JPH09197407A - Liquid crystal display device and its production - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To prevent leaking of light from the interface between liquid crystal areas when voltage is applied, to make a light-shielding part unnecessary and to obtain a liquid crystal display device with high contrast by forming two kinds of areas having the same twisting direction of liquid crystal molecules and opposite rising directions from each other when the same voltage is applied and by forming an area having the opposite twisting direction of liquid crystal molecules between the two areas. SOLUTION: This liquid crystal display device consists of two substrates 23, 33 having electrodes 22, 32, and a liquid crystal layer held between the substrates. The liquid crystal layer has two kinds of areas A, B having the same twisting direction of the alignment vectors of the liquid crystal and opposite rising directions of liquid crystal molecules 11 from each other when voltage is applied. Further, another area C having the different direction of the alignment vector of a liquid crystal from that of the two regions A, B is formed between the two areas A, B. To make this structure stable, it is preferable that the liquid crystal layer contains polymers between >=0.02wt.% and <=4wt.%. Thereby, when voltage is applied to produce a black display, the liquid crystal molecules 11 in the interface area C change the orientation direction along the electric field and become perpendicular to the substrate 23, 33 to give a black screen. Thus a liquid crystal display device having high contrast can the obtd.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display device for displaying characters, figures and the like and a method for manufacturing the same, and more particularly to a liquid crystal display device having excellent viewing angle characteristics and high contrast, and a method for manufacturing the same.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A conventional liquid crystal display device has an inherent problem that a viewing angle is narrow due to a characteristic behavior of liquid crystal molecules when a voltage is applied. The reason that the viewing angle of the liquid crystal display device is narrow is that a twisted nematic (Twisted Nematic; often used in a liquid crystal display device driven by a thin film transistor (TFT)) is used.
The mode will be described using an example of a “TN” mode (FIG. 8, FIG.
(See FIG. 9).

The liquid crystal molecules 11 are considered to be rod-shaped molecules. In a TN type liquid crystal display device, as shown in FIG. 8, the liquid crystal molecules 11 are sandwiched between two glass substrates 23 and 33. That is, the liquid crystal molecules 11 are arranged substantially in parallel to the glass substrate on both the upper substrate 33 and the lower substrate 23 (however, a small pretilt angle 13 °
Are arranged in a row).

In practice, the liquid crystal molecules are arranged such that the azimuthal direction in the upper substrate 33 and the azimuthal direction in the lower substrate 23 form an angle of about 90 ° (twist angle). In FIG. 9, the twist of the liquid crystal molecules at 90 ° is not shown for easy viewing. In this state where no voltage is applied, there is no noticeable viewing angle dependency.

When a voltage is applied to this TN type liquid crystal display device from an electrode (not shown) (transparent electrode), as shown in FIG. 9, the arrangement of the liquid crystal molecules 11 is changed so as to be parallel to the electric field. At this time, the liquid crystal molecules 11 are changed from the pretilt angle 13 direction.
Tries to get up.

The birefringence of liquid crystal molecules is determined by the angle between the long axis of the liquid crystal molecules and the light beam. Focusing on the liquid crystal molecules at the center of the cell in FIG. 9, the light ray 42 makes a large angle with the long axis of the liquid crystal molecules at the cell center, while the light ray 41 makes a small angle.

Therefore, the optical characteristics are opposite to those of the viewing angle change to the left and the viewing angle to the right in FIG.

In a normal liquid crystal display device, the horizontal direction in FIG. 9 is set to the vertical direction of the screen of the liquid crystal display device. For this reason, when the viewing angle is changed in the upward direction, the image is recognized as “white floating” in which the image becomes whitish and the contrast is reduced, and when the viewing angle is changed in the downward direction, the image becomes dark and the negative / positive is inverted. It is recognized as "blackout."

As a conventional technique for solving this problem, for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. Sho 63-106624 discloses a liquid crystal display panel capable of obtaining a good display in a wide field of view without being affected by an applied voltage. For this purpose, there has been proposed a configuration of a liquid crystal display panel in which a plurality of regions having rubbing directions opposite to each other are provided in an alignment film corresponding to pixels. FIG. 10 shows a configuration of a liquid crystal display panel proposed in the publication.

Referring to FIG. 10, in this conventional technique, one pixel of a liquid crystal display device is divided into a plurality of regions (regions I and II), and the rubbing directions in adjacent regions are opposite (reverse). Direction). The liquid crystal molecules on the surface of the alignment film undergo pretilt due to the rubbing. However, since the directions are opposite in the adjacent regions, the rising directions of the liquid crystal molecules when voltage is applied are opposite in the regions I and II. As a result, the viewing angle dependence is canceled by the adjacent regions, and a liquid crystal display device with a small viewing angle dependence is obtained.

[0011]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The above-mentioned JP-A-63-10
In the liquid crystal display device proposed in JP-A-6624,
Two regions having the same liquid crystal orientation vector twist direction (hereinafter referred to as “liquid crystal twist direction”) and opposite liquid crystal molecule rising directions (hereinafter referred to as “liquid crystal rising direction”) are in contact in one pixel. Coexist.

FIG. 11 is an enlarged view of the boundary between the two regions (provided that an intermediate voltage is applied). That is, as shown in FIG. 11, in the liquid crystal display device disclosed in the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 63-106624, the glass having the transparent electrodes 22 and 32 coated with the alignment films 21 and 31 subjected to the split alignment treatment is used. Between the substrates 23 and 33, regions where the twist direction of the liquid crystal is the same and the rising directions when applying a voltage are opposite (left and right halves in FIG. 11) coexist.

