CHOLESTERIC LIQUID CRYSTAL LAYER, METHOD OF FORMING CHOLESTERIC LIQUID CRYSTAL LAYER, LAMINATE, LIGHT GUIDE ELEMENT, AND IMAGE DISPLAY DEVICE

    公开(公告)号:US20240069257A1

    公开(公告)日:2024-02-29

    申请号:US18487674

    申请日:2023-10-16

    Abstract: Provided are a cholesteric liquid crystal layer having a high diffraction efficiency, a method of forming the same, and a laminate, a light guide element, and an image display device that include the cholesteric liquid crystal layer. The cholesteric liquid crystal layer is obtained by immobilizing a cholesteric liquid crystalline phase, in which the cholesteric liquid crystal layer has a liquid crystal alignment pattern in which a direction of an optical axis derived from a liquid crystal compound changes while continuously rotating in at least one in-plane direction, in a cross-section observed with a SEM, bright portions and dark portions are tilted, in a case where a tilt angle of a direction in which an in-plane retardation is minimum with respect to a normal line in a slow axis plane or a fast axis plane is represented by θ2, an absolute value of an optical axis tilt angle φ represented by “sin θ2=n·sin φ (n represents an average refractive index of the cholesteric liquid crystal layer)” is 5° or more.

    EXPOSURE METHOD OF PHOTOALIGNMENT LAYER
    13.
    发明公开

    公开(公告)号:US20240045335A1

    公开(公告)日:2024-02-08

    申请号:US18485071

    申请日:2023-10-11

    CPC classification number: G03F7/20 G02F1/1337 G02B5/18 G02B5/30

    Abstract: An object is to provide an exposure method of a photoalignment layer in which an alignment pattern having no disorder can be formed. The exposure method of a photoalignment layer includes an exposure step of disposing an exposure mask and a substrate that includes a coating film including a compound having a photo-aligned group such that the exposure mask and the coating film face each other, irradiating the coating film with light to which the compound is photosensitive from the exposure mask side, and exposing the coating film to form an alignment pattern, in which the light is circularly polarized light having an ellipticity of 0.7 to 1.3, the exposure mask is a polarization diffraction element having an alignment pattern where a direction of an optical axis changes while continuously rotating in at least one in-plane direction, in the exposure step, the coating film is exposed to zero-order light and first-order light of the light diffracted by the exposure mask, and an intensity ratio of the zero-order light to the first-order light is 0.5 to 2.

    LIGHT GUIDE ELEMENT
    14.
    发明申请

    公开(公告)号:US20230049424A1

    公开(公告)日:2023-02-16

    申请号:US17937272

    申请日:2022-09-30

    Abstract: A light guide element includes: a light guide plate; and a diffraction element that is disposed on a main surface of the light guide plate, in which the diffraction element includes a liquid crystal layer that is formed of a liquid crystal composition including a liquid crystal compound and has a liquid crystal alignment pattern in which a direction of an optical axis derived from the liquid crystal compound changes while continuously rotating in at least one in-plane direction, a refractive index of the light guide plate is 1.70 or higher, and in a case where the refractive index of the light guide plate is represented by nd and a refractive index of the liquid crystal layer is represented by nk, nk−nd≥0 is satisfied.

    OPTICAL ELEMENT AND IMAGE DISPLAY APPARATUS

    公开(公告)号:US20230043783A1

    公开(公告)日:2023-02-09

    申请号:US17937370

    申请日:2022-09-30

    Abstract: An optical element includes a light guide plate, an incidence portion, and an emission portion, in which each of the incidence portion and the emission portion includes diffraction portions, the diffraction portion includes diffraction elements, the diffraction element includes a liquid crystal diffraction layer in which a direction of an optical axis of a liquid crystal compound changes while continuously rotating in one in-plane direction, and in a case where the direction in which the direction of the optical axis changes is set as an in-plane rotation direction and a length over which the optical axis rotates by 180° is set as an in-plane period, in-plane rotation directions of liquid crystal diffraction layers of incidence diffraction elements in at least two of a plurality of the incidence diffraction portions are different from each other.

    LIGHT GUIDE ELEMENT AND IMAGE DISPLAY APPARATUS

    公开(公告)号:US20220283465A1

    公开(公告)日:2022-09-08

    申请号:US17824125

    申请日:2022-05-25

    Abstract: Provided are: a light guide element that includes an intermediate diffraction element to expand exit pupil such that a light utilization efficiency is high and a decrease in the brightness of an image to be displayed can be suppressed; and an image display apparatus. The light guide element includes a light guide plate, an incidence diffraction element, an intermediate diffraction element, and an emission diffraction element, in which the incidence diffraction element, the intermediate diffraction element, and the emission diffraction element include a liquid crystal layer that is formed of a composition including a liquid crystal compound and has a liquid crystal alignment pattern in which a direction of an optical axis derived from the liquid crystal compound changes while continuously rotating in at least one in-plane direction, in a cross-section of the liquid crystal layer observed with a SEM, bright portions and dark portions derived from a liquid crystal phase are tilted with respect to a main surface of the liquid crystal layer, and in a case where an interval between the bright portions or between the dark portions is represented by a ½ pitch, the pitch Pin of the incidence diffraction element and the pitch Pe of the intermediate diffraction element satisfy Pin

    LIGHT GUIDE ELEMENT AND IMAGE DISPLAY APPARATUS

    公开(公告)号:US20220283434A1

    公开(公告)日:2022-09-08

    申请号:US17824219

    申请日:2022-05-25

    Abstract: Provided are: a light guide element in which the occurrence of multiple images can be suppressed and a wide viewing angle can be obtained; and an image display apparatus including this light guide element. The light guide element includes: a light guide plate; and first A, first B, second A, and second B incidence diffraction elements and first A, first B, second A, and second B emission diffraction elements, in which the first A and second A incidence diffraction elements and the first B and second B incidence diffraction elements diffract incident light in different directions to be incident into the light guide plate, periods of diffraction structures of the first A and first B incidence diffraction elements are different from periods of diffraction structures of the second A and second B incidence diffraction elements, periods of diffraction structures of the first A and first B emission diffraction elements are different from periods of diffraction structures of the second A and second B emission diffraction elements, the emission diffraction elements are disposed at overlapping positions in a main surface of the light guide plate, and periodic directions of the diffraction structures of the first A and first B emission diffraction elements intersect with periodic directions of the diffraction structures of the second A and second B emission diffraction elements.

    LASER OSCILLATION ELEMENT
    18.
    发明申请

    公开(公告)号:US20220145183A1

    公开(公告)日:2022-05-12

    申请号:US17584110

    申请日:2022-01-25

    Abstract: Provided is a laser oscillation element including a cholesteric liquid crystal layer, in which even in a case where the intensity of excitation light is weak, laser oscillation can be induced. The laser oscillation element includes a cholesteric liquid crystal layer obtained by cholesteric alignment of a liquid crystal compound, in which in a cross-section of the cholesteric liquid crystal layer observed with a scanning electron microscope, bright portions and dark portions derived from the cholesteric liquid crystalline phase are tilted with respect to a main surface of the cholesteric liquid crystal layer, the cholesteric liquid crystal layer includes a colorant that emits light by excitation, and a luminescence wavelength range of the colorant and a selective reflection wavelength range of the cholesteric liquid crystal layer at least partially overlap each other.

    LIQUID CRYSTAL DIFFRACTION ELEMENT AND LAMINATED DIFFRACTION ELEMENT

    公开(公告)号:US20220066075A1

    公开(公告)日:2022-03-03

    申请号:US17521595

    申请日:2021-11-08

    Abstract: Provided are a liquid crystal diffraction element that diffracts incident light while allowing transmission of the incident light and has wavelength selectivity, and a laminated diffraction element. The liquid crystal diffraction element includes: a first cholesteric liquid crystal layer obtained by cholesteric alignment of a liquid crystal compound; and a second cholesteric liquid crystal layer that is laminated on the first cholesteric liquid crystal layer, in which the first cholesteric liquid crystal layer and the second cholesteric liquid crystal layer have a liquid crystal alignment pattern in which a direction of an optical axis derived from the liquid crystal compound changes while continuously rotating in at least one in-plane direction, a selective reflection wavelength of the first cholesteric liquid crystal layer and a selective reflection wavelength of the second cholesteric liquid crystal layer are the same, and in a case where a length over which the direction of the optical axis derived from the liquid crystal compound in the liquid crystal alignment pattern rotates by 180° in a plane is set as a single period, a single period of the liquid crystal alignment pattern of the first cholesteric liquid crystal layer and a single period of the liquid crystal alignment pattern of the second cholesteric liquid crystal layer are different from each other.

    OPTICAL ELEMENT, LIGHT GUIDE ELEMENT, AND IMAGE DISPLAY ELEMENT

    公开(公告)号:US20210373218A1

    公开(公告)日:2021-12-02

    申请号:US17401477

    申请日:2021-08-13

    Abstract: Provided are an optical element, a light guide element, and an image display element in which the occurrence of sidelobe is suppressed. The optical element includes a cholesteric liquid crystal layer that is obtained by immobilizing a cholesteric liquid crystalline phase, in which the cholesteric liquid crystal layer has a liquid crystal alignment pattern in which a direction of an optical axis derived from a liquid crystal compound changes while continuously rotating in at least one in-plane direction, and in a case where a birefringence in a thickness region of 80% as a center portion with respect to a thickness of the cholesteric liquid crystal layer is represented by Δn1, a birefringence in a thickness region of 10% from one surface of the cholesteric liquid crystal layer is represented by Δn2, and a birefringence in a thickness region of 10% from another surface of the cholesteric liquid crystal layer is represented by Δn3, at least one of Δn2 or Δn3 is less than Δn1.

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