JP2002244135A - Liquid crystal device, projection type display device and electronic apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a liquid crystal device which can reduce display fault such as light leak caused by descreenation by a lateral electric field, even if line inverse-driving is executed. SOLUTION: The liquid crystal device is provided with an active matrix substrate, having a first electrode group composed of plural pixel electrodes to which image signals of the same polarity are supplied and a second electrode group, composed of plural pixel electrodes to which image signals of polarity different from that of the first electrode group are supplied and is further provided with a counter substrate and liquid crystal held between these substrate. An alignment direction Ra of liquid crystal molecules of an active matrix substrate side is set nearly along an alignment direction of plural pixel electrodes of the electrode group. Furthermore, when the alignment direction Ra is oblique to the alignment direction of the electrodes, the liquid crystal molecules are twistedly arranged, so as to extend over a first electrode group forming region and a second electrode group forming region from the active matrix substrate side to a counter substrate side.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a liquid crystal device, a method of manufacturing the same, and an electronic apparatus, and more particularly to a configuration of a liquid crystal device suitable for performing a line inversion drive and a column inversion drive.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a projection type liquid crystal display device such as a liquid crystal projector, an active matrix type liquid crystal device is used for a liquid crystal light valve used as a light modulator. In an active matrix liquid crystal device, an element substrate on which signal lines, pixel electrodes, pixel switching elements, and the like are formed, and an opposing substrate on which a common electrode is formed are opposed to each other with a certain gap therebetween via a sealing material. The liquid crystal is sandwiched between the gaps. In the display area of the liquid crystal device, a large number of pixel electrodes surrounded by data lines and scanning lines are formed, and these pixel electrodes are arranged in a matrix.

As a display method of an active matrix type liquid crystal device, a twisted nematic (Twisted Nema
At present, the display method of the tic (hereinafter abbreviated as TN) mode is dominant. The reasons are bright, high contrast, relatively fast response speed, low drive voltage,
This is because the TN mode liquid crystal device has various characteristics basically required for a display in a well-balanced manner, such as easy gradation display. In the TN mode,
The major axis direction of the liquid crystal molecules is 90 between the element substrate and the counter substrate.
° Adopt a twisted structure.

Although the alignment direction of the liquid crystal molecules is regulated by the surface condition of the substrate, simply arranging the liquid crystal molecules in parallel to the substrate surface has a degree of freedom in the alignment direction of the liquid crystal molecules.
Liquid crystal molecules cannot be arranged in a predetermined direction. As one means for orienting liquid crystal molecules in a specific direction, there is a method in which an adherend or a groove having alignment in a specific direction is provided on the substrate surface to physically regulate the long axis direction of the liquid crystal molecules. The main method of this method is to apply a coating film (orientation film) having an orientation, such as a polyimide resin, or to apply a means for imparting the orientation by scratching the surface of the orientation film in a specific direction. I have. As a means of the alignment treatment for imparting directionality to the alignment film, for example, a rubbing method in which the alignment film is rubbed with a cloth wound around a roll, an oblique evaporation method in which the alignment film itself is formed by evaporating an inorganic material from an oblique direction, and the like. is there.

[0005] As a driving method of the active matrix type liquid crystal device, a so-called frame inversion drive in which an image signal applied to the liquid crystal is inverted for each frame from the viewpoint of the life of the liquid crystal material is adopted. However, when the frame inversion drive is employed, the life of the liquid crystal material is prolonged, but flicker (image flicker) occurs due to crosstalk between adjacent pixels, and the display quality may be degraded. Therefore, in order to prevent flicker, a column inversion drive method for inverting the polarity of an image signal for each adjacent data line or a line inversion drive method for inverting the polarity for each adjacent scanning line is often used.

[0006]

For example, in a liquid crystal light valve used for a projection type liquid crystal device, pixels have recently been more and more finely defined. In general, the configuration of an active matrix substrate has a structure in which a peripheral portion of a pixel is high and a central portion is low because a step due to a signal line such as a data line or a scanning line exists in a peripheral portion of the pixel. Especially when the size of one pixel is reduced due to high definition, the rubbing cloth does not hit the area near the step at the periphery of the pixel in the alignment treatment such as rubbing method, oblique evaporation method, etc. For such reasons, the problem that the ratio of the region where the sufficient alignment treatment is not performed becomes large has become remarkable. Then, the alignment direction of the liquid crystal molecules located at the periphery of the pixel is not sufficiently controlled by the alignment treatment, and the liquid crystal molecules take an unstable alignment depending on various factors, that is, a state of poor alignment. For this reason, a region where the alignment direction of the liquid crystal is different between the central portion and the peripheral portion of the pixel is formed (disclination), and display failure such as light leakage has occurred at the boundary portion.

As a countermeasure against the above-mentioned defective orientation, for example, after a groove is formed in a substrate, a signal line is buried in the groove, or after a signal line is formed on the substrate, the signal line is insulated with high flatness. The surface of the substrate is flattened by embedding with a film or by flattening an insulating film using a chemical mechanical polishing (hereinafter abbreviated as CMP), and a sufficient amount of liquid is provided anywhere in the pixel. It is conceivable to adopt a structure capable of performing an orientation treatment.

[0008] However, even if the poor orientation is solved by the substrate having such improved flatness,
In particular, when the above-described line inversion drive or column inversion drive is employed as a drive method, a display defect due to disclination has also occurred at the periphery of the pixel. The reason is that in the case of line inversion drive or column inversion drive, image signals of different polarities are supplied to adjacent pixels,
In addition to the vertical electric field generated between the pixel electrode on the element substrate and the common electrode on the opposite substrate and directly contributing to the driving of the liquid crystal, a horizontal electric field is generated between adjacent pixel electrodes on the element substrate. This is because the arrangement of liquid crystal molecules is disturbed at the periphery of the pixel due to the action of the lateral electric field.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problem. In a liquid crystal device employing a line inversion drive or a column inversion drive as a driving method, a display caused by disclination due to a lateral electric field is provided. It is an object to provide a liquid crystal device capable of reducing defects.

[0010]

In order to achieve the above object, a first liquid crystal device according to the present invention comprises a first liquid crystal device comprising a plurality of electrodes arranged in one direction to which image signals of the same polarity are supplied.
An active matrix substrate including an electrode group and a second electrode group including a plurality of electrodes arranged in one direction and adjacent to the first electrode group and supplied with an image signal having a polarity different from that of the first electrode group. A liquid crystal device comprising: a counter substrate disposed to face the active matrix substrate; and a liquid crystal layer made of a liquid crystal having a positive dielectric anisotropy sandwiched between the active matrix substrate and the counter substrate. Wherein the major axis direction of the liquid crystal molecules on the active matrix substrate side of the liquid crystal layer does not supply an image signal to the first electrode group and the second electrode group;
It is characterized in that the second electrode group is arranged substantially along the direction of arrangement of the plurality of electrodes.

