themselves contain solvents other than the monomer components and additives. For example, the formulation does not contain ketones, ethers, hexanes, or other alkane solvents that do not have polymerizable functionality, i.e., lower chain length of the acrylate or epoxide. Such formulations improve the reliability of the layered electro-optic component and other materials, i.e. the VT window, because less shrinkage on evaporation occurs during curing, making the film more consistent. Furthermore, the manufacturing process itself requires less air treatment/scrubbing and produces less organic waste.

In some embodiments, the formulations of the present invention are substantially free of metal, i.e., conductive metal particles. Because the formulation does not contain metal particles, there is less risk of these densification additives settling out of the adhesive suspension when the formulation is cured, which can result in an adhesive/planarization layer with different conductive regions. In addition, metal particles can adversely affect the refractive index and cause visual defects in the finished display.

Typically, the formulations require low viscosity (less than 5000cP, such as less than 2000cP, for example less than 1000cP) to flow properly during processing, such as coating and lamination. The low viscosity allows the formulation to coat materials at low coat weights, but still achieve leveling prior to curing. Nevertheless, the formulations must still have a sufficiently high viscosity that they do not dewet the material or favorably wet the ink surface prior to curing. For this reason, the formulations of the invention generally also comprise a crosslinking agent which is activated during curing, for example by photoinitiation. The type of cross-linking agent used may vary with the material to be coated, for example, different cross-linking agents may be used depending on whether the electro-optic medium is an encapsulated liquid polymer or an electro-optic inorganic solid. In addition, the time of crosslinking during the manufacturing process may vary depending on the needs of the application. For example, in some embodiments, the adhesive layer will be crosslinked after it has been applied to the electro-optic medium or during the lamination process. In other embodiments, the adhesive layer will be crosslinked after the electro-optic assembly, such as a front laminate panel) has been fabricated. When crosslinking is initiated after manufacture, the electrode or release sheet adjacent to the adhesive layer must be substantially transparent to the light required for photoinitiation. Of course, other means for crosslinking the polymer, such as heat, may be used depending on the application.

The adhesion of the formulation and performance as a coating can be promoted in two main ways. The first is to increase the affinity of the adhesive layer to the surface to be bonded. The second is to dissipate the peel force in the polymer motion rather than delaminating. Importantly, if the cohesive forces in the polymer are stronger than the adhesive forces between the polymer and the surface, the polymer will tear from the surface. In the opposite case, i.e., where the adhesive force is stronger than the cohesive force, the polymer will tear, leaving debris attached to the surface. For optimum performance, adhesion is chosen to be stronger than the cohesion in the polymer, however, both adhesion and cohesion should be relatively high.

Both adhesive and cohesive forces can be varied by varying the functional groups of the polymer(s) as well as the length of the monomer units. For example, carbamates have relatively strong affinity for a wide variety of surfaces, but depending on the composition of the surface, the addition of certain functional groups (e.g., carboxylic acid, amine, acetal, phenyl groups) can greatly improve adhesion. At the same time, the energy consumption required to avoid delamination when the formulation is exposed to peel forces is improved by the generation of relatively long and entangled polymer chains. This can be improved by using prepolymers (e.g., difunctional acrylates with thousands of molecular weight units prior to curing), changing the crosslink density, or changing the curing conditions.

The refractive index of the polymer mixture may be changed by including additives in addition to the composition of the monomer itself. For example, shorter and higher functionality crosslinkers result in a larger amplitude increase in refractive index, while very long crosslinkers result in a small amplitude increase. Furthermore, the cured film typically has a slightly higher refractive index than the uncured mixture (the refractive index dependence on curing may be due to the reduction in free volume in the polymer as it cures). The refractive index of the electro-optic medium can vary significantly, for example a polymer dispersed electrophoretic medium can have a refractive index of about 1.5, while the refractive index of an electrochromic medium can be greater than 2. Once the electrophoretic medium is selected, the polymer mixtures of the present invention can be modified as desired to obtain index-matched formulations. In particular, to achieve good transparency, the refractive index of the formulation should be as close as possible to the refractive index of the electro-optic medium when the electro-optic medium is in the transparent state.

