Barix™

Barix is a coating comprised of alternating layers of polymer and ceramic thin films that can be deposited on a plastic substrate or directly on an OLED display. The technology breakthrough that enables this to be used as the packaging material for FPDs is the creation of a barrier layer 10,000 times less permeable to water than anything currently available.

The bulk permeability of even a thin inorganic layer of silicon dioxide (glass) or aluminum oxide (ceramic) is essentially zero – making them the perfect barriers. So why does a coating of these materials on a plastic film allow the passage of water or oxygen? The reason is that in order to produce an impermeable barrier, such a coating must be continuous and free of any defects. However, when deposited on an OLED or plastic surface at low temperatures, these coatings have poor step coverage and inevitably, will always have small pinholes or weaknesses in the film.   Microscopic inspection shows why: the surface of the OLED display is not smooth.   On a molecular scale, it is a landscape resembling that of mountains and valleys.   The thin-film barrier has to cover all the surfaces, including the sidewalls to have good barrier properties. Increasing the thickness of the inorganic layer does not solve the problem.