In other words, in the first liquid crystal device of the present invention, an alignment film is provided on a surface of the active matrix substrate on the liquid crystal layer side, and the alignment film has the first electrode group,
An alignment process is performed in which a direction substantially along the arrangement direction of the plurality of electrodes of each of the second electrode groups is set as an alignment direction.

According to a second liquid crystal device of the present invention, there is provided a first electrode group including a plurality of electrodes arranged in one direction to which image signals of the same polarity are supplied, and the first electrode group adjacent to the first electrode group. An active matrix substrate having a second electrode group composed of a plurality of electrodes arranged in one direction to which an image signal having a polarity different from that of the one electrode group is supplied; and a counter substrate disposed to face the active matrix substrate; A liquid crystal device comprising a liquid crystal layer made of a liquid crystal having a positive dielectric anisotropy sandwiched between the active matrix substrate and the counter substrate,
In the liquid crystal layer, when the major axis direction of the liquid crystal molecules on the active matrix substrate side does not supply an image signal to the first electrode group and the second electrode group, the first electrode group and the second electrode The liquid crystal molecules are arranged so as to face in an oblique direction with respect to the arrangement direction of the plurality of electrodes of each group, and one end of the liquid crystal molecules in the major axis direction is viewed from the active matrix substrate side toward the counter substrate side in plan view. It is characterized by being twisted and arranged so as to straddle the formation region of one electrode group and the formation region of the second electrode group.

In other words, in the second liquid crystal device of the present invention, an alignment film is provided on each of the active matrix substrate and the counter substrate on the liquid crystal layer side,
These alignment films are subjected to an alignment process in which the alignment direction is an oblique direction with respect to the arrangement direction of the plurality of electrodes of each of the first electrode group and the second electrode group. One end is located in the formation region of the first electrode group in plan view, and the other is located in the formation region of the second electrode group in plan view. .

The inventors of the present invention have made intensive studies on the causes of display defects due to disclination, particularly when performing line inversion driving or column inversion driving, and have found that the direction of the horizontal electric field generated on the active matrix substrate is It has been found that the relationship with the alignment direction of liquid crystal molecules in an initial state (in a state where no voltage is applied) (which can also be referred to as the alignment direction in the alignment treatment performed on the substrate) is greatly related to the occurrence of disclination. Hereinafter, this will be described with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 14 schematically shows the relationship between the direction of the horizontal electric field and the orientation direction on the active matrix substrate. FIG. 14 (a) shows the conventional relationship, and FIG. 14 (b) shows the relationship of the present invention. FIG. 14C shows the relationship in the first liquid crystal device, and FIG. 14C shows the relationship in the second liquid crystal device of the present invention. FIG.
(A) to (c) show four pixel electrodes,
This shows a state in which a positive (+) voltage is applied to the two upper pixel electrodes 100a, and a negative (-) voltage is applied to the lower two pixel electrodes 100b. Therefore, the direction of the horizontal electric field is the vertical direction in the figure.

In FIGS. 14A to 14C, the solid arrow Ra indicates the orientation direction on the active matrix substrate side. Hereinafter, in the present specification, the orientation direction is defined as a reference line that is a straight line extending in a direction along the scanning line (horizontal direction in the drawing) (the tip of the arrow when the orientation direction is indicated by an arrow). Side) counterclockwise angle θ. Therefore, the orientation direction Ra on the active matrix substrate side is 90 ° in the conventional example of FIG.
In the first liquid crystal device of the present invention shown in FIG.
In the second liquid crystal device of the present invention (c), the angle is 135 °.
Note that, here, the TN mode is assumed, and the dashed arrow Rb that forms an angle of 90 ° with the solid arrow Ra indicates the alignment direction on the counter substrate side. Regarding the above, it is considered that the orientation direction on the counter substrate side has little effect on the operation of the present invention.

FIG. 15 schematically shows a state of an electric field generated when a voltage is applied to each pixel electrode and the common electrode. In the figure, a positive potential is applied to the left pixel electrode 100a, a negative potential is applied to the right pixel electrode 100b, and the common electrode 1
It is assumed that a ground potential is applied to 01. In addition,
In an actual liquid crystal device, the potentials of the pixel electrodes 100a and 100b and the common electrode 101 are given as potentials that effectively satisfy the above-described potential relationship in accordance with the characteristics of the pixel switching transistor. At this time, the left pixel electrode 100a
An electric field from the pixel electrode 100a to the common electrode 101 is generated at the center of the pixel electrode 100a, and an electric field from the common electrode 101 to the pixel electrode 100b at the center of the right pixel electrode 100b (these electric fields are referred to as vertical electric fields). Occurs. Further, in the liquid crystal layer 103 near the active matrix substrate 102, the periphery of the pixel electrodes 100 a and 100 b is changed from the left pixel electrode 100 a to the right pixel electrode 10 a.
An electric field toward 0b (this electric field is referred to as a horizontal electric field) is generated.

The influence of the vertical electric field and the horizontal electric field on the liquid crystal molecules will be described by taking the case of the first liquid crystal device of the present invention as an example. As shown in FIG. 14A, in the conventional liquid crystal device, the direction of the lateral electric field is parallel to the alignment direction Ra on the active matrix substrate 102 side (that is, the major axis direction of the liquid crystal molecules when no voltage is applied). As shown in FIG. 16A, when the vertical electric field is represented by EV and the horizontal electric field is represented by EL, the liquid crystal molecules 110a when no voltage is applied are parallel to the substrate surface (in this case, a pretilt And the major axis is directed in a direction parallel to the direction EL of the transverse electric field.

In this state, when a voltage is applied between the pixel electrode and the common electrode, the liquid crystal molecules 110a are affected by the vertical electric field and tend to rise in the vertical electric field direction EV as shown by the solid line. At this time, the liquid crystal molecules 110 at the center of the pixel
Since the horizontal electric field hardly acts on a, it rises substantially along the vertical electric field direction EV. However, since a horizontal electric field acts on the liquid crystal molecules 110a at the periphery of the pixel, even if the liquid crystal molecules 110a tend to rise in the vertical electric field direction EV, they may sufficiently rise in the vertical electric field direction EV due to the influence of the horizontal electric field. It is not possible and it is in a tilted state. The degree of the inclination depends on the balance between the magnitude of the action of the vertical electric field and the magnitude of the action of the horizontal electric field. For this reason, the liquid crystal molecules 1 are located between the pixel central portion and the pixel peripheral portion.
It is probable that a region having a different arrangement state of 10a was formed, and a display failure due to disclination occurred.

On the other hand, in the case of the first liquid crystal device of the present invention, unlike the conventional liquid crystal device, as shown in FIG. 16B, the liquid crystal molecules 110b when no voltage is applied are indicated by broken lines. As described above, the major axis direction is directed in a direction parallel to the substrate surface and perpendicular to the direction EL of the transverse electric field (a direction penetrating the paper surface).