The refractive index of the adhesive layer(s) can be tuned by adding highly refractive metal oxide nanoparticles. The use of nanoparticles to dope the binder allows for the adjustment of the refractive index without affecting Tg and conductivity. Preferred fillers have high refractive index nanomaterialsAnd is dispersible in the low Tg, high conductivity UV fluid continuous phase. Such a composition will leave highly conductive pathways through the matrix and yield a refractive index that is an average of the nanomaterial and the cured UV fluid (as long as the filler is below the percolation concentration). Metal nanoparticles may also be included in the compositions of the present invention to modify the refractive index. When properly selected, the composition, size, and amount of nanoparticles can alter the refractive index of the composition such that the refractive index of the composition matches or cancels out the refractive index of the electro-optic medium. That is, the compositions of the present invention can be used to modify the interface between layers, e.g., the electro-optic layer and the light-transmissive electrode layer, to improve overall transmission and reduce moire, speckle, or other distortions. In some embodiments, the metal nanoparticles are metal oxide nanoparticles, such as zirconia nanoparticles. Suitable nanoparticles are commercially available from a variety of suppliers, such as Pixelligent (Baltimore, MD) and Sigma Aldrich (Milwaukee, WI). The nanoparticles are typically less than 500nm in (average) size, such as less than 300nm in (average) size, such as less than 200nm in (average) size, such as less than 100nm in (average) size, such as less than 50nm in (average) size, such as less than 20nm in (average) size. In some embodiments, the nanoparticles have an average size of about 5nm with a narrow size distribution (e.g., 3-7 nm). In addition, the nanoparticles may be surface treated to improve dispersion and also provide active sites for crosslinking in the polymerization mixture. Various metal nanoparticles may be used in the present invention, including surface treated and untreated zirconium, titanium, copper, indium, zinc, nickel, tin, lanthanum, and cerium nanoparticles. In other embodiments, oxides, carbides or nitrides of these metals may be used to prepare suitable nanoparticles, such as ZrO₂、TiO₂、ZnO、MnO、NiO、CdO、Cr₂O₃、Mn₂O₃、Fe₂O₃Or CeO₂。

In addition to changing the refractive index and adhesive properties, the properties of the polymer formulation can be improved by changing the electrical conductivity. For example, in many applications involving electro-optic materials, there are 1 × 10⁹Volume resistivities on the order of Ohm cm are beneficial. And has a size of 1X 10¹³This is a relatively low volume resistivity compared to conventional adhesives having volume resistivities on the order of Ohm cm (i.e. insulating). Therefore, it is beneficial to select the monomer type and functionality to achieve the desired resistivity. However, in many cases, additives that increase conductivity adversely affect the optical or mechanical properties of the formulation. For example, the addition of conductive metal particles greatly changes the adhesive and optical properties. Therefore, compromises must be made in the design of the adhesive to promote electrical conductivity while maintaining acceptable physical properties.

In the polymer formulations of the present invention, the conductive properties are improved by the addition of monomers that facilitate ion transport through the cured network. There are two main ways to contribute to the large number of charge carriers and the large number of binding sites for these charge carriers. First, polar, rubber-like, hygroscopic monomers, such as carbonyl or alkoxy-containing monomers, are added. The second is the addition of an organic ion dopant. Both the polar groups and the dopant clusters act as low energy sites for charge carriers, possibly hydronium and hydroxide ions. However, inclusion of a conductive monomer or Ionic Liquid (IL) is not exclusive, and in some cases, the combination may produce a synergistic effect, for example achieving a total volume resistivity that is lower than the sum of the conductive monomer and IL contributions.

Ionic liquids suitable for use in the present invention include organic compounds having a high charge component solvated by adjacent molecules, for example imidazolium salts coupled to strong counterions such as phosphates, sulfonamides, borates and cyanamides. For example, 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate (BMIPF6), 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium bis [ (trifluoromethyl) sulfonyl ] imide (BMITFSI), 1-decyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate (DMIPF6), 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate (EMIBF4), 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium dicyanamide (EMIDCN), and 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis [ (trifluoromethyl) sulfonyl ] imide (emifsi).

The ability of a polymer to transport solvated ions is generally very temperature dependent and is below the transition temperature of the polymerGlass transition temperature (T)_g) Its electrical conductivity is greatly reduced [ glass transition temperature is the temperature at which an amorphous solid changes between the rubbery and glassy state]. Because of T_gIs a standard measurement (dynamic scanning calorimetry (DSC)), so the T of a homopolymer or oligomer_gCan be used to determine the temperature range over which the component will contribute most to the conductivity. On the other hand, T may be selected if desired_gThe components falling within the operating temperature range of the device cause the polymer formulation to have significantly different conductivities at different points within the operating temperature range. Such polymers are useful in the manufacture of dual stimulation electro-optic displays that respond to both temperature and electrical stimulation. The dual stimulant formulation may include, for example, about 40% (wt/wt) of a hygroscopic acrylate monomer (improving conductivity, such as SR9088 or SR9087), about 10% (wt/wt) of a urethane acrylate oligomer (improving mechanical properties, such as CN964) and about 50% (wt/wt) of an acrylate oligomer monomer blend (tackifier/adhesion promoter; such as CN 3108). For example, the VT window may be designed to change from clear to silver when the temperature rises above a given temperature, thereby helping to minimize incident light from the sun on hot days.

