Transparent Flexible Ultra‐Low Permeability Encapsulation Film: Fusible Glass Fired on Heat‐Resistant Polyimide Membrane

Abstract

Abstract A good packing of flexible electronics is one of the most critical points to ensure its lifetime. However, efficient and straightforward packaging technology is still very challenging. In this work, a new strategy for preparing encapsulation film is reported by “enameling” a fusible glass layer on a polymer membrane. Careful consideration has been given to the materials properties and manufacturing process, and the obtained glass‐coated polymer can combine the advantageous properties of polymers and inorganic materials unconventionally. The encapsulation films show exceptional overall properties, including transparency (<5% optical deterioration), flexibility (radius of curvature: 1.5 mm), and low permeability. The film with 12 µm glass layer exhibits a water vapor transmission rate of 5.7 × 10 −4 g m −2 day −1 , and an oxygen transmission rate of 1.46 × 10 −4 g m −2 day −1 , which is 5 and 3 orders of magnitude lower than that of the polymer substrate, respectively. The fabrication process is suitable for roll‐to‐roll manufacturing, showing great advantages over the existing deposition methods like plasma‐enhanced chemical vapor deposition and atomic layer deposition in terms of reducing manufacturing costs and simplifying the process. Therefore, it is a significant contribution to the development of flexible electronics packaging technology.