When a voltage is applied between the pixel electrode and the common electrode in this state, the liquid crystal molecules 110b receive a vertical electric field and tend to rise in the vertical electric field direction EV as shown by a solid line. At this time, also in the case of the present invention, since the horizontal electric field hardly acts on the liquid crystal molecules 110b at the pixel central portion, the liquid crystal molecules rise almost in the direction of the vertical electric field EV. However, in the case of the liquid crystal device of the present invention, a horizontal electric field does not necessarily act on the liquid crystal molecules 110b in the peripheral portion of the pixel.
The effect of the substantial lateral electric field on the movement of 10b is much smaller than in the case of the conventional liquid crystal device.

That is, in the conventional case, since the original orientation direction and the direction of the transverse electric field are parallel to each other, the transverse electric field is applied in such a direction that the liquid crystal molecules 110a tend to return to the original state from the state parallel to the substrate surface. Therefore, the liquid crystal molecules 110a are easily affected by the lateral electric field. In contrast, in the case of the present invention, since the original orientation direction and the direction of the lateral electric field are perpendicular to each other, the direction in which the lateral electric field acts tends to rise from a state in which the liquid crystal molecules 110b are parallel to the substrate surface to a perpendicular state. The direction of movement is orthogonal to the direction of movement, and the liquid crystal molecules 110b are less susceptible to the influence of the lateral electric field. As described above, according to the first liquid crystal device of the present invention, the occurrence of disclination can be suppressed as compared with the conventional device, and as a result, display defects due to disclination can be reduced. Can be.

The reason why disclination can be suppressed by the first liquid crystal device of the present invention has been described above. In the case of the second liquid crystal device of the present invention, the same operation as that of the first liquid crystal device is partially performed. Can play. That is, in the case of the second liquid crystal device of the present invention, the major axis direction of the liquid crystal molecules on the active matrix substrate side is oblique to the arrangement direction of the plurality of electrodes constituting each electrode group. Are arranged so that one end in the major axis direction is twisted from the active matrix substrate side to the counter substrate side so as to straddle the formation region of the first electrode group and the formation region of the second electrode group. In the middle of the vertical direction, as in the first liquid crystal device of the present invention, there is a region where the orientation direction of the liquid crystal molecules is substantially perpendicular to the direction of the lateral electric field. Therefore, the liquid crystal molecules in this region are less likely to be affected by the lateral electric field as compared with the conventional liquid crystal device. Therefore, also in the second liquid crystal device of the present invention, occurrence of disclination can be suppressed.

Although the operation of the present invention has been qualitatively described above, the present inventors simulated the transmittance when the above-mentioned orientation direction was changed, and obtained the first and second aspects of the present invention.
It has been actually confirmed that the configuration of the liquid crystal device can reduce the area where disclination occurs. This simulation result will be described later.

It is preferable that a pretilt be provided to the liquid crystal molecules on the active matrix substrate side, and that the pretilt angle be set in a range of 3 ° to 30 °. In the case of a conventional general liquid crystal device, the pretilt angle is set to about 1 ° to 3 °. However, if the pretilt angle is made larger than this, the liquid crystal molecules are less likely to be affected by the lateral electric field, and disclination occurs. Can be further suppressed. On the other hand, when the pretilt angle exceeds 30 °, the transmittance of light during white display is reduced and the display becomes dark, which is not preferable.

The pre-tilt angle is larger than before, and
There are various methods as a specific means for setting the range of 30 °. Particularly, as a method excellent in controllability of the pretilt angle, for example, an inorganic material film is formed on an active matrix substrate using an oblique deposition method. There is a method of forming an alignment film. At this time, the pretilt angle can be controlled by adjusting the deposition angle when oblique deposition is performed. In addition, as an effective method for increasing the pretilt angle, a columnar structure of an inorganic material inclined in one direction by performing a plurality of oblique vapor depositions while changing the vapor deposition direction in the substrate surface, There is a method of forming an alignment film in which a columnar structure of an inorganic material that is inclined in a direction different from the inclination direction is mixed.

In the case of the liquid crystal device of the present invention, disclination due to a lateral electric field can be sufficiently suppressed by the above configuration. Therefore, in the active matrix substrate, when the surface of the substrate in the formation region of the signal line for driving each electrode of the first electrode group and the second electrode group and the surface of the substrate in the formation region of each electrode are flattened, , The occurrence of display failure can be further prevented.

The projection type display device of the present invention comprises a light source, a light modulating means comprising the liquid crystal device of the present invention for modulating light from the light source, and a projecting means for projecting the light modulated by the light modulating means. And characterized in that: According to this configuration, an image with excellent display quality can be obtained, and
High definition can be achieved.

An electronic apparatus according to the present invention includes the liquid crystal device according to the present invention. According to this configuration, an electronic device including a liquid crystal display unit having excellent display quality can be realized.

[0030]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS [Configuration of Liquid Crystal Device] One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. The liquid crystal device of the present embodiment has a display mode of TN (Twiste
d Nematic) active matrix type liquid crystal device. FIG. 1 is an equivalent circuit diagram of switching elements, signal lines, and the like in a plurality of pixels arranged in a matrix forming a display area of a liquid crystal device. FIG. 2 is a TFT array on which data lines, scanning lines, pixel electrodes, and the like are formed. FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along line AA ′ of FIG. 2 and FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line BB ′ of FIG. 2. In the following drawings, the scale of each layer and each member is different in order to make each layer and each member have a size recognizable in the drawings.

In the liquid crystal device according to the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, a plurality of pixels arranged in a matrix forming an image display area include a pixel electrode 9a and a pixel electrode 9a for controlling the pixel electrode 9a. A thin film transistor (hereinafter, abbreviated as TFT) 30 as a switching element is formed, and a data line 6a to which an image signal is supplied is electrically connected to a source of the TFT 30. Image signal S to be written to data line 6a
, Sn are supplied line-sequentially in this order, or are supplied to a plurality of adjacent data lines 6a in groups. The scanning line 3a is a TFT
The scanning signals G1, G2,..., Gm are applied to the plurality of scanning lines 3a in a pulsed line-sequential manner at a predetermined timing. Pixel electrode 9
a is electrically connected to the drain of the TFT 30;
By turning on the TFT 30 as a switching element for a certain period, the image signals S1, S2,..., Sn supplied from the data line 6a are written at a predetermined timing.

The image signals S1, S2,..., Sn of a predetermined level written in the liquid crystal via the pixel electrodes 9a are held for a certain period between the common electrodes described later. The liquid crystal modulates light by changing the orientation and order of the molecular assembly according to the applied voltage level, thereby enabling gray scale display. In the case of the normally white mode, the amount of transmitted light of the incident light is reduced according to the applied voltage, and in the case of the normally black mode, the amount of transmitted light of the incident light is increased according to the applied voltage. Light having a contrast according to the image signal is emitted from the liquid crystal device. Here, in order to prevent the held image signal from leaking, a storage capacitor 70 is added in parallel with the liquid crystal capacitor formed between the pixel electrode 9a and the common electrode.