A graphical representation of the temperature dependence of the conductivity of different polymer blends is shown in fig. 3, which plots the inverse of the natural logarithm of the resistivity against the temperature multiplied by 1000. The measurements in fig. 3 employed impedance spectroscopy for cured samples sandwiched between a transparent Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) electrode and a carbon backplane. The composition of the formulations in fig. 3 differ in their ethylene oxide weight composition. Formulations a-C each contained about 30% by weight ethylene oxide. Formulations E-H each contained about 15% by weight ethylene oxide. Formulation J contains about 8% by weight ethylene oxide.

At high temperatures, i.e. on the left side of the figure, all materials are significantly above their glass transition temperature and the resistivity is at least two orders of magnitude lower than at low temperatures (on the right side of the figure). In general, the highest conductivity is obtained at temperatures as high as possible above the glass transition temperature (at any high temperature the polymer chains will move as freely as possible, but the mechanical properties may be impaired). Figure 3 also illustrates the trend of resistivity as a function of moisture uptake. In particular, the top line (J) has the lowest ethylene oxide concentration and shows the highest resistivity, while the bottom line (a-C) has the highest ethylene oxide concentration and shows the lowest resistivity.

In practice, it is generally sufficient to operate at about 25 ℃ above the glass transition temperature. Since many systems incorporating polymer formulations will operate at room temperature, the T of the bulk formulation (bulk formulation)_gShould be somewhere around 0 ℃ or lower. Since the operating temperature is usually fixed (and not arbitrarily high), this requires the purposeful manufacture of a material with as low a T as possible_gThe polymer matrix of (a). Of course, like the adhesion and optical properties, the glass transition temperature can also be adjusted with the monomer composition. Generally, a mixture of monomers will produce a cured film having a T_gAt the highest homopolymer T_gAnd the lowest homopolymer T_gSomewhere in between, furthermore, the more a monomer is added, the more T of the mixture, as predicted by the Flory-Fox equation_gThe closer to T thereof_g。

Although the formulations are described as being useful in the construction of devices comprising electro-optic media, such as front laminate panels and displays, it will be appreciated that the formulations may be used in other applications, such as conductive adhesives. For example, the formulations of the present invention may be used as electrically conductive pressure sensitive adhesives. Such formulations may include about 30% caprolactone acrylate monomer (e.g., SR495B), about 40% polyester/urethane monomer blend (e.g., CN966H90), and about 30% alkylated acrylate monomer (e.g., SR 440).

Electrophoretic display medium

As shown in fig. 2A-2C, the formulations of the present invention are well suited for the manufacture of layered assemblies comprising electro-optic media, i.e., for use in displays. In particular, adhesive formulations can be obtained using the above compositions and methods that provide good planarization of the electro-optic assembly while also providing good adhesion between the electro-optic medium and an electrode, such as a transparent ITO electrode, or between the electro-optic medium and an adhesive layer, or between the electro-optic medium layer and a release sheet.

In embodiments, the formulations may be used to make layered assemblies that may be joined with a backplane to form an electro-optic display. In the embodiment shown in fig. 4, the process starts with depositing a layer of an electro-optic medium 310 on a layer of indium tin oxide coated polyethylene terephthalate (PET-ITO) 320. In some embodiments, the electro-optic medium 310 may be deposited onto a laminating adhesive (not shown in FIG. 4) on top of the PET-ITO 320. The lamination adhesive may improve the bond between the electro-optic medium and another later added layer, such as a backplane.

