JPH09197415A - Liquid crystal cell - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To extremely reduce the dispersion of cell gaps. SOLUTION: In this liquid crystal cell, liquid crystal is sealed between a pair of substrates 1, 2 joined through a frame-like seal material 11 consisting of resin including a gap material and electrodes corresponding to a display area E and lead parts 5a, 6a extended to the outside of the seal material 11 are respectively formed on the inner surfaces of the substrates 1, 2. In this case, plural dummy films having almost the same film thickness as that of the lead parts 5a, 6a are formed on the joint part joined by the material 11 on the inner surface of at least one substrate 1 at a prescribed interval over almost the whole area excluding an area passing the lead parts 5a, 6a.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a liquid crystal cell used in a liquid crystal display device, and more particularly to a cell gap having higher uniformity.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In addition to the commonly used TN type liquid crystal display device, the twist angle of liquid crystal molecules is 18
There are STN type liquid crystal display device having a large size of 0 ° to 270 °, birefringence effect type liquid crystal display device which obtains a colored display without using a color filter, and liquid crystal display device using ferroelectric liquid crystal or antiferroelectric liquid crystal. Is generally composed of a liquid crystal cell and a pair of polarizing plates arranged with the liquid crystal cell interposed therebetween. Some birefringence effect type liquid crystal display devices have a retardation plate disposed between a liquid crystal cell and a polarizing plate.

In the above-mentioned liquid crystal cell, a pair of substrates made of glass or the like are joined together via a frame-shaped sealing material made of resin mixed with a gap material for controlling the cell gap (substrate gap), and these substrates are joined together. Liquid crystal is enclosed in a region surrounded by the sealing material, and transparent electrodes corresponding to a display area and lead portions extending to the outside of the sealing material are formed on inner surfaces of the pair of substrates, respectively. Has been done.

An alignment film that covers the electrodes and regulates the alignment state of liquid crystal molecules is provided on the inner surfaces of the display areas of the pair of substrates. Further, a liquid crystal display device (TN type, STN type) that obtains a colored display using a color filter is used.
In a liquid crystal cell used in a mold, a ferroelectric liquid crystal display device, or the like), a color filter is provided on the inner surface of one of the substrates (under the electrode or between the electrode and the alignment film).

[0005]

The display characteristics of the above liquid crystal display device vary depending on the thickness of the liquid crystal layer and the alignment state of the liquid crystal molecules. Therefore, in order to obtain a high quality display without display unevenness, the liquid crystal It is necessary to make the liquid crystal layer thickness of the cell, that is, the cell gap, uniform over the entire cell.

This cell gap is regulated by a gap material mixed in a seal material for joining the two substrates, but the cell gap in the area through which the lead portion of the joint portion formed by the seal material passes is defined by the lead material. The gap material on the liquid crystal cell is regulated by the gap material above, and the cell gap of the other area is regulated by the gap material in contact with the substrate surface. is there.

This variation in cell gap, that is, the difference in cell gap between the region of the junction where the lead passes and the other region is, for example, in the case of an active matrix type liquid crystal cell using a thin film transistor as an active element. Is about 0.3 to 0.4 μm, which is an accuracy that does not cause a problem in a generally used TN type liquid crystal display device.

However, in STN type and birefringence effect type liquid crystal display devices, ferroelectric liquid crystal display devices, etc., even slight variations in the cell gap of liquid crystal cells affect the display characteristics. By utilizing the effect (or the birefringence effect of the liquid crystal and the retardation plate) and the polarization effect of the polarizing plate, Δn · d (refractive index anisotropy Δn of liquid crystal and liquid crystal layer thickness d) of the liquid crystal cell corresponding to the applied voltage In the birefringence effect type liquid crystal display device that displays a plurality of colors due to a change in (product of), a slight variation in the cell gap appears as display color unevenness.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a liquid crystal cell that can minimize variations in cell gap.

[0009]

According to the present invention, liquid crystal is sealed between a pair of substrates joined together through a frame-shaped sealing material made of resin mixed with a gap material for regulating a cell gap, and In the liquid crystal cell in which the electrodes corresponding to the display area and the lead portions extending to the outside of the seal material are formed on the inner surfaces of the pair of substrates, respectively, at the joint portion of the seal material on the inner surface of at least one of the substrates. ,
It is characterized in that a plurality of dummy films having substantially the same film thickness as that of the lead portion are provided at a predetermined interval over almost the entire area except the area through which the lead portion passes.