In the case of the liquid crystal device of the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, a plurality of transparent pixel electrodes 9a (indicated by dotted lines 9a ') are provided in a matrix on a TFT array substrate. The data line 6a, the scanning line 3a, and the capacitor line 3b are provided along the vertical and horizontal boundaries of the pixel electrode 9a. The data line 6a is electrically connected to a source region described later in the semiconductor layer 1a made of, for example, a polysilicon film through the contact hole 5, and the pixel electrode 9a is connected to a drain region described later in the semiconductor layer 1a. The region is electrically connected through a contact hole 8. In addition, the scanning line 3a is arranged so as to face a channel region (a hatched region ascending left in the figure) of the semiconductor layer 1a, and the scanning line 3a is a portion facing the channel region as a gate electrode. Function. The semiconductor layer 1a is not limited to polysilicon, and may be formed by, for example, bonding single crystal silicon.

The capacitance line 3b has a main line portion extending substantially linearly along the scanning line 3a (that is, the scanning line 3
a first region formed along the data line 6a, and a protruding portion (upward in the drawing) protruding along the data line 6a from a location intersecting the data line 6a (ie, the data line as viewed in plan). 6a extending along the second region 6a). In FIG. 2, a plurality of first light-shielding films 11a are provided in a region indicated by oblique lines rising to the right. More specifically, the first light-shielding film 11a is provided at a position covering the TFT 30 including the channel region of the semiconductor layer 1a in the pixel portion as viewed from the side of the TFT array substrate.
A main line portion extending linearly along the scanning line 3a opposite to the main line portion of the capacitance line 3b, and a rear side adjacent to the data line 6a from a location where the data line 6a intersects (ie, downward in the drawing). And a protruding projection. First light shielding film 11
The tip of the downward protruding portion in each stage (pixel row) of a
Under the data line 6a, it overlaps with the tip of the upward projection of the capacitance line 3b in the next stage. A contact hole 13 for electrically connecting the first light-shielding film 11a and the capacitance line 3b to each other is provided in the overlapping portion. That is, in the present embodiment, the first light-shielding film 11 a is electrically connected to the preceding or subsequent capacitive line 3 b by the contact hole 13.

Next, looking at the cross-sectional structure, as shown in FIG. 3, the liquid crystal device of the present embodiment has a pair of transparent substrates, and the TFT array substrate 10 as one of the substrates.
And an opposing substrate 2 which is the other substrate disposed opposite thereto.
0. The TFT array substrate 10 is made of, for example, a quartz substrate or hard glass, and the counter substrate 20 is made of, for example, a glass substrate or a quartz substrate. The TFT array substrate 10 has, for example, indium tin oxide (Indium Tin Oxide).
A pixel electrode 9a made of a transparent conductive film such as Oxide (hereinafter abbreviated as ITO) is provided, and a pixel switching device for controlling switching of each pixel electrode 9a is provided at a position adjacent to each pixel electrode 9a on the TFT array substrate 10. A TFT 30 is provided. The pixel switching TFT 30 is L
It has a DD (Lightly Doped Drain) structure, and includes a scanning line 3a, a channel region 1a 'of a semiconductor layer 1a in which a channel is formed by an electric field from the scanning line 3a, and a scanning line 3
a, an insulating thin film 2 for insulating the semiconductor layer 1a from the semiconductor layer 1a, and a data line 6
a, lightly doped source region 1b and lightly doped drain region 1c of semiconductor layer 1a, lightly doped source region 1 of semiconductor layer 1a
d and a high concentration drain region 1e.

On the TFT array substrate 10 including the scanning lines 3a and the insulating thin film 2, the high-concentration source region 1 is formed.
A second interlayer insulating film 4 having a contact hole 5 leading to d and a contact hole 8 leading to the high-concentration drain region 1e is formed. That is, the data line 6a is electrically connected to the high-concentration source region 1d through the contact hole 5 penetrating the second interlayer insulating film 4. Further, on the data line 6a and on the second interlayer insulating film 4
A third interlayer insulating film 7 having a contact hole 8 leading to the high-concentration drain region 1e is formed thereon. That is, the high-concentration drain region 1e is electrically connected to the pixel electrode 9a via the contact hole 8 penetrating the second interlayer insulating film 4 and the third interlayer insulating film 7.
The pixel electrode 9a and the high-concentration drain region 1e may be electrically connected to each other by relaying an Al film on the same layer as the data line 6a or a polysilicon film on the same layer as the scanning line 3b.

The pixel switching TFT 30 preferably has the LDD structure as described above, but adopts an offset structure in which impurity ions are not implanted into regions corresponding to the low-concentration source region 1b and the low-concentration drain region 1c. Alternatively, a self-aligned TFT in which impurity ions are implanted at a high concentration using the gate electrode as a mask to form high-concentration source and drain regions in a self-aligned manner may be used.

Further, in this embodiment, the pixel switching TFT 30 has a single gate structure in which only one gate electrode composed of a part of the scanning line 3a is arranged between the source and drain regions. The above gate electrodes may be provided. At this time, the same signal is applied to each gate electrode. As described above, when a dual gate (double gate) or triple gate or more is used, T
When the FT is formed, a leak current at the junction between the channel and the source / drain region can be prevented, and the off-state current can be reduced. At least one of these gate electrodes may have an LDD structure or an offset structure.

In this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, an insulating thin film 2 serving as a gate insulating film is extended from a position facing a gate electrode comprising a part of the scanning line 3a to form a dielectric material. By using the film as a film, a semiconductor layer 1a is extended to form a first storage capacitor electrode 1f, and a part of the capacitor line 3b opposed thereto is formed as a second storage capacitor electrode.
0 is configured. More specifically, the high-concentration drain region 1e of the semiconductor layer 1a includes the data line 6a and the scanning line 3
a, the data line 6a and the scanning line 3
The first storage capacitor electrode 1f is disposed so as to be opposed to the portion of the capacitor line 3b extending along a with the insulating thin film 2 interposed therebetween.
In particular, when the insulating thin film 2 as the dielectric of the storage capacitor 70 is the same film as the gate insulating film of the pixel switching TFT 30 formed on the polysilicon film by high-temperature oxidation, the insulating thin film 2 has a thin and high withstand voltage. The storage capacitor 70 can be a relatively large area storage capacitor with a relatively small area.

As shown in FIG. 3, a first light shielding film 11a is provided on the surface of the TFT array substrate 10 at a position corresponding to each pixel switching TFT 30. Also,
First light-shielding film 11a and a plurality of pixel switching TFTs 3
A first interlayer insulating film (insulator layer) 12 is provided between the first and second layers. The first interlayer insulating film 12 is formed by forming the semiconductor layer 1 a constituting the pixel switching TFT 30 with the first light shielding film 11.
This is provided to electrically insulate from a.
Further, the first interlayer insulating film 12 is formed on the TFT array substrate 10.
The surface is polished and flattened to eliminate a step in the pattern of the first light shielding film 11a. This flattening treatment is particularly important when bonding single crystal silicon. The first interlayer insulating film 12 is made of, for example, high insulating glass, a silicon oxide film, a silicon nitride film, or the like. The first interlayer insulating film 12 can prevent the first light-shielding film 11a from contaminating the pixel switching TFT 30 and the like.