After deposition onto the PET ITO 320, the formulation 330 of the present invention is deposited onto the layer of electro-optic medium 310 to produce a substantially flat surface, i.e., as shown in the middle diagram of fig. 4. As discussed in more detail below, formulation 330 may be sprayed, cast, spread, spin-coated, or laminated. Once the formulation 330 has been deposited onto the layer of electro-optic medium 310, the adhesive layer and release sheet 340 may be adhered, laminated, etc. to the layer of formulation 330, as shown in the last figure of fig. 4. In some embodiments, formulation 330 is cured after formulation 330 is applied to electro-optic medium 310, but before the adhesive layer and release sheet 340 are applied. In other embodiments, formulation 330 is cured after the adhesive layer and release sheet 340 have been applied. Curing may be thermally or photoactivated. As shown in fig. 4, the formulation 330 achieved good flatness between the adhesive layer and the release sheet 340 and the PET ITO 320. As a result, when the release sheet is removed and the electro-optic medium 310/formulation 330/PET ITO 320 is applied to a backplane, e.g., an active matrix electrode (not shown), the backplane and PET ITO 320 will be flat across the device, resulting in consistent performance of the electro-optic medium 310. In a layered assembly, the formulation 330 of the invention causes the adhesive layer and the release sheet 340 and the PET ITO 320 to delaminate within 50 μm of each other, such as less than 40 μm of each other, such as less than 30 μm of each other, such as less than 25 μm of each other, such as less than 20 μm of each other.

As discussed above, the electro-optic medium 310 in fig. 4 is depicted as an encapsulated particle system, however other electro-optic media may be used. In addition, in practice, the layer of electro-optic medium 310 is much smoother than depicted in FIG. 4 (the morphology in the layer of electro-optic medium 310 is exaggerated to illustrate the benefits of the present invention).

In some embodiments (not shown in fig. 4), an additional adhesive layer different from the layer of formulation 330 is added between the electro-optic medium 310 and the PET ITO 320. Additional adhesive layers may be combined with the formulation to create a mixed planarization/adhesive layer, as described below with respect to fig. 5B.

When the formulation 330 adheres the electro-optic medium 310 to the PET ITO 320, the resulting assembly may be referred to as an "inverted front laminate panel (FPL)", as discussed in U.S. patent No. 7,839,564. Such an inverted FPL can be used to form a display by removing the release sheet adjacent to the electro-optic layer and laminating the remaining layers to the backplane. If the backplane is smooth enough and the lamination conditions used are of close concern, good, void-free lamination should be achievable and the resulting display will exhibit good low temperature performance and high resolution. If void formation (i.e., the area where the electro-optic medium does not adhere to the backplane) is found to be a problem, then the release sheet adjacent the electro-optic layer can be removed from the inverted FPL and the remaining layers laminated to a thin layer of lamination adhesive pre-applied to a separate release sheet, thereby forming an improved inverted FPL containing an auxiliary layer of lamination adhesive (see FIG. 2B). After removing the release sheet covering the auxiliary adhesive layer, the improved inverted FPL can be laminated to the back sheet in the same manner as described above, with improved adhesion to the back sheet. Since the surface of the electro-optical layer exposed by removing the release sheet will be very smooth (since the electro-optical layer is coated on a smooth support), in most cases a very thin auxiliary layer of laminating adhesive (in some cases as little as 1 μm or less) will suffice. Such a small thickness of adhesive will not be sufficient to affect the electro-optical performance or resolution of the display. The conductivity of the auxiliary laminate adhesive layer can be altered, if desired, using the techniques and formulations described herein. The thicker the auxiliary layer, the less conductive it will be, but if it is very thin (about 1 to 10 μm), its conductivity can be much stronger than the planarization layer without compromising the performance improvement provided by the present invention.

As previously discussed, the above-described layered structure enables precise control of the conductivity between the PET ITO 320 and the backplane to be applied to the layered assembly. In some cases, a single device may require different electro-optic media 310, i.e., have different conductivities, for different portions of the device. To obtain a common electrical conductivity between the electrodes 340 and the backplane across the device, the different portions may each have an agent 330 of different conductivity to balance the difference in conductivity of the electro-optic medium 310. In other embodiments, a common electro-optic medium 310 may be used to form a layered assembly, however, for optimal performance, operating conditions, such as outdoors or at low temperatures, may require different overall conductivities between the electrodes 340 and the backplane. Using the techniques described herein, the conductivity of formulation 330 can be adjusted to achieve a desired conductivity. Of course, other properties of formulation 330 may be adjusted as desired using the techniques described herein, e.g., the adhesion or refractive index of formulation 330 may be adjusted by changing formulation 330.