According to the present invention, the cell gap in the region through which the lead portion of the joint made of the sealing material passes is
Since the gap material is regulated by the gap material on the lead portion and the cell gap of the other region is regulated by the gap material on the dummy film having the same film thickness as the lead portion, the variation of the cell gap is minimized. Can be made smaller.

Further, according to the present invention, liquid crystal is sealed between a pair of substrates joined together through a frame-shaped sealing material made of resin mixed with a gap material for controlling the cell gap, and the inner surface of one substrate is sealed. A plurality of pixel electrodes arranged in a matrix corresponding to the display area, a plurality of thin film transistors respectively connected to these pixel electrodes, and a gate line and data for supplying a gate signal and a data signal to these thin film transistors. Line and
A lead portion extending from these lines to the outside of the sealing material is formed, a light-shielding film having a portion corresponding to each pixel opened on the inner surface of the other substrate, and a counter electrode corresponding to the entire display area. In the active matrix liquid crystal cell in which the counter electrode and the lead portion extending from the light-shielding film to the outside of the sealing material are formed, both the counter electrode and the light-shielding film have their outer peripheral portions It is characterized in that it is formed to have an outer shape corresponding to the inside of the joint made of the sealing material.

According to the present invention, the cell gap in the region through which the lead portion extending from the counter electrode and the light-shielding film of the joint portion formed by the sealing material passes is regulated by the gap material on the lead portion, The cell gap in the other region is regulated by the gap material on the outer peripheral portion of the counter electrode and the light shielding film, but since the outer peripheral portion of the counter electrode and the light shielding film and the lead portion have the same film thickness, The variation in the gap can be minimized.

In the present invention, it is desirable that the outer peripheral edges of the counter electrode and the light-shielding film are inside the outer periphery of the sealing material. In this case, the outer peripheral portion of the sealing material and the substrate surface are brought into close contact with each other. It is possible to obtain a high sealing property and prevent impurities from entering the cell from the outside through the counter electrode and the light shielding film.

In addition, in the above active matrix type liquid crystal cell, the pixel electrode and the thin film transistor, the gate, and the lead portion of the gate and the data line are connected to the joint portion of the inner surface of the one substrate on which the data line is formed by the sealing material. It is further preferable that a plurality of dummy films having substantially the same film thickness are provided at a predetermined interval over substantially the entire area of the bonding section except the area where the lead section passes,
By doing so, the variation in the cell gap can be almost completely eliminated.

In the present invention, it is desirable that the dummy film is provided on the inner side of the outer periphery of the sealing material. In this case, the outer peripheral portion of the sealing material is directly adhered to the substrate surface to obtain high sealing performance. In addition, it is possible to prevent impurities from entering the cell through the dummy film from the outside.

When the dummy film is provided inside the outer periphery of the sealing material, the dummy film is formed linearly along the width direction of the sealing material, and the distance between the dummy films with respect to the width of the dummy film. Is preferably smaller than the ratio of the spacing of each lead portion to the width of the lead portion, and in this way, per unit area above the lead portion passing through the joint portion over its entire width. The number of gap materials per unit area on the dummy film having a length smaller than the width of the bonding portion is larger than the number of the gap materials on the lead portion and on the dummy film effective for controlling the cell gap. Since the density of the gap material is smaller on each lead portion having a larger width in the width direction of the bonding portion than on each dummy film having a smaller length in the width direction of the bonding portion,
The effect of regulating the cell gap by these gap materials can be made substantially equal over the entire circumference of the joint portion, and the variation in the cell gap can be further reduced.

[0017]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1 to 5 show a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 1 is a plan view of a liquid crystal cell, FIG. 2 is a plan view of one of the substrates, and FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of a part of FIG. FIG. 4 is an enlarged plan view of a part of the other substrate. FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a part of the liquid crystal cell,
3A is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 3, and FIG.
It is sectional drawing along the BB line of FIG.

In the liquid crystal cell of this embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 5, a pair of transparent substrates 1 and 2 made of glass or the like are joined via a frame-shaped sealing material 11, and the substrates 1 and 2 are joined together. Two
A liquid crystal (not shown) is enclosed in a region surrounded by the sealing material 11 between, and a transparent electrode corresponding to the display area E and the seal are provided on the inner surfaces of the pair of substrates 1 and 2, respectively. A lead portion extending to the outside of the material 11 is formed.

