Method of manufacturing a liquid-crystal display device

Abstract

A method of forming a liquid-crystal display device having a display cell comprises forming retardation foils on substrattes using polymerized or vitrified liquid-crystal material wherein the liquid-crystal molecules of the polymerized or vitrified liquid-crystal material have a tilt angle with respect to a plane parallel to the substrates and so that the retardation foils have substantially complementary indicatrices and so that each one of the retardation foils brings about the compensation of approximately half the display cell in the driven state.

1 . A method of manufacturing a retardation foil, characterized in that a liquid-crystalline mixture in the smectic C-phase between two homeotropically aligning substrates is cured by means of polymerization.  
   
   
       2 . A method of manufacturing a liquid-crystal display device having a display cell comprising: 
 forming a layer of a nematic, liquid-crystal material so as to have a twist angle which lies in a range of 60-120 degrees, between two substantially parallel substrates;    forming first and second polarizers so as to have first and second polarizing directions and arranging the first and second polarizers on at least one of the substrates; and    forming first and second retardation foils in a predetermined relationship with the first and second polarizers, and so that the first and second retardation foils respectively comprise polymerized or vitrified liquid-crystalline material comprising liquid-crystal molecules which are respectively arranged to:    a) have average orientations which respectively extend in first and second directions which directions are respectively parallel to first and second planes that are normal to the substrates, the first and second planes being oriented with respect to one another at an angle in a range of 60 to 120 degrees; and    b) exhibit first and second average tilt angles relative to the substrates.    
   
   
       3 . A method as set forth in  claim 2 , comprising: forming the first and second retardation foils so that a twist angle of the liquid crystal material lies in one of the ranges of 60-<90 and >90-120 and so that the angle with which the first and second planes are oriented with respect to one another is essentially the same as the twist angle of the liquid crystal material.  
   
   
       4 . A method as set forth in  claim 2 , comprising: forming the retardation foils so that an average tilt angle of the first retardation foil is 40 degrees.  
   
   
       5 . A method as set forth in  claim 2 , comprising: forming the retardations foils so that an average tilt angle of the second retardation foil is 40 degrees.  
   
   
       6 . A method as set forth in  claim 2 , comprising: forming the first and second polarizers so that the first and second polarizing directions are oriented at right angles to each other.  
   
   
       7 . A method as set forth in  claim 2 , comprising: forming the first and second polarizers so that the first and second polarizing directions are non-parallel with the first and second planes.  
   
   
       8 . A method as set forth in  claim 2 , comprising: orienting the liquid-crystal molecules in the polymerized or vitrified liquid-crystalline material so as to be substantially constant in at least one of the retardation foils.  
   
   
       9 . A method as set forth in  claim 2 , comprising: varying the tilt angle of the liquid-crystal molecules in the polymerized or vitrified liquid-crystalline material, in at least one of the retardation foils, in a direction at right angles to the foil.  
   
   
       10 . A method as set forth in  claim 9 , comprising: forming the retardation foils so that the average tilt angle of the liquid-crystal molecules in the polymerized or vitrified liquid-crystalline material is at least 10 degrees.  
   
   
       11 . A method as set forth in  claim 2 , comprising: forming the retardation foils so that the tilt angle of the liquid-crystal molecules in the polymerized or vitrified liquid-crystalline material is substantially constant in at least one of the retardation foils.  
   
   
       12 . A method as set forth in  claim 2 , comprising: forming the retardation foils so that the tilt angle of the liquid-crystal molecules in the polymerized or vitrified liquid-crystalline material is at least 10 degrees and at most 70 degrees.  
   
   
       13 . A method as set forth in  claim 2 , comprising: forming the retardation foils so that the polymerized or vitrified material comprises liquid-crystalline molecules which have, at one end, a non-polar group and, at the other end, a polar group.  
   
   
       14 . A method as set forth in  claim 13 , wherein, at the end having the non-polar group, the liquid-crystalline molecules are covalently bonded to the polymerized or vitrified material.  
   
   
       15 . A method as set forth in  claim 2 , comprising: forming the retardation foils so that the direction of orientation of the liquid-crystal molecules in the polymerized or vitrified liquid-crystalline material is substantially constant in at least one of the retardation foils.  
   
   
       16 . A method as set forth in  claim 2 , comprising: forming the retardation foils so that the tilt angle of the liquid-crystal molecules in the polymerized or vitrified liquid-crystalline material varies in at least one of the retardation foils.  
   
   
       17 . A method as set forth in  claim 2 , comprising: forming the liquid-crystal molecules in the polymerized or vitrified liquid-crystalline material so that the tilt angle is substantially constant in at least one of the retardation foils.  
   
   
       18 . A method as set forth in  claim 2 , comprising: forming the polymerized or vitrified material so that the liquid-crystalline molecules are provided, at one end, with a non-polar group and, at the other end, with a polar group.  
   
   
       19 . A method as set forth in  claim 2 , comprising: forming the liquid-crystalline molecules at the end provided with the non-polar group so that the liquid-crystalline molecules are covalently bonded to the polymerized or vitrified material.  
   
   
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       29 . A method of forming a liquid-crystal display device having a display cell comprising: 
 forming retardation foils on substrates using polymerized or vitrified liquid-crystal material wherein the liquid-crystal molecules of the polymerized or vitrified liquid-crystal material have a tilt angle with respect to a plane parallel to the substrates and so that the retardation foils have substantially complementary indicatrices and so that each one of the retardation foils brings about the compensation of approximately half the display cell in the driven state.