Although the viewing angle characteristic is improved by the coexistence of the two regions, the liquid crystal molecules at the boundary between the two regions continue to maintain the state where no voltage is applied even when voltage is applied.

For this reason, when used as a normally white liquid crystal display device, the liquid crystal molecules at the boundary between the two regions remain white when no voltage is applied even when voltage is applied. , The transmittance at the time of black display increases, and a liquid crystal display device with high contrast cannot be obtained.

As a method of improving this point, there is a method of providing a light-shielding portion 34 at a boundary layer between these two regions. However, if the light-shielding portion 34 is provided, the aperture becomes small and the brightness of the screen is reduced. There's a problem.

Therefore, the present invention solves the above problems,
An object is to provide a liquid crystal display device having excellent visual field characteristics and contrast.

[0017]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the present invention, between two substrates having electrodes, liquid crystal molecules have the same twisting direction of the alignment vector and the rising direction of liquid crystal molecules when a voltage is applied. In a liquid crystal display device in which a liquid crystal layer formed by coexistence of two opposite types of regions is sandwiched, a region in which a twist direction of a liquid crystal orientation vector is different from the two types of regions is provided between the two types of regions. A liquid crystal display device is provided.

Further, in the present invention, in order to allow such a structure to exist stably, the liquid crystal layer is preferably 0.02 wt.
The present invention provides a liquid crystal display device containing a polymer in the range of not less than 4% and not more than 4% by weight.

Further, the present invention also provides a method for manufacturing such a liquid crystal display device, wherein the method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device comprises a liquid crystal having a twist characteristic between two substrates having their surfaces aligned in one direction. Then, the liquid crystal layer is cooled from a temperature higher than the liquid crystal phase-isotropic phase transition temperature to a temperature lower than the phase transition temperature under a voltage application.

[0020]

The principle and operation of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining the principle of construction of the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention. FIG. 1 is an enlarged sectional view of the liquid crystal display device when an intermediate voltage is applied to the liquid crystal optical element according to the present invention. FIG.

As shown in FIG. 1, in the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention, the twist direction of the liquid crystal is the same, and the twist direction of the liquid crystal is between the regions A and B where the rising directions when voltage is applied are opposite. (For example, when the areas A and B are in a left-handed state, the area C has a different twisting direction such as a right-handed state).

With such a configuration, in the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention, light leakage does not occur from the boundary between the regions A and B when a voltage is applied.

Therefore, it is not necessary to provide a light-shielding portion at the boundary portion, which is required in the prior art, and a high-contrast liquid crystal display device can be obtained.

The reason why the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention having the structure shown in FIG. 1 has high contrast will be described in more detail with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 2 shows a boundary portion of a region in which the liquid crystal present in the conventional liquid crystal display device has the same twist direction and an opposite rising direction. FIG. 3 shows a twist direction of the liquid crystal present in the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention. Shows the boundary of the opposite region in an enlarged manner. 2 and 3, (a)
Indicates a voltage non-applied state, and (b) indicates a voltage applied state. Note that the liquid crystal molecules on the left end side in FIGS. 3A and 3B have the twist directions opposite to those of the liquid crystal molecules on the center and right sides.

The liquid crystal molecules at the boundary between the two regions shown in FIG. 2 where the twist direction of the liquid crystal is the same and the rising direction of the liquid crystal is opposite remain horizontal to the substrate even when a voltage is applied, and when no voltage is applied. (See FIG. 2 (b)).

For this reason, in the normally white mode, even in the voltage application state that should be "black" display, the boundary remains in the "white" state when no voltage is applied,
Due to the light leakage at the boundary, the transmittance of “black” display increases, and as a result, the contrast of the liquid crystal display device decreases.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 3, at the boundary of the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention in which the liquid crystal twist direction is opposite, the liquid crystal molecules at the boundary change in the electric field direction with the application of the voltage. When the voltage is sufficiently applied in the same manner as liquid crystal molecules in a normal TN cell, the orientation becomes perpendicular to the substrate (see FIG. 3B). Therefore, at the boundary between the two regions where the liquid crystal twist directions are opposite to each other, the display when voltage is applied becomes “black”, and a liquid crystal display device with high contrast can be obtained. Further, since there is no light leakage from the boundary, the light-shielding layer is unnecessary.

As described above, in the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention, the liquid crystal layer has the same twisting direction of the liquid crystal and the region C having the opposite twisting direction between the regions A and B having the opposite rising directions. Is present.

Such a structure can be realized by using an appropriate liquid crystal material and alignment means. Hereinafter, an example of the liquid crystal material and the alignment means of the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention will be described.

First, as the liquid crystal material, a liquid crystal material having a twist characteristic, for example, a liquid crystal containing a chiral material is used. As a result, only one of the two twisting directions of the liquid crystal molecules is preferentially generated, and a liquid crystal display device in which most of the liquid crystal layer is formed of regions having the same twisting direction is obtained.

Next, as the orientation means in the present invention,
Alignment means is used in which the rising directions of the two liquid crystals with respect to the twist direction determined by the twist characteristics of the liquid crystal molecules are generated with almost equal probability (that is, an alignment means suitable for this is used).

As such an alignment means, there are two typical methods.

One method is to use an alignment film having a small pretilt angle, and the other is to use an alignment film having a normal pretilt angle so that the substrate is arranged so that the arrangement of liquid crystal molecules is in a splay arrangement. It is a method of combining.

Conventionally, in known alignment films, the rising direction of the liquid crystal molecules is determined by the rubbing direction. This is because the rubbing operation causes the alignment film to have a pretilt angle in the rubbing direction.