The first light-shielding film 11a (and the capacitance line 3b electrically connected thereto) is electrically connected to a constant potential source, and the first light-shielding film 11a and the capacitance line 3b are connected to a constant potential. Is done. Therefore, the first pixel switching TFT 30 opposed to the first light-shielding film 11a is
The fluctuation of the potential of the light-shielding film 11a does not adversely affect.
Further, the capacitance line 3b can function well as a second storage capacitor electrode of the storage capacitor 70. In this case, as the constant potential source, a peripheral circuit for driving the liquid crystal device (for example,
A constant potential source such as a negative power supply or a positive power supply supplied to a scanning line driving circuit or a data line driving circuit, a ground power supply, a constant potential source supplied to a common electrode, and the like. If a power supply such as a peripheral circuit is used in this way, there is no need to provide a dedicated potential wiring or an external input terminal, and the first light-shielding film 11a and the capacitor line 3b
Can be set to a constant potential.

Further, in the storage capacitor 70, as shown in FIG. 3, the first light shielding film 11a is provided on the opposite side of the capacitor line 3b as the second storage capacitor electrode.
f is disposed as opposed to a third storage capacitor electrode via the first interlayer insulating film 12 (the storage capacitor 7 on the right side in FIG. 3).
0), and the storage capacity is further provided. That is, in the present embodiment, the first storage capacitor electrode 1
A double storage capacitor structure is provided in which storage capacitors are provided on both sides of f, and the storage capacity further increases.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, T
In addition to providing the first light shielding film 11a on the FT array substrate 10, the first light shielding film 11a
Are configured to be electrically connected to the capacitor line 3b in the preceding or subsequent stage. Therefore, each first light shielding film 11
The capacitor line 3b and the first light-shielding film 11a are formed along the edge of the opening area of the pixel portion so as to overlap with the data line 6a as compared with the case where a is electrically connected to the next-stage capacitor line. The difference between the region and the other region is small. When the steps along the edge of the opening area of the pixel portion are small, disclination (poor alignment) of the liquid crystal caused by the steps can be reduced, so that the opening area of the pixel portion can be expanded. Become. The first light-shielding film 11a has a contact hole 13 formed in a protruding portion protruding from the main line portion extending linearly as described above. Here, as the opening of the contact hole 13, the closer to the edge, the more difficult it is for a crack to be generated due to, for example, stress diverging from the edge.

As described above, since the first light-shielding film 11a is provided below the pixel switching TFT 30, at least the channel region 1 of the semiconductor layer 1a is provided.
a 'and low concentration source / drain regions (LDD regions)
It is possible to effectively prevent the return light from being incident on 1b and 1c. In this embodiment, the capacitance line 3b and the first light-shielding film 11a provided in the adjacent preceding or succeeding pixel are provided.
Therefore, the capacitor line 3b for supplying a constant potential to the first light-shielding film 11a is required for the uppermost or lowermost pixel. Therefore, it is preferable to provide one extra capacitor line 3b with respect to the number of vertical pixels.

On the other hand, the opposing substrate 20 has a second area in the area opposite to the area where the data lines 6a, the scanning lines 3a and the pixel switching TFTs 30 are formed on the TFT array substrate 10, that is, the area other than the opening area of each pixel portion. A light-shielding film 23 is provided. Further, the opposing substrate 2 including on the second light-shielding film 23
The common electrode 21 is provided on the entire surface of the reference numeral 0. Like the pixel electrode 9a of the TFT array substrate 10, the common electrode 21 is also formed of a transparent conductive film such as ITO. Due to the presence of the second light-shielding film 23, incident light from the side of the counter substrate 20 can be applied to the channel region 1 a ′ of the semiconductor layer 1 a of the pixel switching TFT 30 or the low-concentration source region
b, does not enter the low-concentration drain region 1c. Further, the second light-shielding film 23 has a function of improving contrast and preventing color mixture of coloring materials when a color filter is provided, that is, a function as a so-called black matrix.

Then, on the pixel electrode 9 a and the third interlayer insulating film 7 in the TFT array substrate 10,
An inorganic film such as SiO on the common electrode 21;
Alternatively, the alignment films 36 and 4 made of a resin film of polyimide or the like.
2 are formed, and a liquid crystal layer 50 made of liquid crystal having a positive dielectric anisotropy is sandwiched between these substrates.
In the case of the liquid crystal device of the present embodiment, in order to realize a TN mode display method, the alignment films 36 and 42 on each substrate are subjected to an alignment process so that the respective alignment directions are twisted by 90 °. ing. That is, as indicated by the arrow in FIG.
The alignment film 36 on the TFT array substrate 10 is oriented such that the direction from the left to the right in the drawing (the direction indicated by the solid arrow Ra) along the extending direction of the scanning line 3a is the orientation direction (0 °).
Further, the orientation direction (90 °) of the orientation film 42 on the counter substrate 20 is such that the direction from the bottom to the top in the drawing along the extending direction of the data line 6a (the direction indicated by the broken line arrow Rb). Each of the alignment treatments is performed.

This alignment treatment can employ various methods depending on the type of the alignment film. For example, when SiO is used as the material of the alignment film, the SiO film is formed by oblique evaporation, and the range of atoms from the evaporation source to the substrate, that is, the so-called evaporation direction, is appropriately selected in the substrate plane. Thereby, the orientation direction of the orientation film can be controlled. Alternatively, when polyimide is used as the material of the alignment film and the rubbing method is used for the alignment treatment, the alignment direction of the alignment film can be controlled by appropriately selecting the direction of rubbing the polyimide film with a rubbing cloth.

The liquid crystal device of the present embodiment is based on the premise that line inversion driving is performed as a driving method. That is, a plurality of pixel electrodes 9a adjacent in a direction along the one scanning line 3a (horizontal direction in FIG. 2) is a first electrode group, and each of the plurality of pixel electrodes 9a and a direction along the data line 6a ( A plurality of pixel electrodes 9a adjacent in the vertical direction in FIG. 2 and adjacent in the direction along one scanning line 3a (horizontal direction in FIG. 2).
Is a second electrode group. Then, the first in any one frame
When an image signal having a positive polarity (+) is supplied to the electrode group, an image signal having a negative polarity (-) is supplied to the second electrode group,
The polarity is inverted in the next frame, and when a negative (-) image signal is supplied to the first electrode group, a positive (+) image signal is supplied to the second electrode group. When viewed from the individual pixel electrodes 9a in the first electrode group and the second electrode group, image signals of different polarities are supplied to two pixel electrodes 9a arranged in the vertical direction in FIG.