For some applications it may be advantageous to have a fully symmetrical structure with a layer 330 of equal thickness of formulation on either side of the electro-optic medium 310. The structure should have effectively the same symmetrical electrical response that may be desired to reduce or eliminate some sort of electro-optic artifact. Such a display structure may be manufactured using a symmetrical double release film, such as described in U.S. patent No. 7,561,324.

In yet another embodiment, the PET ITO 320 of fig. 4 may be replaced with a second release sheet, thereby providing a structure (actually a modified double release film) comprising, in order, an adhesive layer release sheet 340, an electro-optic medium 310, a formulation layer 330, and a second release sheet. In such embodiments, either release sheet may alternatively be removed from the improved dual release film. The improved dual release film effectively behaves as a separate electro-optic layer that can be used to construct devices in a variety of ways, such as described in U.S. patent No. 7,110,164.

A front laminate panel (FPL) or an inverted front laminate panel (iFPL) comprising the formulation of the present invention can be formed using a lamination process, such as shown in fig. 5A-5C. Fig. 5A (fpl) and 5B (ifpl) differ from fig. 5C in that the formulations in fig. 5A and 5B are thermally cured, while the formulation of fig. 5C is UV cured. The front laminate panel (FPL) may be formed by: the electro-optic layer ("ink") is adhered directly to the PET/ITO electrode, the formulation, i.e., the planarizing adhesive layer, is applied to the electro-optic medium 310, and then the laminating adhesive with the release sheet is applied to the planarizing adhesive layer. In some embodiments, the adhesion layer may interact with the planarization layer to create a hybrid planarization/adhesion layer. An exemplary technique for completing the assembly using lamination is shown in fig. 5A. In some embodiments, the release sheet is formed of a UV transparent material, thus allowing the formulation 330 to cure after being laminated to the electro-optic medium 310, as shown in fig. 5C. In some embodiments, UV curing will initiate crosslinking between the planarization and adhesive layers, thereby resulting in better bonding between the electro-optic medium 310 and the backplane in the final display assembly.

Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 5B, the formulation may be deposited onto the electro-optic medium on top of a release sheet (release) and then PET/ITO electrodes 340 laminated to the formulation and the top of the electro-optic medium by laminating roll lamination, resulting in an inverted FPL structure (although FIGS. 5A, 5B, and 5C show the use of a metal substrate, it will be understood that other materials may be used as the substrate, for example, a flexible material such as a polymer). In some embodiments, formulation 330 will cure after lamination, as shown in fig. 5A and 5B. In other embodiments, formulation 330 will be cured prior to (not shown) or during (not shown) lamination. Laminates for display assemblies of the type shown in fig. 2A-2C can be made using lamination techniques similar to those shown in fig. 5A and 5B. In some embodiments, a second laminating adhesive layer may be added to the planarization layer or to the electro-optic medium to improve the integrity of the final display assembly, as previously described.

Importantly, fabrication techniques using UV curing, such as fig. 5C, will allow a wider range of temperature sensitive materials to be incorporated into the device. For example, polymer-based leads or wires that may be susceptible to high temperature damage may be included in a layered assembly with a UV curable adhesive. Furthermore, lamination at or near room temperature reduces outgassing that can lead to air bubbles between the layers. In embodiments where the electro-optic medium is a liquid, e.g. water-based or water-permeable, UV curing will avoid swelling and/or dehydration of the medium. In such cases, UV curing will not only reduce the defectivity of the layered assembly, but it will also reduce the amount of post-treatment adaptations, such as rehydration, required in the process.

The ability to planarize the electro-optic layer with thin, curable formulations allows the application of adhesive coatings of less than 25 μm, possibly as thin as 10 μm, possibly as thin as 5 μm, possibly as thin as 3 μm, without significant lamination voids. Furthermore, such a planarisation layer may be used for the manufacture of a multilayer electro-optical medium, for example a multilayer encapsulated electrophoretic medium. The multi-layer electro-optic material may enable simultaneous presentation of multiple colors or multiple polarizations, for example. In particular, planarization formulations as described herein are used for the assembly of separately addressable layers without interlayer contamination. In the case of reflective electro-optic media, such as electrophoretic pigments, a thin planarization layer also improves the reflectivity of the medium, resulting in a greater dynamic range (depth of grey scale).

In addition to the above properties, the planarization layer enables the use of direct coating to fabricate Color Filter Array (CFA) elements while minimizing parallax (i.e., loss of dynamic range due to viewing angle). In embodiments, because the upper surface electrode is very parallel to the backplane, the upper electrode can simply be coated with a colored material to make a colored pixel. Alternatively, a separately fabricated filter may be adhered to the front plane without concern that different pixels of the same color will display different colors and/or intensities due to differences in surface morphology.

