Strengthened thin glass-polymer laminates

Abstract

A glass-polymer laminate structure includes a flexible glass substrate having a thickness of no more than about 0.3 mm. A polymer layer is laminated to a surface of the flexible glass substrate having a coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) that is at least about 2 times a CTE of the flexible glass substrate. The polymer layer is laminated to the surface of the flexible glass substrate after thermally expanding the polymer layer to provide the flexible glass substrate with an in-plane compressive stress of at least about 30 MPa along a thickness of the flexible glass substrate.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method of forming a flexible glass-polymer laminate structure, the method comprising:
 heating a polymer layer of the flexible glass-polymer laminate structure to an elevated temperature of greater than 20° C., the polymer layer having a coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) that is at least 2 times a CTE of a flexible glass substrate of the flexible glass-polymer laminate structure, or having a coefficient of thermal expansion (CTE) that is at least about 3 ppm/° C. greater than a CTE of the flexible glass substrate of the flexible glass-polymer laminate structure;   laminating the polymer layer at the elevated temperature to the flexible glass substrate; and   cooling the polymer layer below the elevated temperature to introduce a compressive stress of at least about 30 MPa across a thickness of the flexible glass substrate.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the flexible glass substrate has a compressive stress of at least about 80 MPa across a thickness of the flexible glass substrate. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1 , wherein the polymer layer has a CTE that is at least about 10 times the CTE of the flexible glass substrate. 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 1 , comprising expanding the polymer layer relative to the flexible glass substrate as the polymer layer is heated to the elevated temperature. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising applying an adhesive layer between the flexible glass substrate and the polymer layer that laminates the polymer layer to the flexible glass substrate. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1 , further comprising cooling the polymer layer below the elevated temperature to bend the flexible glass substrate while simultaneously providing a compressive stress across at least a portion of thickness of the flexible glass substrate.