In the liquid crystal device of the present embodiment, the relationship between the arrangement of the polarities of the image signals supplied to the respective pixel electrodes 9a during driving and the orientation direction of the liquid crystal molecules is as shown in FIG. The direction of the horizontal electric field generated when a voltage is applied is substantially orthogonal to the orientation direction given to the TFT array substrate 10. Therefore, "means for solving the problem"
As described in the section above, the direction in which the lateral electric field acts is almost orthogonal to the direction of the movement of the liquid crystal molecules trying to rise from the state parallel to the substrate surface to the state perpendicular to the substrate surface, and the liquid crystal molecules Less susceptible. As described above, according to the liquid crystal device of the present embodiment, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of disclination as compared with the conventional device, and as a result, it is possible to reduce display defects due to disclination. it can.

The pretilt angle of liquid crystal molecules in an initial state (in a state where no voltage is applied) is 1 to 1 in a conventional general liquid crystal device.
The angle is about 3 °, which is acceptable in the present embodiment. However, when a larger pretilt angle of about 3 to 30 ° is given to the liquid crystal molecules, the liquid crystal molecules are less susceptible to the lateral electric field, and the occurrence of disclination can be further suppressed, and the display quality is further improved. It is preferable in that it can be performed. The pretilt angle is 30 °
Exceeding the range is not preferable because the transmittance of light during white display decreases and the display becomes dark.

Here, there are various methods for concretely increasing the pretilt angle to a range of 3 ° to 30 ° larger than the conventional one. For example, there is a method in which an inorganic material film is formed on the active matrix substrate 10 using an oblique deposition method, and this is used as an alignment film 36. At this time, the pretilt angle can be controlled by adjusting the deposition angle with respect to the substrate surface when performing the oblique deposition. In addition, as an effective method for increasing the pretilt angle, a columnar structure of an inorganic material inclined in one direction by performing a plurality of oblique vapor depositions while changing the vapor deposition direction in the substrate plane, There is a method of forming an alignment film in which an inorganic material columnar structure inclined in a direction different from the inclination direction of the structure is mixed.

In this embodiment, the TFT array substrate 10
An example in which the alignment process of the alignment direction 0 ° is performed on the alignment film 36 on the side and the alignment process of the alignment direction 42 is performed on the alignment film 42 on the counter substrate 20 side is described. Is not limited to this. In addition, for example, FIG.
As shown in (a), the orientation direction on the TFT array substrate 10 side may be 180 ° and the orientation direction on the counter substrate 20 side may be 90 °. In addition, a configuration may be made in which 45 ° is formed with respect to the arrangement direction of the pixel electrodes 9a to which the image signals of the same polarity are supplied. In that case, as shown in FIG. 7B, the orientation direction on the TFT array substrate 10 side is 45 ° and the orientation direction on the counter substrate 20 side is 315 °, and as shown in FIG. FIG. 7 shows a combination in which the orientation direction on the substrate 10 side is 225 ° and the orientation direction on the counter substrate 20 side is 135 °.
As shown in (d), a combination in which the orientation direction on the TFT array substrate 10 side is 315 ° and the orientation direction on the counter substrate 20 side is 45 ° is conceivable. By changing this combination, the clear viewing direction can be appropriately set. Also, T
The direction of the twist of the liquid crystal molecules between the FT array substrate 10 and the counter substrate 20 may be clockwise or counterclockwise in plan view.

In the present embodiment, an example of the TN mode is given, but the present invention is not limited to the TN mode, and the twist angle of the liquid crystal is not limited to 90 °. Therefore,
When the twist angle of the liquid crystal is other than 90 °, many combinations other than those shown above can be considered as combinations of the alignment directions on the TFT array substrate 10 side and the counter substrate 20 side. Even in that case, (1) the active matrix substrate 1
The alignment direction on the 0 side is along the arrangement direction of the plurality of pixel electrodes 9a of the first and second electrode groups to which the same polarity image signal is supplied. (2) The alignment film on the active matrix substrate 10 side 36, one of the orientation directions of the orientation films 42 on the counter substrate 20 side is located in the formation region of the first electrode group, and the other is located in the formation region of the second electrode group. It is necessary to satisfy the conditions.

In the above description, the orientation direction is “0 °”,
Although described as exact values such as “45 °” and “90 °”, in the present invention, values within a range of ± 5 ° from these values are allowed. The reason is that considering the actual manufacture of the liquid crystal device, the misalignment between the upper and lower substrates (especially the rotational direction in the substrate plane) and the angular misalignment during alignment processing such as rubbing and oblique deposition are as follows. This is because a variation of about 5 ° or less is expected. The term “substantially” used in the description of “approximately along”, “substantially 45 °”, and the like in the claims of the present specification has the above meaning.

In this embodiment, an example in which line inversion driving is employed as a driving method has been described. However, the present invention can be applied to a liquid crystal device employing column line inversion driving. In this case as well, if the direction of the horizontal electric field, the orientation direction, and the like in the description of the line inversion drive are rotated by 90 °, the operation is completely the same, and the same effect can be obtained.

In the present embodiment, as shown in FIG.
The peripheral portion of the pixel electrode 9a on which the data line 6a, the signal line such as the scanning line 3a, etc., the capacitor line 3b, etc. are formed is higher than the central portion, and a step is formed in this portion. It is good that disclination caused by an electric field is reduced, but in some cases, disclination caused by poor orientation of a step portion may occur. In that case, if the substrate surface at the periphery of the pixel where the signal lines and the capacitor lines are formed and the substrate surface at the center of the pixel are flattened, poor alignment at the time of alignment processing is reduced, so that the occurrence of disclination is reduced. Further prevention can be achieved.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 5, for example, a transparent substrate is etched to form a data line 6a and a capacitance line 3b.
When a groove 10a having a predetermined depth is dug in advance in a region where a pattern is formed, and the data line 6a, the capacitance line 3b and the like are buried therein, the substrate surface (the surface of the alignment film 36) is formed.
Can be almost flattened. Alternatively, as shown in FIG. 6, a third interlayer insulating film 7 that covers the data lines 6a, the capacitor lines 3b, and the like is formed once thick, and then the surface of the third interlayer insulating film 7 is polished and flattened using a CMP method. Then, the substrate surface (the surface of the alignment film 36) can be flattened. As another method for finally forming a structure similar to that of FIG. 6, the third interlayer insulating film 7 is formed by BPSG (Boron Phosphorus S).
After being formed of ilicate glass, the surface of the third interlayer insulating film 7 may be planarized by reflowing the BPSG film by heat treatment. Alternatively, SO with high liquidity
If the third interlayer insulating film 7 is formed of a film such as G (Spin On Glass), a highly flat surface can be obtained. It should be noted that the planarization process using the interlayer insulating film is not limited to the third interlayer insulating film 7, but may be performed using the second interlayer insulating film 4 or using a plurality of interlayer insulating films. Needless to say.

