Patent ID: RE43442

Claim:
A light-emitting device, comprising: a substrate; an insulating layer formed of an inorganic compound and having an upper surface, the insulating layer formed on the substrate; a plurality of light-emitting elements formed in a region over the insulating layer, each of the light-emitting elements having an anode, a thin organic light-emitting layer, and a cathode sequentially stacked above the insulating layer, the cathode of at least one of the light emitting elements having an upper surface defining a step, the light-emitting elements emitting light by excitation due to an electric field; an insulating pixel partition wall separating the anodes of at least two of the light-emitting elements; an organic buffer layer having outer and inner surfaces, the organic buffer layer being formed of an organic compound and covering an area that is larger than the region in which the light-emitting elements are formed, the inner surface of the organic buffer layer filling the step of the upper surface of the cathode such that the outer surface of the organic buffer layer is substantially flat; and first and second gas barrier layers, formed of an inorganic compound, disposed on the outer surface of the organic buffer layer, and shielding the plurality of light-emitting elements from an environment external to the device, only one of the first and second gas barrier layers covering an area larger than the organic buffer layer.