Example 1 evaluation of surface flatness

A UV curable planarizing layer comprising a (meth) acrylated urethane oligomer resin is prepared for deposition onto the encapsulated electrophoretic media. The formulation is prepared by the following steps: 45 parts per 100 parts resin (phr) of (meth) acrylated resin (SR9088) and 15phr of polyester urethane diacrylate oligomer (CN964) and 40phr of acrylate oligomer (CN3108) were mixed in a bottle, and the mixture was heated to 60 ℃ for 2 hours and then rolled overnight to yield a high viscosity polymer mixture. After thorough mixing, 1phr of 1-hydroxycyclohexyl-phenyl-ketone (CPK) photoinitiator and 1phr of diphenyl (2,4, 6-Trimethylbenzoyl) Phosphine Oxide (TPO) photoinitiator were added and the mixture was heated to 40 ℃ for 2 hours and the formulation was rolled over night again to homogenize the mixture.

The above UV-curable formulation was spread on the electro-optic medium on a release sheet using a bar coating method, and the bar was set to a gap thickness of 1mil (25 μm). After the coating step, a coating having a thickness of 85mJ/cm was used²The output Delo 30S chamber of a 365nm lamp (Delo Industrial Adhesives, Windach, Germany) was cured for 1 minute. After curing, the surface roughness of the coated and uncoated inks was measured by interferometry.

The uncoated electro-optic medium had a surface roughness (Sa) of 1.5 μm with a standard deviation of 0.1 μm, as measured by interferometry, while the electro-optic medium coated with a 15 μm UV-curable formulation had a Sa of 0.2 μm with a standard deviation of 0.04 μm. The distinction between coated and uncoated electro-optic media is readily seen in figures 6, 7A and 7B. As shown in fig. 6, the darker areas represent surface features above or below the median height of the sample. The sample on the left side of fig. 6 is an uncoated electro-optic medium, i.e., a sample that is not planarized. In contrast, in the right sample, a formulation coated electro-optic medium was used. Clearly, the surface variation with the planarization layer is much less.

The change in surface morphology in fig. 6 is readily seen in fig. 7A and 7B, where in fig. 7A and 7B, any one-dimensional slice in the two planarization measurements of fig. 6 has been cut in the X-direction to show that the planarized electro-optic medium is substantially planar. As shown in FIG. 7A, the uncoated material had a height ranging from 5 μm to almost 10 μm, while the coated material (FIG. 7B) had a height of 0 μm and an isolated peak of 3 μm. These results show a very good planarization over the entire surface with a coating of 15 μm, which will result in better electro-optic display performance. The small features shown in fig. 7B can be eliminated by increasing the coating thickness to 30 μm, which may or may not be required depending on the application.

Example 2 evaluation of formulation Properties

In addition to providing improved planarity between the top electrode and the backplane, the formulation also improves the stability of the four-layer structure (electrode/electro-optic medium/planarization formulation/electrode) comprising the formulation. The structure comprising the formulation did not delaminate under strain resulting in delamination of a similar four-layer structure (release sheet/electro-optic medium/conventional adhesive/electrode).

The four-layer structure comprising the planarization formulation in place of the conventional binder also demonstrated improved performance as measured by switching speed and dynamic range. This may be due to the fact that conventional adhesives are generally insulating when applied at a thickness of 5-30 μm. As shown in fig. 8, the addition of a UV planarization layer to an encapsulated bistable (black/white) electrophoretic medium layer coated directly on ITO, with a 250ms pulse at 15V, shows two states of accelerated white and dark.

An alternative formulation comprising 45phr SR9087, 15phr SR9038, 40phr CN3108, 0.5phr diphenyl (2,4, 6-trimethylbenzoyl) phosphine oxide and 0.5phr 1-hydroxycyclohexyl-phenyl-ketone was prepared using the above technique. The formulation was coated onto an encapsulated electrophoretic bistable electro-optic medium and the coating was cured with a D-lamp and laminated to a backing sheet with a polyurethane adhesive layer and then conditioned at 50 ℃ and 50% RH for 1 week. The dynamic range of the electrophoretic medium was then assessed photometrically at various temperatures. The results are shown in figure 9 as "formulations". For comparison, a conventional adhesive used in a commercially available encapsulated electrophoretic bi-stable display was prepared in the same manner and tested ("state of the art" in fig. 9). As shown in fig. 9, the dynamic range of the formulation was superior to the state of the art at 0 ℃ and 25 ℃ and was only slightly inferior at 50 ℃. However, since commercial electrophoretic media devices are typically used in the temperature range of-10 ℃ to 40 ℃, the formulations exhibit significant improvements in performance at typical operating temperatures.