[Electronic Apparatus] Hereinafter, a projection display device will be described as an example of an electronic apparatus using the above-described liquid crystal device. FIG. 8 is a schematic configuration diagram showing an example of a so-called three-panel projection type liquid crystal display device using three liquid crystal light valves. Here, the liquid crystal device of the above embodiment is used as a liquid crystal light valve. In the figure, reference numeral 510 is a light source, 513 and 514 are dichroic mirrors, 515 and
516, 517 are reflection mirrors, 518, 519, 520
Is a relay lens, 522, 523 and 524 are liquid crystal light valves, 525 is a cross dichroic prism, 52
Reference numeral 6 denotes a projection lens system.

The light source 510 includes a lamp 511 such as a metal halide and a reflector 512 for reflecting light of the lamp 511.
It is composed of The dichroic mirror 513 that reflects blue light and green light transmits red light out of white light from the light source 510 and reflects blue light and green light. The transmitted red light is reflected by the reflection mirror 517 and is incident on the liquid crystal light valve 522 for red light.

On the other hand, among the color lights reflected by the dichroic mirror 513, the green light is reflected by the green light reflecting dichroic mirror 514 and is incident on the green liquid crystal light valve 523. On the other hand, the blue light also passes through the second dichroic mirror 514. For the blue light, in order to compensate for the difference in the optical path length from the green light and the red light, a light guiding means 521 including a relay lens system including an entrance lens 518, a relay lens 519, and an exit lens 520.
, Through which blue light is incident on the blue light liquid crystal light valve 524.

The three color lights modulated by the respective light valves enter the cross dichroic prism 525. This prism has four right angle prisms bonded together, and a dielectric multilayer film that reflects red light and a dielectric multilayer film that reflects blue light are formed in a cross shape on the inner surface. The three color lights are combined by these dielectric multilayer films to form light representing a color image. The synthesized light is projected on a screen 527 by a projection lens system 526, which is a projection optical system, and an image is enlarged and displayed.

According to this projection type liquid crystal display device, by providing the liquid crystal device of the above embodiment as a liquid crystal light valve, an image with high display quality can be obtained and high definition can be achieved.

Hereinafter, another example of the electronic apparatus will be described. FIG.
1 is a perspective view showing an example of a mobile phone. In FIG. 9, reference numeral 1000 denotes a mobile phone main body, and reference numeral 1001
Denotes a liquid crystal display unit using the above liquid crystal display device.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view showing an example of a wristwatch-type electronic device. In FIG. 10, reference numeral 1100 denotes a watch main body, and reference numeral 1101 denotes a liquid crystal display section using the above-described liquid crystal display device.

FIG. 11 is a perspective view showing an example of a portable information processing device such as a word processor or a personal computer. 11, reference numeral 1200 denotes an information processing device, reference numeral 1202 denotes an input unit such as a keyboard, reference numeral 1204 denotes an information processing device main body, and reference numeral 1206 denotes a liquid crystal display unit using the above-described liquid crystal display device.

Since the electronic apparatus shown in FIGS. 9 to 11 includes the liquid crystal display section using the liquid crystal device of the above embodiment, an image having excellent display quality can be obtained.

The technical scope of the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various changes can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, the specific structure of the liquid crystal device described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3 is only an example, and the present invention can be applied to liquid crystal devices having various other structures.

[0068]

EXAMPLES In order to demonstrate the effect of the present invention, the present inventors simulated the transmittance when the orientation direction of the liquid crystal was changed with respect to the direction of the horizontal electric field generated on the substrate.
We report on the results.

In simulating the transmittance, FIG.
As shown in FIG. 3C, a model of a TN mode liquid crystal device in which pixel electrodes 61 a and 61 b having flat surfaces are provided on a lower substrate 60 and a common electrode 63 is provided on an upper substrate 62 is assumed.
In the figure, a positive (+) voltage is applied to the right pixel electrode 61a, and a negative (-) voltage is applied to the left pixel electrode 61b. That is, FIG. 13C is a model for vertical pixels between FIGS. 12A to 12D. As the simulation conditions, the interval between the pixel electrodes 61a and 61b was 1 μm, the cell gap was 3 μm, and the effective voltage applied to the liquid crystal was 5V.

As for the orientation direction, as shown in FIG. 12A, the orientation direction Ra on the lower substrate 60 side is 0 °, and the upper substrate 6
As shown in FIG. 12 (b), a combination in which the orientation direction Rb on the two sides is 90 ° (hereinafter referred to as Example 1).
Orientation direction Ra on the upper substrate 62 side is 45 °.
a combination of b = 135 ° (hereinafter referred to as Conventional Example 2),
As shown in FIG. 12C, the orientation direction R on the lower substrate 60 side
a is 90 °, the orientation direction Rb on the upper substrate 62 side is 180 ° (hereinafter referred to as Conventional Example 1), and as shown in FIG. 12D, the orientation direction Ra on the lower substrate 60 side is 135 °,
A combination (hereinafter, referred to as Example 2) in which the orientation direction Rb on the upper substrate 62 side is 225 ° was set.

FIGS. 13 (a) and 13 (b) are diagrams showing simulation results. FIG. 13 (a) shows the results when the pretilt angle of the liquid crystal molecules is 3 °, and FIG. 13 (b) shows the pretilt angles. Is 15 °. FIG.
The horizontal axes of 3 (a) and 3 (b) represent the adjacent pixel electrodes 61a and 61a.
The horizontal position [μm] when the midpoint of the interval 1b is set as the origin, and the vertical axis is the light transmittance [%]. FIG.
In 3 (a) and (b), since black display is assumed, disclination occurs in a region where light transmittance is increased, and it is interpreted that light leakage occurs due to this. Can be.

First, when the pretilt angle is 3 °, FIG.
As shown in (a), the peak of the transmittance peak reaches about ± 2.2 μm in the first conventional example, but stays at about ± 0.8 μm in the first example. Further, in the conventional example 2, it reaches about ± 2.5 μm.
In this case, it is limited to about ± 2.0 μm. As described above, in the first and second embodiments corresponding to the liquid crystal device of the present invention as compared with the first and second conventional examples, the width of the peak of the transmittance is narrower, and the area where the disclination occurs is correspondingly smaller. It indicates that FIG. 13 shows a case where the pretilt angle is 15 °, although the transmittance level is different.
(B) shows a similar result.

Further, comparing FIGS. 13 (a) and 13 (b) between the first embodiment and the second embodiment, the width of the transmittance peak is narrower in FIG. 13 (b), though slightly. As a result, the area in which disclination occurs is reduced.

As described above, it has been proved that the generation of disclination is suppressed by setting the orientation direction as in the present invention with respect to the direction of the lateral electric field generated on the substrate. Further, it has been proved that increasing the pretilt angle is effective.

