1 Hz / 15 Joules-excimer-laser development for flat panel display applications

On the way toward the cost reduction of TFT‐LCD's manufacturing, Low Temperature Poly‐Silicon appears as one of the most promising technology. In the present paper, a new approach for laser annealing of amorphous silicon for AMLCD application is introduced. As a laser source, SOPRA developed a XeCl laser λ: 308 nm able to deliver up to 15 Joules per pulse onto the panel to be treated, at a repetition rate of 1 Hz. Moreover the long pulse duration of 200 ns is known to lead to a low cooling rate of the melted silicon, which promotes the growth of big grains and then improve the performances of the TFT's.