On the other hand, by using an alignment film having a small pretilt angle, the energy difference in the case where the rising directions of the liquid crystal molecules are opposite is reduced, and the liquid crystal molecules rise from both directions with substantially the same probability when a voltage is applied. The liquid crystal display device according to the present invention, in which the state exists stably, can be obtained.

Examples of the alignment film having such a low pretilt angle include predetermined polyimide, polystyrene and the like.

When a certain kind of polymer (for example, polystyrene) is used as the alignment film, the polymer chains are oriented perpendicular to the rubbing direction, and the liquid crystal molecules are also oriented perpendicular to the rubbing direction. In such an alignment film, the rubbing direction is perpendicular to the direction in which pretilt is generated, and an alignment state in which the pretilt angle is almost zero is obtained.

As the alignment means used in the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention, there are a means for aligning liquid crystal molecules on the substrate surface in one direction by using polarized light and a means for aligning by means of minute uneven grooves such as grooves. Is available. Also in this case (when these orientation means are used), the pretilt angle is small, and two rising directions are generated with almost equal probability.

As an alignment means using polarized light, for example, reference ⁽¹⁾ (Japan Journal of Applied Physics, Jap. J. Appl. Phys.), Vol. 31, 1992, p.
P.2155-2164) or Document ⁽²⁾ (Natural
e), Vol. 351, 1991, PP. 49-50) and so on.

In addition to using these alignment films alone, after coating these alignment films and performing alignment treatment with linearly polarized light, for example, reference ⁽³⁾ (Liquid Crystals
d Crystals), Vol. 18, 1995, PP. 319-326), applying a liquid crystalline monomer having a photopolymerizable group,
After aligning the liquid crystalline monomer in the direction perpendicular to the polarization direction,
A more stable alignment state can be obtained by photopolymerizing and using it as an alignment film.

The pretilt angle can be measured by a crystal lotion method or the like.

On the other hand, the spray arrangement is shown in FIG.
This is for a normal tilt arrangement, and this is shown in FIG.

Also in the splay arrangement, a crystal display device according to the present invention is obtained, in which two risings of liquid crystal molecules have small directional energy and two rising regions occur with almost equal probability. The splay arrangement can be easily obtained by using a normal alignment film and by the rubbing direction and the method of bonding the substrates.

In these methods, the number of rubbing times is only one for each substrate, as in the ordinary liquid crystal display device. In the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention, the rubbing method is disclosed in JP-A-63-106624. No rubbing step, resist step, and even high-precision alignment step are required as in the liquid crystal display device proposed in the above-mentioned publication.

The liquid crystal display device according to the present invention is characterized in that the liquid crystal twist direction is the same, and a region where the liquid crystal twist direction is opposite exists between two types of regions where the rising directions are opposite. However, the reason why such a structure appears is explained as follows.

The liquid crystal has a more distorted orientation at the boundary of the region where the rising direction of the liquid crystal molecules or the twisting direction of the liquid crystal is opposite than the region other than the boundary, and is in a state of high energy due to this distortion. .

The distortion of the liquid crystal at the boundary of the region where the rising direction is opposite and the boundary of the region where the twisting direction is opposite are different, and naturally the energy of the distortion is also different.

When the strain energy at the boundary of the region opposite to the rising direction is higher than the strain energy at the boundary of the region opposite to the twisting direction, the twisting direction is higher than that at the boundary in the region opposite to the rising direction. It is expected that the boundary part of the region opposite to will be generated preferentially.

The present invention has been made based on such knowledge, and a region where the twist direction of the liquid crystal is opposite between the two regions where the twist direction of the liquid crystal is the same and the rising direction is opposite. For example, they have found that a liquid crystal display device existing in a belt shape can be manufactured. Hereinafter, a method for realizing the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention will be described.

In the liquid crystal display device provided with the above-mentioned liquid crystal material and alignment means, in order to obtain, as a minute region, a region in which the liquid crystal is twisted in the same direction and in which the rising direction is opposite, as a small region, the liquid crystal layer must be formed once. It is desirable to use a method of heating to an isotropic phase and then cooling to a temperature lower than the liquid crystal phase-isotropic phase transition temperature.

In the process of cooling the liquid crystal from a temperature above the isotropic phase-liquid crystal phase transition point to a temperature below the transition point, a large number of liquid crystal droplets are generated from the isotropic phase. Becomes

What is important in this method is that this cooling operation is performed under voltage application. As a result, the liquid crystal display device of the present invention is obtained in which a region where the liquid crystal twist direction is opposite exists between two regions where the liquid crystal twist direction is the same and the rising direction is opposite.

The reason why the liquid crystal display device of the present invention is manufactured under such conditions will be described in more detail.

When no voltage is applied, the torsion directions are the same,
The areas where the rising directions are opposite are substantially the same (FIG. 2).
(A)). Therefore, no strain energy is generated at the boundary of this region.

On the other hand, the boundary of the region where the twist direction is opposite exists even when no voltage is applied, and is in a state where the strain energy is high. As a result, when the cooling operation is performed without applying a voltage, a structure in which two regions having the same torsion direction and opposite to the rising direction are in contact with each other is generated, and the high-contrast liquid crystal display device of the present invention can be obtained. Can not.

On the other hand, when a voltage is applied, at the boundary between the regions having the same twist direction and opposite rising directions, the liquid crystal at the boundary remains in the state in which no voltage is applied, so that the applied voltage increases. It is considered that the strain energy increases rapidly with the increase of the strain (see FIG. 2 (b)).

On the other hand, the liquid crystal molecules in the region where the twist direction is opposite change the direction of the electric field similarly to the surrounding liquid crystal molecules, so that the strain energy does not increase much (FIG. 3).
(B)). Therefore, when the cooling operation is performed under the application of a voltage, a liquid crystal display device having a wide viewing angle and a high contrast in which regions having the same twist direction and opposite rising directions can be easily obtained. .

The optimum conditions (for example, in a strip shape) in which a region where the twist direction of the liquid crystal is opposite is appropriately generated at the boundary can be easily obtained by experimentally changing the cooling rate and applied voltage in the cooling process. it can.

The optimum conditions depend on the characteristics of the liquid crystal and the amount of the chiral agent added. The voltage to be applied in order to efficiently generate a region where the liquid crystal twist direction is opposite in a strip shape is as follows.
Although a constant voltage or a high-frequency AC wave voltage that cannot respond to liquid crystal molecules can be used, it is more efficient to use a low-frequency triangular wave, sine wave, rectangular wave, or the like that responds to liquid crystal molecules.

This is because as the applied voltage increases,
The boundary of the region for determining the twist direction of the liquid crystal is preferentially generated, but at the same time, the region where the twist direction of the liquid crystal is opposite due to weakening of the liquid crystal twisting force is generated. Therefore, when cooling in a state where the degree of rise of the liquid crystal molecules changes with time, while the boundary portion of the region where the twist direction of the liquid crystal is opposite is generated preferentially, the region where the twist region is opposite is not so large, It is easy to obtain an ideal belt-like structure.

In the liquid crystal display device of the present invention, the liquid crystal has the same twisting direction and the rising directions of the liquid crystal molecules are opposite.
The seed regions may be randomly generated. Hereinafter, such a structure is generated when the electrodes are provided on the entire surface of the substrate.
In such a case, the individual regions in the two rising directions must be sufficiently smaller than one pixel.

On the other hand, in the liquid crystal display device of the present invention,
The shape of the region in which the rising direction is opposite can also be controlled.

As such a method, for example, a method utilizing an inhomogeneous electric field can be considered. As the non-uniform electric field, for example, the electrode 32 of the upper substrate 33 is
2 (see FIG. 3), a method of forming electrodes on two substrates in different shapes, or a method of providing an opening in at least one of the electrodes on one of the substrates.

As the shape of the opening, a cross shape ("+"), an X shape "x", an oblique line "/", etc., as well as a straight line, a circle, a polygon, etc. can be used as appropriate.

When controlling the shape of each region as described above, it is particularly important what voltage is applied during cooling.

The “substrate having an electrode” in the present invention may be a substrate that also serves as an electrode itself, such as a metal substrate used in a reflection type liquid crystal display device.

Although the above-described liquid crystal display device of the present invention has excellent characteristics such as a wide viewing angle and high contrast, it is not without its problems.

One is that the region opposite to the twisting direction of the liquid crystal in the middle may not be sufficiently stable. In particular, this region is deformed during repeated ON / OFF of the voltage, and furthermore, It may disappear.

Another problem is that the rising direction of the liquid crystal molecules immediately after voltage application may be opposite to the stable rising direction after a sufficient time has elapsed. As a result, immediately after the application of the voltage, the two regions where the liquid crystal twist direction is the same and the rising direction is opposite are in direct contact, light leakage occurs from the boundary, and such a boundary is stable at a slow speed on the order of seconds. Since it moves toward the state, the response speed decreases, and the characteristics in the oblique direction change with the fluctuation of the two regions.

Further, there is a problem that the minute area of the liquid crystal display device of the present invention disappears when the liquid crystal layer is heated to the isotropic phase. There is also a problem that it is necessary to generate a predetermined region under an electric field or the like.

In order to solve these problems, in the present invention, it is preferable that the liquid crystal layer contains at least 0.02 wt%
A liquid crystal display device in which a polymer of not more than wt% exists is proposed.

As such a liquid crystal display device, as shown in FIG. 5, a liquid crystal in which a small amount of a polymer 12 is dispersed in a network, for example, can be cited.

The presence of the polymer 12 stabilizes the respective regions, and provides a liquid crystal display device in which regions having different twist directions of the liquid crystal do not move or disappear even when voltage ON-OFF is repeated. In this case, what is needed is to fix the regions where the rising directions of the liquid crystal molecules are different, so that a sufficient effect can be obtained even if the amount of the polymer 12 is considerably small.

Further, due to the presence of the polymer 12, the rising direction of the liquid crystal molecules immediately after the voltage application is the same as the stable rising direction after a sufficient time has passed, there is no light leakage from the boundary, and the response speed is high. It won't be late.

Further, when the amount of the polymer is large, it is possible to obtain a liquid crystal display device which recovers the initial state even when the liquid crystal layer is heated to an isotropic phase and then cooled.

The polymer present in a small amount in the liquid crystal layer of the present invention is used for stabilizing the region where the twisting direction of the liquid crystal and the rising direction of the liquid crystal molecules are opposite. It is not limited to a network shape or the like.

Accordingly, a polymer may be present on the substrate in the form of protrusions, or fine beads may be dispersed in the alignment film to form irregularities.

On the other hand, when the amount of the polymer is too large, the alignment of the liquid crystal molecules is disturbed by the polymer, and the 90 ° twist is not generated, or the polymer causes scattering to cause a reduction in contrast. Therefore, the amount of polymer depends on the type of polymer and the interaction with liquid crystal molecules,
It is desirable that the content be 4 wt% or less.