[0075]

As described above in detail, according to the present invention, by appropriately setting the direction of the horizontal electric field generated during driving and the orientation direction of the liquid crystal, the liquid crystal molecules are less affected by the horizontal electric field. Therefore, even if the line inversion drive or the column inversion drive is employed as the driving method, the occurrence of disclination can be suppressed as compared with the conventional case, and display defects such as light leakage can be reduced.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an equivalent circuit diagram of switching elements, signal lines, and the like in a plurality of pixels arranged in a matrix and forming a display region of a liquid crystal device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a plurality of pixels.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line A-A 'of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along the line B-B 'of FIG.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view corresponding to FIG. 4, showing another example of the sectional structure.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view corresponding to FIG. 4, showing still another example of the sectional structure.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing another example of the orientation direction.

FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a projection display device including the liquid crystal device.

FIG. 9 is a diagram illustrating an example of an electronic apparatus including the liquid crystal device.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing another example of the electronic device.

FIG. 11 is a diagram showing still another example of the electronic device.

FIG. 12 is a view showing a setting condition of an orientation direction in a simulation performed by the present inventors.

FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a simulation result.

FIG. 14 is a diagram showing a relationship between a horizontal electric field and a liquid crystal alignment direction.

FIG. 15 is a diagram schematically illustrating an electric field generated when a voltage is applied to a pixel electrode and a common electrode.

FIG. 16 is a diagram for explaining the influence of a lateral electric field on liquid crystal molecules.

[Explanation of symbols]

 3a scanning line 3b capacitance line 6a data line 9a, 61a, 61b, 100a, 100b pixel electrode 10 TFT array substrate (active matrix substrate) 20 opposed substrate 21, 101 common electrode 30 TFT 36, 42 alignment film 50 liquid crystal layer 70 storage capacitance 110a, 110b Liquid crystal molecules Ra Alignment direction on active matrix substrate side Rb Alignment direction on opposite substrate side

 ──────────────────────────────────────────────────続 き Continued on the front page F term (reference) 2H090 KA05 LA16 MA07 MA10 MB01 MB06 2H091 FA05X FA26X FA41Z GA13 HA07 LA03 MA07 2H092 GA14 GA29 JA24 JA34 JA37 JA46 JB51 JB58 KA04 KB25 NA19 PA02 PA08 PA13 QA07 RA05

Claims (11)

[Claims] 1. A first electrode group including a plurality of electrodes arranged in one direction to which image signals of the same polarity are supplied, and a first electrode group adjacent to the first electrode group and having a different polarity from the first electrode group. An active matrix substrate having a second electrode group consisting of a plurality of electrodes arranged in one direction to which an image signal is supplied; a counter substrate disposed to face the active matrix substrate; the active matrix substrate and the counter substrate And a liquid crystal layer comprising a liquid crystal having a positive dielectric anisotropy sandwiched between the liquid crystal layer and the liquid crystal layer, wherein a major axis direction of liquid crystal molecules on the active matrix substrate side of the liquid crystal layer is In a state where an image signal is not supplied to the first electrode group and the second electrode group, the first electrode group and the second electrode group are arranged so as to be substantially along the arrangement direction of the plurality of electrodes. Features A liquid crystal device. 2. A first electrode group including a plurality of electrodes arranged in one direction to which image signals of the same polarity are supplied, and a first electrode group adjacent to the first electrode group and having a different polarity from the first electrode group. An active matrix substrate having a second electrode group consisting of a plurality of electrodes arranged in one direction to which an image signal is supplied; a counter substrate disposed to face the active matrix substrate; the active matrix substrate and the counter substrate A liquid crystal layer comprising a liquid crystal having a positive dielectric anisotropy sandwiched between the active matrix substrate and a liquid crystal layer, wherein an alignment film is provided on a surface of the active matrix substrate on the liquid crystal layer side, A liquid crystal device, wherein an alignment film is subjected to an alignment process in which an alignment direction substantially corresponds to an arrangement direction of a plurality of electrodes of each of the first electrode group and the second electrode group. 3. A first electrode group including a plurality of electrodes arranged in one direction to which image signals of the same polarity are supplied, and a first electrode group adjacent to the first electrode group and having a different polarity from the first electrode group. An active matrix substrate having a second electrode group consisting of a plurality of electrodes arranged in one direction to which an image signal is supplied; a counter substrate disposed to face the active matrix substrate; the active matrix substrate and the counter substrate And a liquid crystal layer comprising a liquid crystal having a positive dielectric anisotropy sandwiched between the liquid crystal layer and the liquid crystal layer, wherein a major axis direction of liquid crystal molecules on the active matrix substrate side of the liquid crystal layer is When no image signal is supplied to the first electrode group and the second electrode group, the first electrode group and the second electrode group are arranged so as to face obliquely with respect to the arrangement direction of the plurality of electrodes. , The liquid One end side in the major axis direction of the molecule is twisted and arranged so as to cross over the formation region of the first electrode group and the formation region of the second electrode group in plan view from the active matrix substrate side to the counter substrate side. A liquid crystal device characterized by being performed. 4. A first electrode group consisting of a plurality of electrodes arranged in one direction to which image signals of the same polarity are supplied, and a first electrode group adjacent to the first electrode group and having a different polarity from the first electrode group. An active matrix substrate having a second electrode group consisting of a plurality of electrodes arranged in one direction to which an image signal is supplied; a counter substrate disposed to face the active matrix substrate; the active matrix substrate and the counter substrate And a liquid crystal layer comprising a liquid crystal having a positive dielectric anisotropy sandwiched between the active matrix substrate and the liquid crystal layer side of the opposing substrate. Each of which is subjected to an alignment process in which an alignment direction is an oblique direction with respect to the arrangement direction of the plurality of electrodes of each of the first electrode group and the second electrode group. In the planar view, one of the alignment films on one side is located in the formation region of the first electrode group, and the other is located in the formation region of the second electrode group. A liquid crystal device, comprising: 5. The liquid crystal device according to claim 3, wherein the oblique direction is substantially 45 ° with respect to the arrangement direction of the plurality of electrodes. 6. The liquid crystal device according to claim 1, wherein a pretilt angle of the liquid crystal molecules on the active matrix substrate side is set in a range of 3 ° to 30 °. 7. The pretilt angle is set in a range of 3 ° to 30 ° by forming a columnar structure of an inorganic material inclined in a specific direction on the active matrix substrate. The liquid crystal device according to claim 6. 8. A columnar structure made of an inorganic material inclined in a specific direction on the active matrix substrate, and the columnar structure inclined in a direction different from the inclination direction of the columnar structure when the active matrix substrate is viewed in plan. 7. The liquid crystal device according to claim 6, wherein the pretilt angle is set in a range of 3 [deg.] To 30 [deg.] By forming an alignment film in which a columnar structure made of an inorganic material is mixed. 9. In the active matrix substrate, a substrate surface in a signal line forming region for driving each electrode of the first electrode group and the second electrode group and a substrate surface in the electrode forming region are flat. The liquid crystal device according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the liquid crystal device is formed. 10. A light source, a light modulating means comprising the liquid crystal device according to claim 1 for modulating light from said light source, and projecting light modulated by said light modulating means. A projection display device, comprising: projection means. 11. An electronic apparatus comprising the liquid crystal device according to claim 1. Description: