JPS61149929A - Optical element - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain a clear image having high degree of resolution by providing a pair of electrode and a liquid layer contg. liquid and coloured polymer capable of desorbing the liq. by the effect of electric field and absorbing the liq. in non-electric field. CONSTITUTION:An optical element is formed by laminating a substrate 1, a liquid layer 2 contg. gel, a transparent protecting plate 3, a picture element electrode 7, and a counter electrode 8. The layer 2 comprises a liquid and a polymer contg. a coloring material wherein the polymer can absorb and desorb the liquid. When an electric field is applied to the polymer, it is contracted desorbing the liquid. When the electric field is interrupted, the polymer is swollen by absorbing the liquid. Thus, when a switch 5-2 is turned OFF, the colored gel 4-2 remains in the swollen state. So the light 9-2 can pass through the layer 2 because the concn. of the coloring material in the gel 4-2 becomes lower. On one hand, when the switch 5-1 is turned ON, the gel 4-1 is contracted forming the colored gel. As the result, the concn. of the coloring material in the gel 4-1 is increased, so almost all of the light 9-1 is absorbed. Since the gel can be made to very fine shape, a clear image having high degree of resolution is obtd.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to an optical element that can be used as a display element, a light modulation element, etc., and more particularly to a novel optical element that utilizes the swelling and contracting properties of gel.

[Conventional technology]

Non-luminescent display elements are attracting attention as display elements that provide natural color tones and do not cause fatigue to the human eye. Examples of such display elements include electrochromic display elements (ECDs) and liquid crystal display elements (LCDs). However, the image quality and performance of these devices cannot necessarily be said to be good. For example, since the display contrast of ECD is low, it is difficult to see in dimly lit places, and it is difficult to distinguish minute images from a distance.

On the other hand, in addition to the above-mentioned drawbacks, LCDs also have the disadvantage of limited viewing angles.

The same problem as above occurs when these are used in light modulation elements such as optical shutters.

[Problem that the invention seeks to solve]

Therefore, the present invention solves the problems that could not be solved by the prior art. That is, an object of the present invention is to provide a clear and high-quality optical element.Another object of the present invention is to provide a display element that provides natural color tones and does not cause eye fatigue. Yet another object is to provide an optical element that is easy to manufacture.

[Means for solving problems]

The above object is achieved by the present invention as follows.

That is, the present invention includes a liquid layer containing a liquid adsorbing and extracting colored polymer that expels liquid under the action of an electric field and sucks the liquid under no electric field, and at least one pair of electrode layers that sandwich the liquid layer. This is a characteristic optical element.

[Effect]

The optical element in the present invention broadly includes display elements and light modulation elements.

The present invention will be specifically described below with reference to illustrated examples.

FIGS. 1 and 2 are exemplary schematic configuration diagrams of the optical element of the present invention, with FIG. 1 representing a transmission type optical element and FIG. 2 representing a reflection type optical element, respectively.

In the figure, 1 is a substrate, 2 is a gel-containing liquid layer, 3 is a transparent protective plate, 7 is a pixel electrode or signal electrode (hereinafter simply referred to as a pixel electrode), and 8 is a counter electrode. An optical element is configured.

As the substrate 1, for example, a transparent substrate such as glass or plastic, or an opaque substrate such as a silicon wafer, ceramics, metal such as aluminum, or opaque plastic is used. The same material as the transparent substrate is used for the transparent protection plate 3.

The gel-containing liquid layer 2 consists of a liquid and a liquid-absorbing polymer containing a dye.

The liquid-absorbing polymer contains a dye, but the dye never flows out of the liquid-absorbing polymer, or is made to be difficult to flow out of the liquid-absorbing polymer.

The gel in the present invention refers to a liquid-absorbing polymer (also referred to as a network polymer) that contains a liquid therein. When applied, it expels liquid and contracts, and when the electric field is turned off (under special conditions, when a reverse electric field is applied), it absorbs liquid and becomes moist. In the following, the gel used in the present invention will be referred to as colored gel.

Liquid-absorbing polymers with such properties include:
For example, a charged polymer obtained by adding a crosslinking monomer to an acrylamide derivative as a main component (e.g. Enzafix P-SH, Wako Tsumugi) or an N-isopropylacrylamide derivative, which has high crosslinkability. Examples include polymers obtained by adding Zimmer (for example, isopropylacrylamide-acrylic acid-divinylbenzene terpolymer).

As a method for restraining the dye according to the present invention inside or on the surface of the network polymer, the so-called chemical bonding method involves chemically bonding the dye and the network polymer, and a three-dimensional crosslinking reaction is performed in the presence of a giant dye molecule. There are methods such as causing this to occur and trapping giant dye molecules within the network.

Examples of such dyes include reactive dyes such as Diamira Yellow G, Sumifix Red B, Diamira Brilliant Green 6B, and Selmazol Brilliant Blue G, or poly R-478, poly S-119, and poly T.
-128 (manufactured by Guina Ball), Seikagen W Blue B
Dyes such as K1600, Seikagen W Blue-1300 (all manufactured by Dainichiseika), -Benzidine Yellow GR, Chromophthal Orange 4R, Toluidine Maroon MT-2,
Parcan Forest Orange GG, Permanent Red F5R, Little Rubin GK, Brilliant Carmino 3B, Sanyo Red B-G511, Monastral Maroon, Permanent Red E5B, Permanent Pink E, Phthalocyanine Blue, Butalocyanine Green,
Examples include naphthol green BN and diamond black jun pigments.

The liquid according to the present invention may be any liquid that can enter and exit the network polymer, and in addition to water, methanol, t-butyl alcohol, chloroform, N-methylpyrrolidone,
Pyridine, benzene, N,N-dimethylformamide,
Examples include organic solvents such as dimethyl sulfoxide, mixtures thereof, and mixtures of these and water.

Size and shape of colored gel in gel-containing liquid layer 2.

The arrangement is arbitrary, and the colored gels may be integrally filled in the gel-containing liquid layer 2, or may be filled in a cracked, dispersed, or agglomerated form.

Additionally, a colored gel or a group of minute colored gels may be arranged in accordance with the shape, arrangement, etc. of a pixel or aperture (hereinafter referred to as a pixel). Generally, the size of a single colored gel is about the same as that of a pixel. suitable.

The thickness of the gel-containing liquid layer 2 is lpm to 11000p.
is suitable, and 1 pm to 1100 p is suitable.

Next, the pixel electrodes 7-1, 7-2 are connected to the substrate l(
Alternatively, the length of one side of the 0 pixel electrode 7-1, 7-2, which is provided on the transparent protection plate 3) and can take the shape of a segment, stripe, dot matrix, etc. as required, is as follows:
For example, in the case of dot matrix, 10#Lm~1c
m is suitable, and 50 gm"100 m is suitable. If necessary, indium or tin oxide (I
-Tφ0) is used.

The counter electrode 8 is connected to the pixel electrode 7-1 through the gel-containing liquid layer 2.
It is provided on the transparent protection plate 3 (or substrate l) facing 7-2, and a transparent electrode is used as necessary.

Next, the principle of image formation or light modulation according to the present invention will be explained with reference to FIG. 1 (transmissive optical element).

First, when the switch 5-2 is off, that is, the pixel electrode 7-
When no electric field is applied to the colored gel 4-2 in contact with the colored gel 4-2, the colored gel 4-2 remains swollen.

Therefore, the light ray 9-2 passing through the colored gel 4-2 can pass through the gel-containing liquid layer 2 because the concentration of pigment contained in the colored gel 4-2 is low and its color is light.

On the other hand, when the switch 5-1 is on, that is, when an electric field is applied to the colored gel, the network polymer of the colored gel 1 is negatively charged, so it is pulled toward the electrode 7-1, and as a result, it contracts. This results in colored gel 4-1.

As the colored gel becomes smaller, the concentration of the pigment contained in the colored gel 4-1 increases and the color becomes darker, so the light rays 9- passing through it increase.
1 is almost completely absorbed.

Incidentally, even when a positively charged network polymer is used in the liquid, the same effect can be obtained by reversing the polarity of the charge i in the illustrated example.

Next, when the switch 5-1 is turned off, the colored gel swells and returns to its original state. This is because, under the action of an electric field, the network polymer molecules are compressed to below their equilibrium length, so that when the electric field is removed, a positive pressure, ie, restoring force, is generated. As a result, the light rays passing therethrough are not significantly absorbed by the gel-containing liquid layer 2.

can pass through. At this time, it is also possible to increase the contraction speed by applying a reverse electric field.

As described above, the present invention generates optical differences by electrically controlling the contraction of the gel, thereby obtaining display and light modulation.

The present invention utilizes this principle for optical elements.

That’s it for transparent lJ! Although the element has been described, the same applies to the reflective optical element shown in the second figure.

In order to explain the present invention more specifically, Examples are given below.

Example 1 [Manufacture of optical elements] The optical element of the present invention was manufactured as follows.

Monastral Red (C, 1,
Pigment Violet 19;C,I,
Add 0.75 g of acrylamide, 0.15 g of acrylic acid, and 0.0 g of N,N-methylenebisacrylamide to a colored solution prepared by dispersing 50 mg of 46500) in 14 m of water on a water bath.
．． 0.2 g, 20 g of tetraethylenediamine, and 10 mg of ammonium persulfate are dissolved. Nitrogen purge, 20
Polymerize at °C. Add 30 ml of water to the produced colored gel and pulverize it with an emulator.

This colored gel is washed alternately with a 70% acetone aqueous solution and a 50% acetone aqueous solution, and finally swelled with a 50% acetone aqueous solution to form a slurry.

A glass plate (50 x 60 mm) with a predetermined pattern of translucent platinum vapor deposited film (150 mm) and an I-T 0 electrode (
Using a 20 gm thick Nomylar film as a spacer, the slurry was sealed in the gap by facing a glass plate to which a 2000 gm thick film was attached by sputtering.

[Display and light modulation]

When a voltage of 0.8 to 5V is applied to this optical element using the platinum translucent electrode as the cathode and the T-0 electrode as the anode, the colored gel interposed between the applied electrodes contracts and the light rays passing through it are absorbed. It was done.

On the other hand, when the switch was turned off to Ov, the gel swelled and became translucent again.

As a result of further repeated experiments, reproducibility was also confirmed.

In this way, the display effect and light modulation effect were confirmed.

Example 2 [Manufacture of optical elements] The optical element of the present invention was manufactured as follows.

Monastral Red (C, 1,
Pigment Violet 19; C, 1, 4
Add 0.75 g of acrylamide, 0.18 g of methacrylic acid, and 0.0 g of N,N-methylenebisacrylamide to a colored solution in which 50 mg of 6500) was divided into 14 mM of water on a water bath.
．． 02g, tetraethylenediamine 20p-1,1Ii
Dissolve 10 mg of S ammonium sulfate. Polymerize at 20° C. with nitrogen purge. Add 30 mf of water to the colored gel produced.
Add L and pulverize with an emulator.

This colored gel is washed alternately with a 75% acetone aqueous solution and a 45% acetone aqueous solution, and finally swelled in a 45% acetone aqueous solution to form a slurry.

Predetermined pattern of semi-flrJA platinized Jli (150
A glass plate (50 x 60 mm) with an I-T. Encapsulate.

[Display and light modulation]

When the same operation as in Example 1 was performed, similar results were obtained.

Example 3 [Manufacture of optical elements] The optical element of the present invention was manufactured as follows.

Diamond black (C, 1
, Pigment Black 1; C, I,
50440) in 14 mM of water, add 0.75 g of acrylamide, 0.15 g of acrylic acid, and 0.75 g of N,N-methylenebisacrylamide on a water bath.
02 g, 20 al of tetraethylenediamine, and 10 mg of persulfurized ammonium are dissolved. Perform a nitrogen purge and polymerize at 20°C. Add 30ml of water to the colored gel produced.
Add L and pulverize with an emulator.

This colored gel is washed alternately with a 90% methanol aqueous solution and a 50% methanol aqueous solution, and finally dispersed in a 57% methanol aqueous solution to form a slurry.

A glass plate (50 x 60 mm) with a predetermined pattern of translucent platinum vapor-deposited film (150) and ■・T・0 electrode (200
Using a 204 m thick Mylar film as a spacer, the slurry was sealed in the gap by facing a glass plate to which a 204 m thick Mylar film was attached by sputtering.

[Display and light modulation]

When the same operation as in Example 1 was performed, similar results were obtained.

〔effect〕

The main effects of the present invention are summarized as follows.

(1) Since the gel can be made as small as possible, clear and high-resolution output or images can be obtained.

(2) Since the gel is easy to manufacture, the optical element is easy to manufacture.

(3) There is no limit to the viewing angle, so it can be observed from any angle.

(4) Since various coloring pigments can be used, color expressivity is rich.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

1 and 2 are exemplary schematic configuration diagrams of the optical element of the present invention, with FIG. 1 showing a transmission type optical element and FIG. 2 showing a reflection type optical element, respectively. 1: Substrate 2: Gel-containing liquid layer 3: Transparent protective plate 4-1 2. Shrinking colored gel 4-2: Swelling colored gel 5-1.5-2: Switch 6: Power supply 7-1.7-2: Pixel electrode 8: Counter electrodes 9-1, 9-2: Illumination light beam Fig. 1 Fig. 2

Claims (1)

[Claims] An optical element characterized by having a liquid layer containing a liquid-adsorbing colored polymer and a liquid that expels a liquid under the action of an electric field and sucks the liquid under the absence of an electric field, and at least one pair of electrode layers that sandwich the liquid layer. .