In the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention, as the polymer 12 dispersed in the liquid crystal layer, a polymer dispersed in liquid crystal may be introduced between the substrates, or a liquid crystal in which a monomer or the like is dissolved may be used. After being introduced between the substrates, a monomer or an oligomer may be reacted to form a polymer.

However, it is preferable to react a monomer or the like in the liquid crystal phase from the viewpoint of easy injection and stabilization of the initial alignment. Further, in this method, there is also an advantage that by causing a monomer or the like to react under voltage application, a pretilt is applied to the initial alignment of the liquid crystal molecules, so that the driving voltage and the response speed can be improved.

As the monomers and oligomers used in the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention, any of photo-curable monomers, thermo-curable monomers, and oligomers thereof can be used. Other components may be included.

The “photocurable monomer or oligomer” preferably used in the present invention includes not only those which react with visible light, but also those which react with ultraviolet light, and especially the latter from the viewpoint of ease of operation. Is preferred.

In the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention, the polymer used may preferably have a structure similar to liquid crystal molecules, but is not necessarily used for the purpose of aligning liquid crystal. It may be flexible such as having an alkylene chain. Further, it may be a monofunctional one, a bifunctional one, or a monomer having a trifunctional or higher polyfunctionality.

In the present invention, light or ultraviolet curable monomers preferably used include, for example, 2-ethylhexyl acrylate, butyl ethyl acrylate, butoxyethyl acrylate, 2-cyanoethyl acrylate, benzyl acrylate, cyclohexyl acrylate, 2-hydroxypropyl Acrylate, 2-ethoxyethyl acrylate, N-diethylaminoethyl acrylate, N-dimethylaminoethyl acrylate, dicyclopentanyl acrylate, dicyclopentenyl acrylate, glycidyl acrylate, tetrahydrofurfuryl acrylate, isobonyl acrylate, isodecyl acrylate, lauryl acrylate , Morpholine acrylate, phenoxyethyl acrylate, phenoxydiethylene glycol Rate, 2,2,2-trifluoroethyl acrylate, 2,2,3,3,3-pentafluoropropyl acrylate, 2,2,3,3-tetrafluoropropyl acrylate, 2,2,3,4,4 , Monofunctional acrylate compounds such as 4-hexafluorobutyl acrylate, 2-ethylhexyl methacrylate, butylethyl methacrylate, butoxyethyl methacrylate, 2-cyanoethyl methacrylate, benzyl methacrylate, cyclohexyl methacrylate, 2-hydroxypropyl methacrylate, 2-ethoxymethyl acrylate, N-diethylaminoethyl methacrylate, N-dimethylaminoethyl methacrylate,
Dicyclopentanyl methacrylate, dicyclopentenyl methacrylate, glycidyl methacrylate, tetrahydrofurfuryl methacrylate, isobonyl methacrylate, isodecyl methacrylate, lauryl methacrylate, morpholine methacrylate, phenoxyethyl methacrylate, phenoxydiethylene glycol methacrylate, 2,2,2-trifluoroethyl Methacrylate, 2,2,3,3-tetrafluoropropyl methacrylate,
Monofunctional methacrylate compounds such as 2,2,3,4,4,4-hexafluorobutyl methacrylate, 4,4'-biphenyl diacrylate, diethylstilbestrol diacrylate, 1,4-bisacryloyloxybenzene, 4, 4'-bisacryloyloxydiphenyl ether, 4,4'-bisacryloyloxydiphenylmethane, 3,9-bis [1,1-dimethyl-2-acryloyloxyethyl] -2,4,8,10-tetraspiro [5,5 Undecane, α, α'-bis [4-acryloyloxyphenyl] -1,4-diisopropylbenzene, 1,4-bisacryloyloxytetrafluorobenzene, 4,4'-bisacryloyloxyoctafluorobiphenyl, diethylene glycol diacrylate , 1,4-butanediol diacrylate, 1,3-butylene glycol diacrylate, dicyclopentanyl diacrylate,
Glycerol diacrylate, 1,6-hexanediol diacrylate, neopentyl glycol diacrylate, tetraethylene glycol diacrylate, trimethylolpropane triacrylate, pentaerythritol tetraacrylate, pentaerythritol triacrylate, ditrimethylolpropane tetraacrylate, dipentaerythritol Hexaacrylate, dipentaerythritol monohydroxypentaacrylate, 4,4'-diacryloyloxystilbene, 4,4'-diacryloyloxydimethylstilbene, 4,4'-diacryloyloxydiethylstilbene, 4,4'-diacryloyl Oxydipropyl stilbene, 4,4'-diacryloyloxydibutylstilbene, 4,4'-diacryloyloxydipentylstilbene, 4,4'-diak Loyloxydihexylstilbene, 4,4'-diacryloyloxydifluorostilbene, 2,2,3,3,4,4-hexafluoropentanediol 1,5-diacrylate, 1,1,2,2,3,3 -Polyfunctional acrylate compounds such as hexafluoropropyl-1,3-diacrylate, urethane acrylate oligomer, diethylene glycol dimethacrylate, 1,4-butanediol dimethacrylate, 1,3-butylene glycol dimethacrylate, dicyclopentanyl dimethacrylate Glycerol dimethacrylate, 1,6-hexanediol dimethacrylate, neopentyl glycol dimethacrylate, tetraethylene glycol dimethacrylate, trimethylolpropane trimethacrylate, pentaerythritol tetramethacrylate, pentaerythritol trimethacrylate, dimethacrylate Polyfunctional such as trimethylolpropane tetramethacrylate, dipentaerythritol hexamethacrylate, dipentaerythritol monohydroxypentamethacrylate, 2,2,3,3,4,4-hexafluoropentanediol 1,5-dimethacrylate, urethane methacrylate oligomer There are methacrylate compounds, styrene, aminostyrene, vinyl acetate and the like, but the present invention is not limited to these.

The driving voltage of the liquid crystal display device of the present invention is also affected by the interfacial interaction between the polymer material and the liquid crystal material. Therefore, the driving voltage may be a polymer containing elemental fluorine.

As such polymers, 2,2,3,3,4,4-hexafluoropentanediol, 1,5-diacrylate,
1,1,2,2,3,3-hexafluoropropyl-1,3-diacrylate, 2,2,2-trifluoroethyl acrylate, 2,2,3,
3,3-pentafluoropropyl acrylate, 2,2,3,3-tetrafluoropropyl acrylate, 2,2,3,4,4,4-hexafluorobutyl acrylate, 2,2,2-trifluoroethyl methacrylate Polymers synthesized from compounds containing 2,2,3,3-tetrafluoropropyl methacrylate, 2,2,3,4,4,4-hexafluorobutyl methacrylate, urethane acrylate oligomer, etc. The invention is not limited to these.

When a light or ultraviolet curable monomer is used as the polymer used in the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention, an initiator for light or ultraviolet is generally used. Various initiators can be used, for example, 2,2-diethoxyacetophenone, 2-hydroxy-2-methyl-1-phenyl-1-one, 1- (4-isopropylphenyl-) Acetophenones such as -2-hydroxy-2-methylpropan-1-one, 1- (4-dodecylphenyl) -2-hydroxy-2-methylpropan-1-one, benzoin methyl ether, benzoin ethyl ether, benzyl dimethyl Benzoin compounds such as ketal, benzophenone, benzoylbenzoic acid, benzophenone compounds such as 4-phenylbenzophenone and 3,3-dimethyl-4-methoxybenzophenone, and thioxanthone compounds such as thioxanthone, 2-chlorothioxanthone and 2-methylthioxanthone. And diazonium salts, sulfonium salts, iodonium salts, selenium salts, and the like.

In order to drive the liquid crystal optical element according to the present invention as an active element such as a TFT, the liquid crystal is required to have a large electric resistance and a large charge retention. Therefore,
A high-resistance liquid crystal material such as a fluorine-based or chlorine-based material is preferable, and a material that does not decrease the charge retention characteristics due to irradiation with visible light or ultraviolet light is preferable.

Also, in the liquid crystal optical element of the present invention,
By using a compensation film between the liquid crystal cell and the polarizing film, the viewing angle characteristics can be further improved.

The compensating film for this purpose compensates for liquid crystal having a positive refractive index anisotropy.
A compensation film having a negative refractive index anisotropy is preferred.

In particular, a compensation film in which the optical axis is inclined obliquely because the rising direction of the liquid crystal molecules is oblique, or a compensating film in which the direction of the optical axis differs in each region having a different rising direction is preferable.

As described above, according to the present invention, the conventional TN
It can be manufactured by the same simple method as a liquid crystal display device,
A liquid crystal display device having a high contrast and a wide field of view can be obtained without providing a light shielding layer.

[0095]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. Note that, needless to say, the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments.

[0096]

Embodiment 1 A sample cell substrate (20 mm × 30 mm) having a 10 mm diameter electrode was used as an upper and lower substrate. After cleaning these substrates, the polyimide alignment agent JALS
-428 (Japanese synthetic rubber) is applied by spin coating, and 9
Firing at 0 ° C. and 220 ° C. was performed.

Thereafter, a rubbing treatment was performed using a buff cloth made of rayon. The rubbing direction is an oblique direction of the substrate, and the rubbing directions of the upper substrate and the lower substrate make an angle of 90 °.

An adhesive was applied to the periphery of the substrate, and latex balls having a diameter of 6 μm were sprayed as spacers. Subsequently, both substrates were bonded together under pressure.

The bonded substrates were placed in a vacuum chamber, and after evacuation, a nematic liquid crystal (ZLI4792 manufactured by Merck,
Phase transition temperature: 92 ° C), UV curable monomer (KAYA)
RAD PET-30 (Nippon Kayaku) 0.25wt
%) And an initiator (Irganox 907, 5 wt% based on the monomer). A chiral agent (S811) was added to the used liquid crystal so that the chiral pitch became 90 μm.

The obtained panel was heated to 110 ° C. and irradiated with ultraviolet rays (0.1 mW / cm ² ) at that temperature for 30 minutes. Then, while applying a triangular wave of 3V and 10Hz, 4
The substrate was cooled at 0 ° C./min.

A polarization micrograph of the obtained cell is shown in FIG. 12 (observed with the substrate tilted).

Referring to the polarized light micrograph of FIG. 12, there are two types of irregularly shaped regions (two types of light and shaded areas), and another region (the boundary between the two types of regions). (A dark region) existed in a band shape.

No disclination causing light leakage under crossed Nicols was observed.
From the change in brightness when the orientation of the polarizing plate is changed with the cell tilted, the two types of regions that appear pale in the photograph are the regions where the twisting direction of the liquid crystal is the same and the rising direction is the opposite. It can be confirmed that the region which looks black in the above is the region where the twist direction of the liquid crystal is opposite.

Further, the rising direction of the liquid crystal immediately after the voltage application was the same as the rising direction of the liquid crystal after a sufficient time had elapsed, and no region where light leakage occurred immediately after the voltage application was observed. Furthermore, the voltage ON-
Even when the liquid crystal was repeatedly turned off, the band-like region in which the twist direction of the liquid crystal was opposite did not disappear.

After attaching a polarizing plate to the fabricated cell in a crossed Nicols state, a liquid crystal evaluation device (LCD-5 manufactured by Otsuka Electronics Co., Ltd.)
000) The electro-optical characteristics of the cell were measured. FIG. 6 shows the transmittance-voltage curve and contrast in the vertical direction of the substrate.
(A) and FIG. 6 (b).

The transmittance-voltage curve shows that the driving voltage is normal TN.
It was almost the same except that it was slightly increased compared to the mode. Although the cell did not have a light-shielding layer, the contrast was as high as 185: 1 at 5 V.

FIG. 7 shows viewing angle characteristics measured at every azimuth angle of 90 °. FIG. 7 shows viewing angle characteristics at the time of gradation display,
The horizontal axis is the viewing angle, and the vertical axis is the transmittance. From FIG. 7, it is considered that most of the liquid crystal molecules in the center of the liquid crystal layer are oriented in the 135 ° -315 ° direction, which was consistent with the method predicted from the rubbing direction.

The viewing angle characteristics obtained in FIG. 7 are similar to the viewing angle characteristics of a pixel division type liquid crystal display device in which one-valued pixels are divided into two regions having the same liquid crystal twist direction and opposite rising directions. is there.

A substrate having no electrode (30 mm × 40 m
m) Similarly, an alignment film was formed thereon, a cell was formed using a 50 μm spacer, and the pretilt angle measured by a crystal rotation method was 0.05 °.

[0110]

[Embodiment 2] A substrate with electrodes in which many "/" shaped openings having a width of 5 μm are arranged on the entire surface electrode, and an electrode in which a large number of electrodes each having a size of 100 μm × 100 μm are arranged at 10 μm intervals. Substrates were used as upper and lower substrates.

According to the same procedure as in the first embodiment,
An alignment film was formed on the substrate and rubbed. The rubbing direction of the upper substrate and the lower substrate is 90
The liquid crystal molecules at the center of the substrate were oriented in a direction perpendicular to the opening. The upper and lower substrates were bonded together in the same manner as in the first embodiment. On this occasion,
The electrode opening was bonded to the center of the 100 μm × 100 μm electrode so as to be diagonally opposite.

Liquid crystal was injected and irradiated with ultraviolet rays in the same manner as in the first embodiment except that the amount of the monomer was changed to 0.3 wt%. Thereafter, cooling was performed at a rate of 20 ° C./min from 110 ° C. while applying a 5V, 20 Hz sine wave.

Observing the obtained cell with a polarizing microscope,
Each pixel was equally divided into two regions where the liquid crystal twist direction was the same and the rising direction was opposite from the opening. Further, at the position of the opening and at the periphery of each pixel, a region opposite to the twist direction of the liquid crystal was present, and a portion where regions having different rising directions were in direct contact was not observed. When observed under crossed Nicols, no portion where light leakage occurred when voltage was applied was observed. Also, immediately after the application of the voltage, no disturbance was observed in the rising direction of the liquid crystal.

As in the first embodiment, when the front contrast was measured, it was 5 V and 200: 1. A similar cell is attached to a crossed Nicol polarizer, and then placed on a rotating stage. A color luminance meter (Topcon B
M-5A) was installed, and the viewing angle dependence of the liquid crystal display device was examined. Eight gradations were displayed on the liquid crystal display screen, and the viewing angle dependency at each gradation display was measured at intervals of an azimuth angle of 45 °.

Also in this embodiment, the viewing angle characteristics similar to those in FIG. 7 are obtained, no gradation inversion is observed within 60 ° in the wide viewing angle direction, and 40 ° in the narrowest viewing angle direction.
No gradation inversion was observed within the range.

[0116]

Comparative Example 1 A liquid crystal display was manufactured in the same manner as in the first embodiment except that no voltage was applied during cooling. Only a uniform area was observed after cooling. When a voltage was applied, only two types of regions having the same twisting direction and opposite rising directions were generated, and light leakage was recognized from the boundary.

[0117]

Embodiment 3 An element was manufactured in the same manner as in the first embodiment, except that a polyimide alignment film (AL1051 manufactured by Japan Synthetic Rubber) was used as the alignment film, and the substrates were bonded so as to form a spray arrangement. After heating the cell to 110 ° C,
The substrate was cooled at 40 ° C./min while applying a triangular wave of 4 V and 10 Hz.

When observed under a polarizing microscope, the same structure as in FIG. 12 was observed. The structure was stable even when voltage was applied, and no light leakage was observed at the boundary.

[0119]

Embodiment 4 As a liquid crystal to be injected, a mixed solution of ZLI4792, 4,4'-diacryloyloxybiphenyl acrylate (0.3 wt% based on the liquid crystal), and benzoin methyl ether (1 wt% based on the monomer) was used. Except for the above, an element was manufactured in the same manner as in the first embodiment.

When the element characteristics were measured by the same method as in the first embodiment, the front contrast was 180: 1, and the order of the luminance between the gray levels did not reverse within a viewing angle of 50 ° or less.

[0121]

Embodiment 5 The concentration of each of the ultraviolet monomers is set to 0 wt.
%, 0.02 wt%, 0.05 wt%, and 0.1 wt%, and a liquid crystal cell was fabricated in the same manner as in the first embodiment. Immediately after cooling, the same structure as in FIG. 12 was observed in each cell.

However, when the voltage was repeatedly turned on and off, in the liquid crystal cell where the concentration of the ultraviolet monomer was 0 wt%, the boundaries of the liquid crystal having different twist directions disappeared.

[0123]

[Embodiment 6] The concentration of each of the ultraviolet monomers was 2 wt.
%, 4 wt%, 10 wt%, and the liquid crystal cell was manufactured in the same manner as in the first embodiment except that the ultraviolet irradiation time was 5 minutes. In a cell having a monomer concentration of 2 wt% and 4 wt%, a structure similar to that shown in FIG. 12 was generated. In a cell having a monomer concentration of 10 wt%, the orientation of the liquid crystal was disturbed and many regions were not twisted at 90 °. Recognized,
Scattering was observed even when no voltage was applied.

[0124]

[Embodiment 7] In the same manner as in the second embodiment, only the alignment film was prepared using a 1/1 mixed solution of chlorobenzene / methylene chloride of polyvinyl cinnamate manufactured by Aldrich (2w).
t%), the firing temperature was 90 ° C., and linearly polarized ultraviolet light was applied instead of rubbing. The direction of linearly polarized light was the same as that of rubbing.

A liquid crystal panel was manufactured in the same manner as in the first embodiment. A two-segment type structure corresponding to the pixel and the opening was recognized, and the order was not inverted within a viewing angle of 60 ° or less. The contrast ratio was also 200: 1.

When the pretilt angle in the direction perpendicular to the polarization direction of the linearly polarized light was measured by the crystal lotion method,
It was almost 0 °.

[0127]

Embodiment 8 In the same manner as in the second embodiment, after applying polyvinyl cinnamate and exposing it to linearly polarized light,
1,4-mixed with photo-polymerization initiator (Irgacure651)
Di- (4- (6-acryloyloxyhexyloxy) benzoloxy) benzene was applied and irradiated with ultraviolet light while heating to 50 ° C., and the temperature was returned to room temperature. As a result, in the nematic liquid crystal phase, the state of the alignment was fixed on the substrate surface. This was confirmed by observation with a polarizing microscope in which the same treatment was performed using a glass substrate for testing.

Using the above-mentioned alignment film, a cell was formed in the same manner as in the second embodiment. After cooling, it was confirmed that the same structure as in the seventh embodiment was completed.

[0129]

As described above, according to the present invention,
This has the effect of realizing a liquid crystal display device with a wide viewing angle and high contrast that can be manufactured by a simple method similar to that of a conventional TN type liquid crystal display device.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration principle of a liquid crystal display device according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view for explaining a boundary portion of a region where the twist direction of the liquid crystal is the same and the rising direction is opposite.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view for explaining a boundary portion of a region where the twist direction of the liquid crystal is opposite in the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a spray arrangement.

FIG. 5 is a sectional view illustrating a liquid crystal layer of the liquid crystal display device according to the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a relationship between a transmittance, a contrast ratio, and a voltage in a liquid crystal display device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a view showing a visual field characteristic in the liquid crystal display device according to one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of a conventional liquid crystal display device (no voltage applied).

FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view for explaining a problem of a conventional liquid crystal display device (voltage application).

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of a conventional liquid crystal display device.

FIG. 11 is a sectional view of a conventional liquid crystal display device.

FIG. 12 is a polarization microscope photograph of a conventional liquid crystal display device.

[Explanation of symbols]

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 11 Liquid crystal molecule 12 Polymer 13 Pretilt angle 21, 31 Alignment film 22, 32 Transparent electrode 23, 33 Glass substrate 34 Light shielding layer 41, 42 Light ray A, B The area where the twist directions of liquid crystals are the same and the rising directions are opposite C liquid crystal Regions with opposite twist directions

Claims (8)

[Claims] 1. A liquid crystal layer is sandwiched between two substrates having electrodes, in which two kinds of regions having the same twist direction of the liquid crystal orientation vector and opposite rising directions of liquid crystal molecules when a voltage is applied coexist. In the liquid crystal display device, a region in which the twisting direction of the liquid crystal alignment vector is different from the two types of regions is provided between the two types of regions. 2. The method according to claim 1, wherein said liquid crystal layer contains at least 0.02 wt%
2. The liquid crystal display device according to claim 1, wherein the polymer is present in a range of not more than wt%. 3. A liquid crystal having a twisting characteristic is injected between two substrates whose surfaces are oriented in one direction, and then a liquid crystal phase-isotropic phase transition occurs under voltage application. By cooling the liquid crystal layer from a temperature equal to or higher than the temperature to a temperature equal to or lower than the phase transition temperature, two regions having the same twisting direction of the alignment vector of the liquid crystal and opposite rising directions of the liquid crystal molecules when a voltage is applied are formed. In the meantime, a region in which the twist direction of the liquid crystal orientation vector is different from the two types of regions is generated, and a method of manufacturing a liquid crystal display device. 4. The liquid crystal display device according to claim 3, wherein the aligning means is provided so that the rising directions of the two liquid crystals with respect to the twisting direction determined by the twisting characteristic of the liquid crystal are generated with substantially equal probability. Production method. 5. The liquid crystal layer according to claim 4, wherein an alignment film having a small pretilt angle is used.
The manufacturing method of the liquid crystal display device according to the above. 6. The method according to claim 4, wherein the liquid crystals are arranged in a splay arrangement. 7. The electrodes on the two substrates may have different shapes, or a predetermined opening may be provided in the electrodes on at least one of the substrates, and a non-uniform electric field is applied to each of the regions to form a respective one of the electrodes. 4. The method for manufacturing a liquid crystal display device according to claim 3, wherein the shape is controlled. 8. The method according to claim 1, wherein said liquid crystal is at least 0.02 wt% and 4 wt%.
% Or less of the polymer.
The manufacturing method of the liquid crystal display device according to the above.