Abstract: First and second substrates are disposed facing each other. Drive wiring lines including signal and control lines are formed on the first substrate on the side facing the second substrate. A pixel electrode is formed on the first substrate in the pixel region and on the side facing the second substrate. A switching element is provided for each pixel electrode. A common electrode is formed on the second substrate on the side facing the first substrate. A liquid crystal layer is sandwiched between the first and second substrates. An alignment film is formed on one of the first and second substrates on the side facing the other substrate. A pre-tilt angle is imparted so that the ends of each liquid crystal molecule in the central region of the liquid crystal layer near the drive wiring line tilt away from the drive wiring line when a voltage is applied across each pixel electrode and the common electrode.

Abstract: A nematic liquid crystal device with two bistable switched states, having two cell walls treated which provide a bigrating on one or both cell walls. The bigrating enables the liquid crystal molecules at a surface to lie in two different angular directions, 45 or 90 degrees apart. The bigrating may be symmetric or asymmetric, with the surface energy of each of the gratings of the bigratings being nearly equal.

Abstract: A liquid alignment layer characterized by comprising two or more types of polymers wherein a difference between the maximum SP value and the minimum SP value in said polymers being at least 1, and a liquid crystal display device provided with this liquid crystal alignment layer.

Abstract: A liquid crystal display element has: a pair of substrates facing each other; a liquid crystal layer sandwiched between the pair of substrates; a unit for applying an electric field to the liquid crystal layer, the electric field being substantially parallel to surfaces of the pair of substrates; and an alignment structure that an interface of one of the pair of substrates with the liquid crystal layer is not subjected to a positive alignment process and an interface of the other of the pair of substrates with the liquid crystal layer is subjected to the positive alignment process, wherein the alignment state of liquid crystal molecules of the liquid crystal layer is changed between directions both parallel to the surfaces of the pair of substrates.

Abstract: A liquid crystal cell comprises two substrates coated with respective alignment layers (polyimide layers). The upper substrate is coated with the polyimide layer but without the orientation process (rubbing process). The lower substrate coated with polyimide layer and rubbed is made by a method including the steps of a first rubbing process on the coated polyimide layer on the substrate, coating the rubbed polyimide layer with a photoresist layer, removing part of the photoresist layer to expose a portion of the rubbed polyimide layer, carrying out a second rubbing process, and then removing the remainder of the photoresist layer. The lower oriented (rubbed) substrate and the upper non-oriented (non-rubbed) substrate are then assembled together to form the liquid crystal cell to improve the scope of the viewing angle and the gray-level order problem.

Abstract: A method of manufacturing a liquid crystal display includes the steps of coating an orientation layer on the surfaces of upper and lower substrates, respectively, performing a first rubbing on the surface of the orientation layers of the upper and lower substrates such that the orientation layer is formed in a predetermined direction, performing a second rubbing on the surfaces of orientation layers of the first and second substrates in the opposite direction to the first rubbing direction, and assembling the upper and lower substrates so that the rubbing directions of the substrates are substantially perpendicular.

Abstract: On one of a pair of substrates sandwiching a liquid crystal, a pair of signal lines, a pair of scanning lines intersecting these signal lines at right angles, a picture element electrode arranged in the region surrounded by the signal lines and the scanning lines, and a first alignment layer on which alignment treatment is applied in a first alignment direction, are formed. On the other of the substrates, a counter electrode, and a second alignment layer on which alignment treatment is applied in a second alignment direction, are formed. The alignment treatments on the first and second alignment layers are mutually carried out so that the side of the picture element electrode at which an optical leakage caused by disclination of a liquid crystal appears largest is near one of the pair of signal lines.

Abstract: Liquid crystal display (LCD) has sub-pixel domains within each pixel to obtain a wide viewing angle. The sub-pixel domains are formed by divided orientation alignment in which the sub-pixel domain are subjected to rubbing in different directions opposite to each other. The liquid crystal has a splay-type TN deformation structure in the first sub-pixel domain and a normal TN deformation structure in the second sub-pixel domain. The pre-tilt angles of the liquid crystal in the first domain and second domain are selected to obtain a wide viewing angle. The LCD has a shield pattern for for shielding disclination causing afterimages and storage capacitor electrodes having a function as a signal lines.

Abstract: A liquid crystal display device minimized in image retention phenomenon, comprising: a first insulating substrate having a plurality of pixel electrodes arranged in a matrix and a first alignment film provided on the inner surface thereof, said insulating substrate comprising a plurality of thin film transistors associated with each of the pixel electrodes; a second insulating substrate disposed opposed to the first insulating substrate, said second insulating substrate having facing electrodes and a second alignment film formed on the inner surface thereof; a liquid crystal layer interposed between the first and the second insulating substrates; and at least one of the first and the second alignment films having a thickness of 60 nm or less.

Abstract: A twisted nematic type of liquid crystal device comprises two cell walls enclosing a layer of a nematic or long pitch cholesteric liquid crystal material. The device has both an alignment direction and a surface tilt provided by an asymmetric grooves structure alignment on one or both walls. The alignment treatment may be provided by a shaped layer of a photolithographic material. Embossing, ruling, or transferred from a carrier layer material may alternatively provide the alignment. The amount of twist may be multiples of about 90.degree. and the device arranged between two polarisers.

Abstract: An object of the invention is to provide a method of introducing sightly tilting homeotropic orientation into a liquid crystal layer by oblique evaporation of inorganic material by one step, and a further object is to apply this method to provide a reliable liquid crystal electro-optical device or a liquid crystal light valve.FIG. 1 shows an example of the method to introduce the slightly tilting homeotropic orientation into the liquid crystal layer by the one step of the oblique evaporation of the inorganic material. The orientation film is formed by the one step oblique evaporation. An incident angle is set from 45.degree. to 70.degree. relative to a parallel direction of the substrate, and a film thickness is set to 20 nm through 500 nm measured during the film deposition by a film thickness gage disposed at a vertical distance equal between the evaporation source and the substrate. The orientation film is used in the liquid crystal electro-optical device or the liquid crystal light valve.

Abstract: This invention is directed to a manufacturing method and a new structure of a LCD aligner. The aligner is obtained by using transparency gradually changed mask for lithographic exposure. The LCD aligner made by this method has the function of both multidomain division and that of the retardation film. The advantages of LCD aligners made this way includes: simpler fabrication process, less cost, improved contrast ratio, reduced interference color, etc. Besides enhancing the color resolution of the screen, it also extends the viewing angle of the screen.

Abstract: A single substrate polymeric cholesteric liquid crystal (CLC) device useful in display applications such as for high efficiency polarizers and color filters is created by a process that coats a first substrate with a polyimide layer and a second substrate with an amorphous fluoropolymer layer. Both layers are buffed and liquid CLC material is placed between the grooved layers. After annealing, the amorphous fluoropolymer coated substrate is removed, leaving the CLC material bonded to a single substrate.

Abstract: A liquid crystal display having heat resistance, a sufficiently large pretilt angle, and capable of preventing generation of domains and improving the reliability thereof is disclosed. Each alignment layer has, on the surfaces thereof, roof-like concave and convex rows, formed by repeatedly, in a first direction, forming convex portions each consisting of a longer side portion and a shorter side portion, and valley-like concave and convex rows having the height that is lower than that of the roof-like concave and convex rows and formed in the same direction as that of the roof-like concave and convex rows in such a manner that the roof-like concave and convex rows and the valley-like concave and convex rows are adjacently and alternately formed. Thus, concaves and convexes having a unit length of repetition, that is shorter than a unit length of repetition of the concaves and convexes formed in the first direction, are formed in a second direction that is substantially perpendicular to the first direction.

Abstract: A liquid crystal display device comprising a first substrate having a first electrode and a homeotropic aligning film formed thereon, a second substrate having a second electrode and a homogeneous aligning film formed thereon, and a chiral nematic liquid crystal sealed between the first and second substrates. One % by weight of a dichroic dye is added to the chiral nematic liquid crystal. The liquid crystal molecules of this liquid crystal display device has a twist angle .theta. of 0.5.pi. radians or greater and smaller than (5/3).pi. radians. The cell gap d of the liquid crystal display device and the natural pitch p of the nematic liquid crystal are selected in such a way that d/p satisfies an inequality (9):(.theta./2.pi.)-(1/4)<d/p<(.theta./2.pi.

Abstract: A liquid crystal device is constituted by a first substrate and a second substrate disposed opposite to each other, and a liquid crystal lacking cholesteric phase disposed between the first and second substrates. The first substrate has a surface contacting the liquid crystal showing a surface energy .gamma..sub.1 (dyne/cm) and the second substrate has a surface contacting the liquid crystal showing a surface energy .gamma..sub.2 (dyne/cm) satisfying .gamma..sub.1 >.gamma..sub.2. The surface of the first substrate is provided with a film of a polyimide or an aromatic polyamide, and the surface of the first substrate having been selectively subjected to a uniaxial aligning treatment. As a result, the liquid crystal can assume a stable alignment state of a bookshelf structure or one close thereto having a small layer inclination angle. The resultant device can show a high contrast and a good responsiveness.

Abstract: A liquid crystal device is constituted by (a) a pair of base plates each having an orientation control film thereon, and (b) a liquid crystal composition interposed between the base plates. The liquid crystal composition comprises at least two liquid crystal compounds including at least one liquid crystal compound which has a temperature range in which it shows cholesteric phase. The liquid crystal composition has a temperature range in which it shows cholesteric phase and is placed in chiral smectic phase which has been formed through cholesteric phase on temperature decrease. The liquid crystal composition comprises liquid crystal molecules having long axes forming a pre-tilt in the chiral smectic phase.

Abstract: A liquid crystal device is constituted by disposing a liquid crystal between a pair of substrates each provided with an electrode, an insulating layer, and an alignment control layer. At least one of the alignment control layers is provided with a surface unevenness effective for suppressing a liquid crystal movement causing the increase in cell thickness. One of the alignment control layers has a surface shape corresponding the surface unevenness but the surface shape is different from that of the other alignment control layer.

Abstract: A liquid crystalline diffractive light valve for use in a diffractive projection system. The liquid crystal cell includes substrates treated to provide alternating stripes which cooperate with the liquid crystal to form liquid crystal domains extending across the thickness of the cell that will produce a 180.degree. phase difference in light emerging from adjacent domains, irrespective of the polarization of incident light.

Abstract: A liquid crystal display having an improved angular distribution for emerging radiation is described, together with a method for manufacturing it. This was achieved by forming patterns, one per pixel, of concentric annuli in one of the orientation layers and radial spokes in the other orientation layer. This guarantees that there is a wide range in the orientations of the twisted nematics, leading to an improved angular distribution for the emerging radiation. The invention is applicable to both monochrome as well as color displays and may also be used as a way to adjust, during manufacturing, the angular distribution of the emerging light.