JPS6254227A - Liquid crystal cell - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To obtain a liquid crystal cell which has a liquid crystal layer of a uniform and desired thickness and has excellent mechanical strength by disposing spacers which are provided by prescribed pattern formation and consist of a photosensitive resin between substrates so that a cell gap is set constant. CONSTITUTION:A transparent electrode 10A for display is provided on one face of the substrate 10 and the photosensitive resin 15 is coated at a prescribed thickness to the plate face thereof. A mask 16 which is transparent 16a in a prescribed pattern, i.e., in the positions to be formed with the spacers is then brought into tight contact with the surface of the photosensitive resin 15 and the resin is exposed by irradiating UV rays 17 on the mask 16. Parts 15A of the photosensitive resin 15 positioned below the transparent parts 16 are exposed by the UV rays 17 and are polymerized. The unexposed parts of the resin 15 are etched away by a solvent after exposing, by which the exposed parts 15a are formed as the spacers 13 in the prescribed pattern. Finally, the plate face on the electrode 11A side for display of the substrate 11 consisting of a glass plate is fixed onto the spacers 13. A nematic liquid crystal is then sealed between the substrates 10 and 11.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention relates to a liquid crystal cell for constructing a liquid crystal display.

(Prior art) In a liquid crystal cell, it is necessary to set the spacing between the substrates, that is, the cell cap, to a constant value, and to provide a liquid crystal layer with a uniform thickness.This makes it possible to obtain a liquid crystal display with excellent images. .

FIG. 3 shows an example of a conventional liquid crystal cell. That is, this liquid crystal cell includes a pair of substrates 1.1 made of glass plates or transparent plastic plates.
A spacer 2 is arranged in between, and a liquid crystal 3 is sealed. Spacer 2 is made of glass fiber, and substrate 1.
A cell cap g is formed between 1 and 1.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) However, when forming the cell cap g using spacers 2 made of glass fiber, two spacers 2 may overlap.

Since the thickness of the cell gear, that is, the thickness of the liquid crystal layer varies from liquid crystal cell to liquid crystal cell, and it is difficult to arrange the spacers 2 at equal intervals, the spacing between the spacers also varies. Therefore, when a large-screen liquid crystal display is constructed using a large number of such liquid crystal cells, image deterioration becomes particularly significant because the thickness of the liquid crystal layer and the spacer interval are different in each liquid crystal cell. Furthermore, when a flexible liquid crystal display is constructed using a liquid crystal cell having a plastic substrate, the thickness of the liquid crystal layer of the liquid crystal cell is locally increased due to the overlap of the spacers 2, so that similarly good images cannot be obtained. I can't get it.

(Means for Solving the Problems) The present invention has been made to solve these problems, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a liquid crystal cell having a spacer made of a photosensitive resin formed by molding a predetermined pattern. purpose.

(Embodiments of the Invention) Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

The liquid crystal cell according to the present invention, as shown in FIG. 1, includes a substrate 10.11 made of a glass plate. Transparent display electrodes 10A and IIA are provided on opposing surfaces of each of these substrates 10.11. A plurality of spacers 13 having a rectangular cross section are arranged at predetermined intervals between the substrates 10 and 11.

These spacers 13 are made of photosensitive resin provided on one substrate 10-1- by pattern molding, and the other substrate 11 is fixed to these spacers 13. A nematic liquid crystal 14 is sealed between the substrates 10 and 11.

In this way, by forming the spacers 13 from photosensitive resin by molding a predetermined pattern, not only can each spacer 13 be formed to have the same dimensions, but also the spacers 13 can be maintained at a predetermined distance from each other to ensure their overlapping. can be prevented. Therefore, the cell gap g between the substrates 10.11
' is uniquely determined by the height dimension of the spacer 13 over the entire surface, so that the thickness of the liquid crystal layer 14 becomes uniform throughout. Therefore, when a large-screen liquid crystal display is constructed using the liquid crystal cell of the present invention, a good image can be obtained.

Moreover, since the spacer 13 interval and its height dimension can be set arbitrarily, liquid crystal cells suitable for various liquid crystal displays can be easily manufactured.

Further, since the spacer 13 is patterned to have a rectangular cross section and supports the substrate 1O111 in a plane, the mechanical strength of the liquid crystal cell is also improved.

It goes without saying that similarly good images can be obtained when a flexible liquid crystal display is constructed using the liquid crystal cell of the present invention using a plastic substrate.

Here, a method for manufacturing a liquid crystal cell according to the present invention will be explained.

First, as shown in FIG. 2(A), a substrate 10 made of a glass plate is prepared. A transparent display electrode 10A is provided on one surface of this substrate 10.

Next, a photosensitive resin 15 is applied to a predetermined thickness on the surface of the substrate 10 on the display electrode 10A side.

Next, on the photosensitive resin 15, as shown in FIG. 2B, a mask 16 is brought into close contact with a predetermined pattern, that is, a mask 16 in which the positions where spacers are to be formed are transparent 16a.

After the mask 16 is in close contact with the mask 16, UV light is applied to the mask 16! 3a
17 and expose. Therefore, a portion 15a of the photosensitive resin 15 located below the transparent portion 16a is exposed to the ultraviolet rays 17 and polymerized.

After exposure, the unexposed portions of the photosensitive resin 15 are etched with a solvent to form exposed portions 15a as spacers 13 in a predetermined pattern, as shown in FIG.

Finally, as shown in FIG.
Enclose 4.

(Effects of the Invention) According to the present invention, a spacer made of a photosensitive resin formed by predetermined pattern molding is arranged between the substrates, and the cell cap is set constant, so that liquid crystal of a uniform and desired thickness can be produced. A liquid crystal cell having layers and excellent mechanical strength can be obtained. Therefore, it is possible to provide a large-screen liquid crystal display or a flexible liquid crystal display with excellent image characteristics.

Further, since the cell cap size and spacer interval can be set arbitrarily, it is also possible to easily manufacture liquid crystal cells suitable for various liquid crystal displays.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional view of a liquid crystal cell according to the present invention, and FIG. 2 (A)
7(D) are diagrams each showing the manufacturing process of a liquid crystal cell according to the present invention, and FIG. 3 is a sectional view of a conventional liquid crystal cell. 10.11...Substrate, 13...Spacer, 16...Mask, g, g'...Cell cap. Factor l Figure 2 (A) U (B)

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A liquid crystal cell having a spacer disposed between a pair of substrates to form a cell gap between the substrates, the spacer being made of a photosensitive resin formed by molding a predetermined pattern.