The liquid crystal cell of this embodiment is of an active matrix type in which a thin film transistor (hereinafter referred to as TFT) is used as an active element, and a pair of substrates 1 and 2 are used.
One of the two, for example, on the inner surface of the back substrate 1, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, a plurality of transparent pixel electrodes 3 arranged in a matrix corresponding to the display area E, and these pixel electrodes 3 A plurality of TFTs 4 connected to each other, a gate line 5 and a data line 6 for supplying a gate signal and a data signal to these TFTs 4, and a lead portion extending from these lines 5 and 6 to the outside of the sealing material 11. 5a and 6a are formed, and these lead portions 5 are formed.
The end portions of a and 6a are connection terminals 5b and 6b for connecting to the drive circuit.

Although the TFT 4 is shown in a simplified manner in the figure, the TFT 4 has a gate electrode formed on the substrate 1, a gate insulating film covering the gate electrode, and a gate insulating film formed on the gate insulating film. The gate includes an i-type semiconductor film formed to face the gate electrode, and a source electrode and a drain electrode formed on both sides of the i-type semiconductor film with an n-type semiconductor film interposed therebetween. The line 5 is wired on the substrate 1, and the gate electrode of the TFT 4 is formed integrally with the gate line. Further, the gate insulating film (transparent film) of the TFT 4 is formed over the entire display area E, and the data line is wired on the gate insulating film and connected to the drain electrode of the TFT 4, and the pixel electrode 3 is formed on the gate insulating film and has a TF
It is connected to the source electrode of T4.

On the inner surface of the back substrate 1, the other substrate (front substrate) is provided in the vicinity of each corner.
The relay electrode 7 for connecting the counter electrode provided in 2 to the drive circuit is formed by projecting a part or all of the relay electrode 7 to the outside of the joint by the sealing material 11.

Of these relay electrodes 7, the edge of the substrate on which the gate line terminals 5b are arranged and the data line terminals 6b.
The relay electrode 7 provided at the corner between the substrate and the edge of the substrate is arranged on one end side of the drive circuit connection terminals 7a formed at both ends of the data line terminal 6b group. The relay electrodes 7 connected to each other through the lead wires 7b arranged along the outer circumference of the portion, and the relay electrodes 7 provided at the other three corners are connected by the lead wires 7c arranged along the outer circumference of the joint. They are commonly connected and are connected to the terminal 7a on the other end side of the data line terminal 6b group via the lead wiring 7c.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, among the joints formed by the sealing material 11 on the inner surface of the back substrate 1, the lead portions 5a, 6 of the gate lines 5 and the data lines 6 are formed.
Almost the entire area (the area surrounded by the broken line in FIGS. 1 and 2) except the area where a passes and the portion where the relay electrode 7 overlaps is defined as the dummy film formation area D. In the region D, a plurality of dummy films 8 are provided at predetermined intervals over the entire region as shown in FIG.

These dummy films 8 are formed by the sealing material 11 described above.
It is provided inside the outer periphery of. In this example,
The dummy film 8 is formed in a linear shape having a narrow width along the width direction of the sealing material 11, and the linear dummy film 8 is slightly offset from the inner circumference of the bonding portion by the sealing material 11 to the inside of the bonding portion. It is provided over almost the middle position of the joint width.

The dummy film 8 is formed to have a width somewhat larger than the widths of the lead portions 5a and 6a of the gate line 5 and the data line 6, and the distance between the dummy films 8 and 8 is different from each other. Parts 5a, 5a and 6a, 6
It is set smaller than the interval a.

That is, for example, in the case of a liquid crystal cell in which the diagonal size of the display screen is 4.7 inches and the number of pixels is 240 × 640 dots, the width of the lead portions 5a and 6a is about 30 μm.
m, the interval between the lead portions 5a, 5a and 6a, 6a is about 150 μm. In this embodiment, the dummy film 8 is used.
In addition to the fact that each of the dummy films 8 has a width of about 50 μm, the dummy film 8 has a width of about 50 μm.
The interval of 8 is set to about 50 μm.

Further, the dummy film 8 and the relay electrode 7 are formed.
Is formed of the same metal film (for example, an aluminum alloy film) as the gate line 5 wired on the substrate 1,
The data line 6 is formed of a metal film (for example, an aluminum alloy film) having almost the same film thickness as the gate line 5.

Therefore, the dummy film 8 and the relay electrode 7 are formed.
Of the lead portion 5a of the gate line 5 (0.
3 to 0.4 μm) and the film thickness of the lead portion 6a of the data line 6 is also almost the same.

Further, on the inner surface of the front substrate 2, as shown in FIG. 4, a light-shielding film 9 having openings corresponding to respective pixels,
A counter electrode 10 facing all of the pixel electrodes 3 and lead portions 10a, 9a extending from the vicinity of each corner of the counter electrode 10 and the light shielding film 9 to the outside of the sealing material 11.
Are formed, and the ends of the lead portions 10a and 9a face the relay electrodes 7 formed on the back substrate 1, respectively.

The counter electrode 10 is a single film transparent electrode corresponding to the entire display area E.
0 indicates the entire liquid crystal enclosing area surrounded by the sealing material 11,
The outer peripheral portion is formed to have a size that overlaps the inner peripheral edge of the sealing material 11 with a slight overlapping width.

In this embodiment, the counter electrode 10 is formed on the surface of the substrate 2 and the light shielding film 9 is formed thereon. The light-shielding film 9 is composed of a laminated film of a chromium film and a chromium oxide film, and the chromium oxide film which is a low reflection film faces the display surface, that is, the surface of the front substrate 2.

The light shielding film 9 and its lead portion 9a are
The outer shape of the counter electrode 10 and its lead portion 10a is slightly smaller than that of the counter electrode 10. The lead portion 9a of the light shielding film 9 is provided with an opening 9b for exposing the lead portion 10a of the counter electrode 10. .

Although not shown in the drawing, an alignment film is formed on the inner surface of the back substrate 1 so as to cover the pixel electrodes 3 and the TFTs 4, and the counter electrode 10 and the counter electrode 10 are formed on the inner surface of the front substrate 2. An alignment film is formed so as to cover the light shielding film 9.
These alignment films are made of a horizontal alignment agent such as polyimide, and the film surface is subjected to an alignment treatment by rubbing.

Note that these alignment films are provided at least over the entire display area E, avoiding the joint portion by the seal material 11 so that the outer periphery thereof does not overlap with the seal material 11.

On the other hand, the sealing material 11 is made of a thermosetting or photo-curing resin, and in the resin, a spherical gap material (resin particles or particles made of metal or the like for controlling the cell gap is contained. 12 (see FIG. 5) in which the entire surface is coated with resin is mixed.

In the liquid crystal cell of this embodiment, one of the pair of substrates 1 and 2, for example, the back substrate 1 is printed with the sealing material 11 in a frame shape surrounding the liquid crystal enclosing region, and the other front substrate. 2, each lead portion 10a of the counter electrode 10
After dropping a conductive material 13 (see FIG. 1) in which gold particles are mixed into a thermosetting resin or a photo-curing resin, the substrates 1 and 2 are superposed on each other and pressed. By adjusting the gap (cell gap) between them to a gap regulated by the gap material 12 in the seal material 11, and then curing the seal material 11 and the conductive material 13 to bond the two substrates 1 and 2 together. It is assembled.

When the liquid crystal cell is assembled in this way,
The lead portions 10a of the counter electrode 10 of the front substrate 2 are connected to the relay electrodes 7 of the back substrate 1 and the conductive material 13 at the periphery of the lead portion 9a of the light-shielding film 9 and the exposed portion in the opening 9b. It is electrically connected.

Further, inside the liquid crystal cell, that is, in the liquid crystal enclosing region surrounded by the seal material 11 of both substrates 1 and 2, the liquid crystal injection port formed by partially omitting the seal material 11 is formed. (See FIG. 1) A liquid crystal is injected and filled from 14 by a vacuum injection method, and then the injection port 14 is filled with the sealing resin 1.
It is sealed by 5.

The liquid crystal molecules enclosed in the liquid crystal cell are controlled in the alignment direction in the vicinity of the substrates 1 and 2 by the alignment films provided on the substrates 1 and 2, respectively.
The substrates 1 and 2 are aligned in a predetermined alignment state, for example, a twist alignment state.

According to the liquid crystal cell of this embodiment, of the pair of substrates 1 and 2, the pixel electrode 3, the TFT 4, the gate line 5 and the data line 6 are bonded to each other by the sealing material 11 on the inner surface of the back substrate 1. In the part, the gate line 5
Also, since the plurality of dummy films 8 are provided at predetermined intervals over substantially the entire area of the data line 6 except the area where the lead portions 5a, 6a pass, the lead portions 5a, 6a of the joint portion by the seal material 11 pass through. The cell gap in the open region is the gap material 12 above the lead portions 5a and 6a.
The cell gap in the other region is regulated by the gap material on the dummy film 8 having the same film thickness as the lead portions 5a and 6a.

In this liquid crystal cell, since the film thickness of the dummy film 8 is almost the same as the film thickness of the lead portions 5a and 6a, the gap member 1 on the lead portions 5a and 6a is formed.
The cell gap regulated by 2 and the cell gap regulated by the gap material on the dummy film 8 are almost the same,
Therefore, the variation in cell gap can be minimized.

Therefore, for example, by utilizing the birefringence effect of the liquid crystal (or the birefringence effect of the liquid crystal and the retardation plate) and the polarization effect of the polarizing plate, Δn · d of the liquid crystal cell corresponding to the applied voltage.
When the liquid crystal cell is used in a birefringence effect type liquid crystal display device that displays a plurality of colors by the change of, there is almost no occurrence of color unevenness due to the variation of the cell gap of the liquid crystal cell,
High quality color display can be realized.

In the liquid crystal cell, the dummy film 8 is used.
Is provided inside the outer periphery of the sealing material 11,
The outer peripheral portion of the sealing material 11 can be directly adhered to the surfaces of the substrates 1 and 2 to obtain a high sealing property, and at the same time, it is possible to prevent impurities from entering the cell through the dummy film 8 from the outside. .

Moreover, in the above embodiment, the dummy film 8 is used.
Is formed in a line shape along the width direction of the sealing material 11, the width of the dummy film 8 is made larger than the width of the lead portions 5a, 6a, and the distance between the dummy films 8, 8 is set to the respective lead portions 5a, 5a.
By making the distance smaller than the distance between a and 6a, 6a, the ratio of the distance between the dummy films 8 to the width of the dummy film 8 becomes the ratio of the distance between the lead portions 5a and 6a with respect to the width of the lead portions 5a and 6a. Is smaller than that of the lead portion 5a, which passes through the joint portion over its entire width,
Gap material 12 per lead part on 6a
And the number of the gap materials 12 per dummy film on the dummy film 8 having a length smaller than the width of the bonding portion can be balanced.

That is, according to the above embodiment, the lead portions 5a, 6a passing through the joint portion over the entire width thereof.
The number of gap materials 12 per unit area on the dummy film 8 having a length smaller than the width of the bonding portion is larger than the number of gap materials 12 per unit area on the above,
The density of the gap material 12 on the lead portion and on the dummy film, which is effective in regulating the cell gap, is larger than that on each dummy film 8 in which the length in the width direction of the bonding portion is smaller than that in the width direction of the bonding portion. Since the larger gaps on the respective lead portions 5a and 6a are smaller, the effect of regulating the cell gap by these gap materials 12 can be made substantially equal over the entire circumference of the joint portion, and the variation of the cell gap can be further reduced.

In FIG. 5, the gap member 12 is greatly exaggerated for simplification of the drawing. However, in the liquid crystal cell used in the birefringence effect type liquid crystal display device, for example, the diameter is 4 to 4.
The cell gap is set to 4 to 5 μm using a 5 μm gap material, while the width of the sealing material 11 is about 10 μm.
Since it is 00 μm, many gap materials 12 are actually distributed on the lead portion and the dummy film, respectively.

The first embodiment is not limited to the active matrix type in which the TFT is the active element, but is, for example, the active matrix type in which the non-linear resistance element of the MIM structure having a characteristic like a diode is used as the active element. The present invention can also be applied to the above liquid crystal cell, simple matrix type liquid crystal cell, and the like.

An active matrix type liquid crystal cell using the above non-linear resistance element as an active element has a plurality of pixel electrodes arranged in a matrix on the inner surface of one substrate and a plurality of pixel electrodes respectively connected to these pixel electrodes. An active element and a signal supply line for supplying an ON signal to each row of active elements are provided, and a plurality of counter electrodes divided for each pixel column is provided on the other substrate. A plurality of dummy films having almost the same film thickness as the lead portion of the signal supply line are provided at a predetermined interval at a joint portion on the inner surface of the substrate with the same thickness as the lead portion of the signal supply line, and the other substrate is provided. A plurality of dummy films having substantially the same film thickness as the lead portion of the counter electrode are provided on the inner surface of the counter electrode at a predetermined interval over substantially the entire region except the region where the lead portion passes. , It can be made uniform cell gap.

In the above simple matrix type liquid crystal cell, a plurality of scanning electrodes along the row direction are provided on the inner surface of one substrate, and a plurality of signal electrodes along the column direction are provided on the other substrate. However, a plurality of dummy films having almost the same film thickness as the lead portion of the scan electrode are formed at the joint portion of the inner surface of the one substrate at a predetermined interval over the entire area except the region where the lead portion passes. If a plurality of dummy films having substantially the same film thickness as the lead portion of the signal electrode are provided at the joint portion on the inner surface of the other substrate at a predetermined interval over substantially the entire area except the area through which the lead portion passes. The cell gap can be made uniform.

6 and 7 show a second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a plan view of a part of a substrate on which a counter electrode is formed, and FIG. 7 is an enlarged sectional view of a part of the liquid crystal cell. Therefore, (a) is a cross-sectional view taken along the line A′-A ′ in FIG.
7B is a sectional view taken along the line B′-B ′ in FIG. 6.

This embodiment is a further improvement of the liquid crystal cell of the first embodiment. In the active matrix type liquid crystal cell using TFTs as active elements, the counter electrode 10 and the light shield provided on the front substrate 2 are shielded. Both of the membranes 9,
The outer peripheral portion is formed to have an outer shape corresponding to the inside of the joint formed by the sealing material 11.

In this embodiment, the lead portion 9a of the light shielding film 9 is used.
Is the same as the outer shape of the counter electrode 10 (the outer shape including the lead portion 10a), and the outer peripheral edges of the counter electrode 10 and the light shielding film 9 other than the lead portions 10a and 9a are the sealing material 11 Inside the outer periphery of (here,
The outer peripheral edge is formed in such a size that it is located in the middle of the width of the sealing material 11.

The liquid crystal cell of this embodiment is the same as that of the first embodiment except for the point that the counter electrode 10 and the light shielding film 9 are formed in the above-mentioned outer shape. Therefore, the overlapping description will be omitted by assigning the same reference numerals to corresponding parts in the drawings.

According to the liquid crystal cell of this embodiment, the counter electrode 10 and the light-shielding film 9 in the joint portion by the sealing material 11 are provided.
The cell gap in the region through which the lead portions 10a and 9a extending from the lead portions 10a and 9a are regulated by the gap material 12 on the lead portions 10a and 9a, and the cell gaps in the other regions are opposed to the counter electrode 10 and the light shielding film 9. Gap material 1 on the outer circumference
Although it is regulated by 2, the outer peripheral portions of the counter electrode 10 and the light shielding film 9 and the lead portions 10a and 9a have the same film thickness, so that the variation of the cell gap can be minimized.

That is, in the liquid crystal cell of the first embodiment, as shown in FIG. 4, only the counter electrode 10 overlaps with the seal material 11, and the light shielding film 9 does not overlap with the seal material 11. The film of the light-shielding film 9 in the region where the lead portions 10a and 9a pass through in the joint portion of the inner surface of the front substrate 2 through the seal material 11 is more than in the region where only the outer peripheral portion of the counter electrode 10 overlaps. It is higher by the thickness.

The film thickness of the counter electrode 10 is 0.05 μm.
On the other hand, the light-shielding film 9 made of a laminated film of a chromium film and a chromium oxide film has a thickness of about 0.20 μm.
Therefore, the step between the region where the lead portions 10a and 9a pass through and the region where only the outer peripheral portion of the counter electrode 10 overlaps in the above-mentioned joining portion of the front substrate 2 is about 0.20 μm.

Therefore, in the liquid crystal cell of the first embodiment, the cell gap is the film thickness of the light-shielding film 9 in the region where the counter electrode 10 of the junction and the leads 10a, 9a of the light-shielding film 9 pass. It grows by a minute.

However, in the second embodiment, both the counter electrode 10 and the light-shielding film 9 are formed so that their outer peripheral portions have the outer shapes corresponding to the inside of the joint portion by the seal material 11, so that the front side substrate 2 described above is formed. There is no step between the region where the lead portions 10a and 9a pass through in the joint portion and the region where the counter electrode 10 and the outer peripheral portion of the light shielding film 9 wrap, and therefore,
The variation in cell gap can be minimized.

Moreover, in this embodiment, as in the first embodiment, the lead portions 5a and 6a of the gate line 5 and the data line 6 are almost the same as the joint portion of the inner surface of the back substrate 1 by the seal material 11. Since the plurality of dummy films 8 having different film thicknesses are provided at predetermined intervals over almost the entire region except the regions where the lead portions 5a and 6a pass, the variation in cell gap can be almost completely eliminated.

Therefore, when the liquid crystal cell of this embodiment is used in a birefringence effect type liquid crystal display device, it is possible to realize a higher quality color display without causing color unevenness due to variations in the cell gap of the liquid crystal cell. You can

Further, in the liquid crystal cell of the second embodiment,
Since the outer peripheral edges of the counter electrode 10 and the light shielding film 9 of the front substrate 2 are inside the outer periphery of the sealing material 11, and the dummy film 8 formed on the back substrate 1 is also inside the outer periphery of the sealing material 11. A high sealing property can be obtained by directly adhering the outer peripheral portion of the sealing material 11 to the surfaces of both the substrates 1 and 2, and impurities are transmitted from the outside through the counter electrode 10 and the light shielding film 9 or the dummy film 8 into the cell. It is possible to prevent intrusion.

The present invention is not limited to a liquid crystal cell used in a birefringence effect type liquid crystal display device, but an STN type liquid crystal display device or a ferroelectric liquid crystal display device in which a slight variation in the cell gap of the liquid crystal cell affects the display characteristics. The present invention can be applied to a liquid crystal cell used in a device and also applied to a liquid crystal cell used in a TN type liquid crystal display device.

[0063]

According to the present invention, liquid crystal is sealed between a pair of substrates joined together through a frame-shaped sealing material made of resin mixed with a gap material for controlling the cell gap, and at the same time, a liquid crystal is sealed between the pair of substrates. In a liquid crystal cell in which an electrode corresponding to a display area and a lead portion extending to the outside of the sealing material are formed on the inner surfaces, respectively, the lead portion is provided at a joint portion of the sealing material on the inner surface of at least one substrate. Since a plurality of dummy films having almost the same film thickness as the above are provided at a predetermined interval over almost the entire region except the region where the lead portion passes, the variation in cell gap should be minimized. You can

Further, according to the present invention, liquid crystal is sealed between a pair of substrates joined together through a frame-shaped sealing material made of resin mixed with a gap material for controlling the cell gap, and the inner surface of one substrate is sealed. A plurality of pixel electrodes arranged in a matrix corresponding to the display area, a plurality of thin film transistors respectively connected to these pixel electrodes, and a gate line and data for supplying a gate signal and a data signal to these thin film transistors. Line and
A lead portion extending from these lines to the outside of the sealing material is formed, a light-shielding film having a portion corresponding to each pixel opened on the inner surface of the other substrate, and a counter electrode corresponding to the entire display area. In the active matrix liquid crystal cell in which the counter electrode and the lead portion extending from the light-shielding film to the outside of the sealing material are formed, both the counter electrode and the light-shielding film have their outer peripheral portions Since the outer shape corresponding to the inside of the joint portion made of the sealing material is formed, the variation in the cell gap can be minimized.

In the present invention, if the outer peripheral edges of the counter electrode and the light shielding film are inside the outer periphery of the sealing material, the outer peripheral portion of the sealing material and the substrate surface can be directly brought into close contact with each other to obtain high sealing performance. At the same time, it is possible to prevent impurities from entering the cell through the counter electrode and the light shielding film from the outside.

Further, in the active matrix type liquid crystal cell, the pixel electrode and the thin film transistor, the gate and the data line are formed on the inner surface of the one of the substrates, which is joined to the bonding portion by the sealing material, and the lead portion of the gate and the data line is almost the same. If a plurality of dummy films having the same film thickness are provided at a predetermined interval over almost the entire area of the bonding portion except for the area where the lead portion passes, the variation in cell gap can be almost completely eliminated.

In the present invention, if the dummy film is provided inside the outer periphery of the sealing material, the outer peripheral portion of the sealing material can be directly brought into close contact with the substrate surface to obtain high sealing performance, and impurities from the outside can be obtained. Can be prevented from penetrating into the cell through the dummy film.

When the dummy film is provided on the inner side of the outer periphery of the sealing material, the dummy film is formed in a line along the width direction of the sealing material, and the interval of each dummy film with respect to the width of the dummy film is set. If the ratio is made smaller than the ratio of the spacing between the lead portions with respect to the width of the lead portion, the number of gap members per unit area on the lead portion passing through the joint portion over its entire width, The number of gap materials per unit area on the dummy film having a length smaller than the width of the bonding portion is increased, and the density of the gap material on the lead portion and the dummy film effective for regulating the cell gap becomes Since the length of each of the bonding portions having a large width in the width direction is smaller than that of each dummy film having a smaller width in the width direction, the effect of controlling the cell gap by these gap materials is reduced. Substantially equal over the entire circumference junction, it is possible to further reduce the dispersion of the cell gap.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view of a liquid crystal cell showing a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of one substrate of the liquid crystal cell.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged view of a part of FIG.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged plan view of a part of the other substrate of the liquid crystal cell.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a portion of the liquid crystal cell,
3A is a cross-sectional view taken along the line AA of FIG. 3, and FIG.
FIG. 6 is a sectional view taken along line BB of FIG.

FIG. 6 is a plan view of a part of a substrate on which a counter electrode is formed according to the second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an enlarged cross-sectional view of a portion of the liquid crystal cell,
6A is a sectional view taken along the line A′-A ′ in FIG. 6, and FIG. 6B is a sectional view taken along the line B′-B ′ in FIG.

[Explanation of symbols]

 E ... Display area 1, 2 ... Substrate 3 ... Pixel electrode 4 ... TFT 5 ... Gate line 6 ... Data line 5a, 6a ... Lead part 7 ... Relay electrode 8 ... Dummy film 9 ... Shading film 10 ... Counter electrode 9a, 10a ... Lead portion 11 ... Sealing material 12 ... Gap material 13 ... Conductive material

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A liquid crystal is sealed between a pair of substrates joined via a frame-shaped sealing material made of resin mixed with a gap material for regulating a cell gap, and the inner surfaces of the pair of substrates are respectively sealed. In a liquid crystal cell in which an electrode corresponding to a display area and a lead portion extending to the outside of the sealing material are formed, a film having almost the same film as that of the lead portion is formed on a joint portion of the sealing material on the inner surface of at least one substrate. A liquid crystal cell, characterized in that a plurality of thick dummy films are provided at predetermined intervals over substantially the entire region except the region through which the lead portion passes. 2. A liquid crystal is sealed between a pair of substrates joined via a frame-shaped sealing material made of resin mixed with a gap material for regulating a cell gap, and a display area is provided on the inner surface of one substrate. A plurality of pixel electrodes arranged in a matrix corresponding to, a plurality of thin film transistors respectively connected to these pixel electrodes, a gate line and a data line for supplying a gate signal and a data signal to these thin film transistors, and A lead portion extending from the line to the outside of the sealing material,
On the inner surface of the other substrate, a light-shielding film having openings corresponding to respective pixels, a counter electrode corresponding to the entire display area, and leads extending from the counter electrode and the light-shielding film to the outside of the sealing material. A liquid crystal cell of an active matrix type in which a portion is formed, both of the counter electrode and the light shielding film are formed in an outer shape corresponding to an outer peripheral portion in a joint portion by the sealing material. 3. The liquid crystal cell according to claim 2, wherein the outer peripheral edges of the counter electrode and the light shielding film are inside the outer periphery of the sealing material. 4. A plurality of dummy films having substantially the same film thickness as that of the lead portion are provided at a joint portion of the inner surface of one substrate by the sealing material at a predetermined interval over substantially the entire area except the area through which the lead portion passes. The liquid crystal cell according to claim 2, wherein 5. The liquid crystal cell according to claim 1, wherein the dummy film is provided inside the outer periphery of the sealing material. 6. The dummy film is formed in a linear shape along the width direction of the sealing material, and the ratio of the interval of each dummy film to the width of the dummy film is the interval of each lead part to the width of the lead part. The liquid crystal cell according to claim 5, which is smaller than the ratio.