Variable transmission medium

The polymer formulations of the present invention may additionally be used to make Variable Transmission (VT) media such as "smart glass" where application of a voltage will result in a change in the light transmission of the media. In general, the structure of a VT medium is similar to that shown for electro-optic media, i.e., as shown in FIGS. 2A-2C. Whereas the electro-optic medium will typically comprise a backplane with active matrix electrodes, the VT medium comprises a transparent substrate and a second transparent electrode, as shown in fig. 8A and 8B. In some embodiments, the electro-optic material can be an encapsulated electrophoretic medium, and in other embodiments, the electro-optic material is a polymer dispersed electrophoretic medium, as described in U.S.6,866,760, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Of course, the VT medium may also be constructed with alternative electro-optic materials, such as those described above, such as electrochromic materials.

Example 3 UV Polymer formulation for VT glass

Several UV-activated polymer formulations were prepared for use as adhesives and for planarizing Polymer Dispersed Electrophoretic (PDEPID) layers or encapsulated electrophoretic particle layers for incorporation into VT glasses. As depicted in fig. 10B, this formulation will be a polyvinyl alcohol adhesive used to bond ITO (PET/ITO front electrode) to PDEPID surface coating. Although only variable transmission devices are illustrated below, the same techniques can be used to construct variable reflection devices, except that a reflective substrate is used instead of a transparent medium. Such a structure is shown in fig. 11A and 11B. Of course, the transformation may be applied to existing substrates, such as variable transmission films for windows, mirrors, signs, walls, metals, and the like. In one embodiment of the variable reflection device, the reflective substrate is a mirror, such as silvered glass. In another embodiment, the reflective substrate is a material with a high gloss, such as a polished metal surface or a colored glossy surface. In other applications, the variable reflection device shown in fig. 11A and 11B may be used to change the gloss of a surface as desired.

Each monomer blend was prepared by weighing the monomers reported in table 2 and combining the monomers with a photoinitiator and an ionic liquid in an amber vial. The mixture was then rolled on a roller mill for 12 hours to ensure uniform mixing of the formulation. In some cases, the monomers are heated prior to mixing to reduce viscosity. Once completed, each formulation was evaluated for refractive index, volume resistivity, and maximum peel force. Surface treated zirconia nanoparticles (PCPB-50 ETA and PCPG-50 ETA, Pixelligent, Baltimore, Md.) were commercially available suspended in ethyl acetate and ethyl acetate was removed by rotary evaporation after the surface treated zirconia was added to the solution. Volume resistivity measurements involved curing each film between two planes of ITO glass and then measuring the impedance with a Solartron impedance analyzer (solantron Analytical, Farnborough, UK).

TABLE 2 compositions of polymer formulations prepared for VT glass

As is clear from table 2, the electrical conductivity and refractive index can be adjusted by changing the composition of the formulation. Such formulations thus offer various options for planarization and adhesion layers in variable transmission media, depending on the operating conditions and the composition of the materials used, e.g., electro-optic media and transparent media.

Example 4 Change of glass transition temperature

In addition to changing the refractive index, the refractive index of the formulation can be related to T_gAnd conductivity are decoupled. This can be accomplished by adding nanoparticles that change the refractive index, but disperse to provide a highly conductive path through the matrix. The refractive index vs. T is illustrated by the following formulation and the graph of FIG. 12_gAnd the ability to decouple conductivity. In practice, it is desirable to maintain the T of the formulation_gAs low as possible so that the conductivity response of the formulation to temperature will be as flat as possible. Thus, displays or VT devices incorporating these formulations will be stable over a greater operating temperature range. The adhesive formulations are listed below. Formulation A was an organic only formulation, formulation B included surface treated zirconia nanoparticles, formulation C was formulation B without surface treated zirconia nanoparticles, and formulation D was high T_gAnd (4) preparing the preparation. FIG. 12 shows the resistivity of displays constructed with these adhesivesAnd T of each binder_g. As is clearly visible by comparing formulations B and C in fig. 12, the addition of the surface treated zirconia nanoparticles was effective to flatten the conductivity curve over the temperature range.

Preparation A: 40phr of CN3108 urethane acrylate blend; 20phr of SR9038 ethoxylated (30) bisphenol A diacrylate; 40phr of CN131B low viscosity acrylic oligomer; 0.5phr of TPO photoinitiator and 0.5phr of CPK photoinitiator.

Preparation B: 50phr of CN3108 urethane acrylate blend; 30phr of SR495B caprolactone acrylate; 20phr of SR9038 ethoxylated (30) bisphenol A diacrylate; 50phr of Pixclear PG in PGMEA 50 wt% nanozirconia sol (0.5 phr of TPO photoinitiator and 0.5phr of CPK photoinitiator after removal of PG).

Preparation C: 50phr of CN3108 urethane acrylate blend; 30phr of SR495B caprolactone acrylate; 20phr of SR9038 ethoxylated (30) bisphenol A diacrylate; 0.5phr of TPO photoinitiator and 0.5phr of CPK photoinitiator.

Preparation D: 15phr SR495B, 40phr CN3108, 45phr SR349 ethoxylated (3) bisphenol A diacrylate, 0.5phr TPO photoinitiator and 0.5phr CPK photoinitiator.

Thickness determination using X-ray fluorescence (XRF)

The invention also includes methods of measuring the thickness of the adhesive and/or planarization layer described herein. The present invention differs from conventional coating weight and direct thickness measurements (e.g., using calipers), which are ineffective due to variations in the thickness and weight per unit area of the various other layers in the transparent display. For example, while many adhesive layers have a characteristic signature in the IR, the signal is typically dwarfed (dwarfed) and/or convolved (convoluted) by the signal from the ITO or other layers in the display.

It has been discovered by chance that many metal or metal oxide nanoparticles that can be added to the composition of the present invention to alter the refractive index have a significant X-ray fluorescence signal. In particular, gold having an atomic number greater than 18 is includedThe metallic or metal oxide nanoparticles of the genus have characteristic X-ray fluorescence signatures that can be readily resolved using commercial XRF methods. Using suitable evaluation equipment, such as that provided by Thermo-Fisher (Waltham, MA), the layer thicknesses of fabricated electro-optic materials, such as displays or variable transmission films, can be evaluated during or after curing, without cutting into the material, when they are being processed. Techniques for evaluating materials using XRF are known and are described in textbooks, such as Skoog,Principles of Instrumental Analysisand various patents and patent applications, such as US 5,821,001 and US 20120258305, both of which are incorporated by reference in their entirety.

Example 5 XRF determination of layer thickness

The addition of metal oxide nanoparticles in the recited range (i.e., less than 20phr) also achieves non-destructive quantification of the thickness of a layer of the composition by X-ray fluorescence (XRF). In particular, when well-dispersed nanoparticles with a compact size distribution are distributed in the composition, the XRF signal intensity is almost linear with layer thickness.

A series of front laminate panels were made using the zirconia doped formulation B of example 4 above. Different laminates include different adhesive coat weights that form a series of FPLs with adhesive layers of different thicknesses. Each laminate portion was cut and the cross section was analyzed using a Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) to measure the thickness of the layer including the metal oxide nanoparticles. After measurement with SEM, each layer was evaluated by X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy using a Spectro-XEPOS XRF spectrometer (Spectro Analytical Instruments, Kleve, Germany). The plot of Zr signal by XRF versus coating weight by SEM is shown in fig. 13. The relationship between measured thickness and XRF signal is nearly linear over the typical range of adhesive thicknesses (i.e., 5-20 μm). Thus, for the formulation, the Zr XRF signal can be used to calculate the binder thickness.

Importantly, the Zr XRF measurement can be done independently of the presence of the electro-optic material, the light transmissive electrode or the auxiliary adhesive layer. Furthermore, there is no need to switch the electro-optic state to one or the other, so the same XRF device can be used to assess laminate thickness regardless of whether the front laminate panel is being produced for use in a display or a variable transmission film. Because XRF is able to determine the concentration of a wide variety of elements, the same method can be used for a wide variety of metal oxide nanoparticles, including any of zirconia, titania, zinc oxide, chromia, iron oxide, and the like. In some embodiments, it may be desirable to have multiple adhesion layers with different nanoparticles containing different metals so that XRF signals can be used to evaluate the thickness of multiple different layers, respectively.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that many changes and modifications can be made in the specific embodiments of the invention described above without departing from the scope of the invention. Accordingly, the entire foregoing description is to be understood in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense.