Minolta Company, Ltd.

Konica-Minolta Holdings, Inc.

Nobuyuki Kobayashi

Hideaki Ueda

Masako Iwamatsu

Takuji Hatano

Kiyofumi Hashimoto

Akihito Hisamitsu

Masakazu Okada

Noboru Ueda

Naoki Masazumi

Kenji Nishiguchi

Fumie Motoori

Hideki Nagata

Kohtaro Hayashi

Kenji Konno

Yasumasa Sawai

Tomoo Izumi

Mitsuyo Matsumoto

Takeshi Kitahora

A liquid crystal composition including at least two kinds of gelling agents and a liquid crystal. The liquid crystal shows a liquid crystal phase at room temperature. A liquid crystal display device using the liquid crystal composition also is provided.

Liquid crystal composition containing at least two kinds of gelling agents and liquid crystal display device using the same

The present invention is based on a chiral nematic liquid crystal composition which shows cholesteric liquid crystal phase and be able to reflect light in visible region selectively, comprising:

Preparation method of chiral nematic liquid crystal composition and liquid crystal display

A liquid crystal display apparatus includes a first liquid crystal layer having first liquid crystal exhibiting a cholesteric phase at a room temperature, and being tuned to selectively reflect light of a wavelength &lgr; within a visible wavelength range; and a second liquid crystal layer disposed on the first liquid crystal layer, having second liquid crystal exhibiting a cholesteric phase at the room temperature, and being tuned to selectively reflect light of a wavelength &lgr; within the visible wavelength range, wherein a difference between the selective reflection wavelengths &lgr; and &lgr; is in a range from 100 nm to 150 nm.

Two layer liquid crystal display apparatus

Liquid crystal element

Disclosed is a liquid crystal display having stacked liquid crystal light modulation layers each containing a liquid crystal compound. At least one of the liquid crystal modulation layers is different from remaining ones in at least one of a dielectric anisotropy, a thickness, a liquid crystal compound contained therein, and a functional layer provided therein so that the drive voltage ranges for the layers are made equal.

Liquid crystal display and method to manufacture the same

A display optical apparatus is provided with: a polarizing plate transmitting illuminating light having a predetermined polarization direction; a reflective liquid crystal display device reflecting the illuminating light transmitted by the polarizing plate as projected light of a polarization condition that differs according to pixel information for each pixel; and a phase plate changing the polarization conditions of the illuminating light and the projected light and directing the illuminating light and the projected light to the polarizing plate. The phase plate is disposed between the reflective liquid crystal display device and the polarizing plate. The black level of the projected light is adjusted by rotating the principal axis direction of the phase plate.

Display optical apparatus having a rotary compensator to improve display contrast

In liquid crystal display element having cholesteric liquid crystal between substrates, being substantially polymer free, integral value in visible wavelength range of &lcub;exp&minus;&lsqb;2(&lgr;&minus;nP) /&Dgr;n P &rsqb;&rcub;R is 40-60% of integral value in visible wavelength range of function f(&lgr;) representing wavelength-light reflectance spectrum in colored state. In liquid crystal display element having liquid crystal composition between substrates, at least one substrate has functional surface contacting liquid crystal composition, the functional layer being capable of adjusting orientated state of liquid crystal molecules close to substrate and different orientated state of liquid crystal molecules remote from substrate. Chiral nematic liquid crystal, of nematic liquid crystal mixture having refractive index anisotropy of 0.2-0.34 and at least one chiral material, exhibits cholesteric phase at room temperature, has phase transition temperature of 60&deg; C. or higher and positive dielectric constant anisotropy, and wavelength of selectively reflected light is from 480-700 nm.

Liquid crystal display element

A liquid crystal display which carries out matrix driving of a chiral nematic liquid crystal composition, which is capable of displaying an image theron continuously after an electric field applied thereto is turned off, by applying an electric field to the liquid crystal composition through a plurality of scan electrodes and a plurality of data electrodes which face and cross each other with the liquid crystal composition in-between. The nematic liquid crystal which is the main element of the liquid crystal composition mainly contains a liquid crystalline ester compound, a liquid crystalline stilbene compound, a liquid crystalline terphenyl compound or a liquid crystalline tolane compound. A driving section of the liquid crystal display drives the liquid crystal composition by a driving method which comprises a reset step of applying a reset pulse to cause the liquid crystal composition to come to a homeotropic state, a selection step of applying a selection pulse to select a final state of the liquid crystal composition and an evolution step of applying an evolution pulse to cause the liquid crystal composition to evolve to the selected final state and in which the selection of the final state of the liquid crystal composition is carried out by modulating the selection pulse.

Liquid crystal display

Disclosed is a chiral nematic liquid crystal composition including a nematic liquid crystal composition and a chiral agent. The nematic liquid crystal composition comprises at least one type of liquid crystal ester compound including an ester unit and at least two fluorine atoms therein; and at least one type of liquid crystal tolan compound including a tolan unit therein. By selecting these liquid crystal compounds, a chiral nematic liquid crystal composition having a broad temperature compensation range and a low drive voltage can be realized.

Liquid crystal composition and liquid crystal light display element using the same

A reflective type liquid crystal display which has, between a pair of transparent substrates with electrodes thereon, a nematic liquid crystal composition which exhibits a cholesteric phase at room temperature. The liquid crystal composition contains a nematic liquid crystal mixture containing a liquid crystalline difluorostilbene compound, and a chiral agent. The concentration of the liquid crystalline difluorostilbene compound in the liquid crystal composition is preferably in a range from 5 wt % to 60 wt %.

Liquid crystal composition and liquid crystal light modulating device using the liquid crystal composition

A chiral nematic liquid composition, which exhibits a cholesteric phase at a room temperature, comprising a nematic liquid crystal composition and at least one kind of chiral agent. The nematic liquid crystal composition includes at least one kind of liquid crystal ester compound, at least one kind of liquid crystal terphenyl compound, and at least one kind of liquid crystal tolane compound. This chiral nematic liquid crystal offers superior bidirectional stability, good color purity and reflectance, high contrast, a wide temperature compensation range, and a low voltage driving requirement.

Liquid crystal composition and liquid crystal light control device using the same

A liquid crystal composition which contains nematic liquid crystal containing a liquid crystal ester compound and a chiral agent mainly containing an ester compound with no cholesterol rings. The liquid crystal composition exhibits a cholesteric phase in a room temperature. A liquid crystal display has substrates with ITO electrodes thereon and the liquid crystal composition between the substrates. The liquid crystal display further has a columnar structure formed in the liquid crystal composition.

Liquid crystal composition and liquid crystal display provided with the liquid crystal composition

A reflective type liquid crystal display which has a liquid crystal composition exhibiting a cholesteric phase in a room temperature and a columnar structure between substrates with ITO electrodes thereon. The liquid crystal composition is a chiral nematic liquid crystal composition which is produced by adding a chiral agent at a ratio within a range from 10 wt % to 45 wt % to nematic liquid crystal which contains a nematic liquid crystal component with a polar group at not less than 25 wt % and of which transition temperature to isotropic phase is within a range from 70&deg; C. to 150&deg; C. The anisotropy of refractive index of the liquid crystal composition is 0.10 to 0.22, and the anisotropy of dielectric constant is 5 to 30.

Liquid crystal composition and liquid crystal light modulating device

A reflective liquid crystal light modulating device which has a pair of substrates with electrodes thereon, at least one of which is transparent, and a liquid crystal composition which contains nematic liquid crystal and a plurality of chiral agents and exhibits a cholesteric phase in a room temperature between the substrates. The chiral agents include two chiral agents which have mutually opposite helical senses (cause liquid crystal to twist in mutually opposite directions), and the total content of the chiral agents in the liquid crystal composition is 10 to 45 wt %.

A method of making a liquid crystal device having a plurality of cells of liquid crystal material, includes the steps of: (a) preparing a first base having a first surface; (b) providing a first phase of a material and a plurality of second phases of at least one liquid crystal material on the first surface, said second phases being spatially dispersed in a first prescribed pattern; (c providing a second base having a second surface, the second surface being substantially in contact with the first and second phases; and (d) solidifying the material of the first phase. The liquid crystal cells are formed of the dispersed liquid crystal materials. The plurality of second phases may include at least a group of liquid crystal materials which exhibits a cholesteric characteristic having a selective reflection wavelength in the visible range and a group of liquid crystal materials which exhibits a cholesteric characteristic having a different selective reflection wavelength in the visible range.

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Kobe, Japan

Nobuyuki Kobayashi