There are many examples of functional blocks or components that can provide, produce, or detect electromagnetic or electronic signals or other characteristics. The functional blocks are typically objects, microstructures, or microelements with integrated circuits built therein or thereon. These functional blocks have many applications and uses. The functional components can be used as an array of display drivers in a display where many pixels or sub-pixels are formed with an array of electronic elements. For example, an active matrix liquid crystal display includes an array of many pixels or sub-pixels which are fabricated using amorphous silicon or polysilicon circuit elements. Additionally, a billboard display or a signage display such as store displays and airport signs are also among the many electronic devices employing these functional components.
Functional components have also been used to make other electronic devices. One example of such use is that of a radio frequency (RF) identification tag (RFID tag) which contains a functional block or several blocks each having a necessary circuit element. Information is recorded into these blocks, which is then transferred to a base station. Typically, this is accomplished as the RFID tag, in response to a coded RF signal received from the base station, functions to cause the RFID tag to reflect the incident RF carrier back to the base station thereby transferring the information. Such RFID tags are being incorporated into many commercial items for uses such as tracking and authenticating the items.
The functional components may also be incorporated into substrates to make displays such as flat panel displays, liquid crystal displays (LCDs), active matrix LCDs, and passive matrix LCDs. Making LCDs has become increasingly difficult because it is challenging to produce LCDs with high yields. Furthermore, the packaging of driver circuits has become increasingly difficult as the resolution of the LCD increases. The packaged driver elements are also relatively large and occupy valuable space in a product, which results in larger and heavier products.
Demand for functional components has expanded dramatically. Clearly, the functional components have been applied to make many electronic devices, for instance, the making of microprocessors, memories, power transistors, super capacitors, displays, x-ray detector panels, solar cell arrays, memory arrays, long wavelength detector arrays, phased array antennas, RFID tags, chemical sensors, electromagnetic radiation sensors, thermal sensors, pressure sensors, or the like. The growth for the use of functional components, however, has been inhibited by the high cost of assembling the functional components into substrates and fabricating final devices or end products that incorporate the functional components.
Often the assembling of these components requires complex and multiple processes thereby causing the price of the end product to be expensive. Furthermore, the manufacturing of these components is costly under the current method because of inefficient and wasteful uses of the technologies and the materials used to make these products.
Many aspects such as substrates' materials, characteristics, and dimensions, and/or functional blocks' dimensions and characteristics, and the like, impact the efficiency and cost of assembling the functional components into substrates. Accurate dimension and parameter control of these aspects are crucial for efficiency while reducing cost for assembling electronic devices containing functional blocks deposited therein.
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USPTO Backgrounds