# US 10,768,490 B2 · Liquid crystal display device with patterned alignment layer for improved brightness

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- Number: US 10,768,490 B2
- Document ID: US10768490B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 16/019,653
- Filed: 2018-06-27
- Published: 2020-01-02
- Granted: 2020-09-08
- Earliest claimed: 2018-06-27
- Assignees: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
- Applicants: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha
- Inventors: Andrew Acreman; Nathan James Smith
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10768490B2

## CPC

- G02F 1/1343: Electrodes {(reflective electrodes G02F1/133553)}
- G02F 1/134363: {for applying an electric field parallel to the substrate, i.e. in-plane switching [IPS]}
- G02F 1/1337: Surface-induced orientation of the liquid crystal molecules, e.g. by alignment layers
- G09G 3/36: using liquid crystals
- G02F 1/133707: {Structures for producing distorted electric fields, e.g. bumps, protrusions, recesses, slits in pixel electrodes}
- G02F 1/134372: {for fringe field switching [FFS] where the common electrode is not patterned}
- G02F 2201/123: pixel
- G02F: OPTICAL DEVICES OR ARRANGEMENTS FOR THE CONTROL OF LIGHT BY MODIFICATION OF THE OPTICAL PROPERTIES OF THE MEDIA OF THE ELEMENTS INVOLVED THEREIN; NON-LINEAR OPTICS; FREQUENCY-CHANGING OF LIGHT; OPTICAL LOGIC ELEMENTS; OPTICAL ANALOGUE/DIGITAL CONVERTERS
- G09G: ARRANGEMENTS OR CIRCUITS FOR CONTROL OF INDICATING DEVICES USING STATIC MEANS TO PRESENT VARIABLE INFORMATION (arrangements for transferring data between digital computers and displays G06F3/14; static indicating arrangements comprising an association of a number of separate sources or light control cells G09F9/00; static indicating arrangements comprising integral associations of a number of light sources H01J, H01K, H10H, H05B33/12; scanning, transmission or reproduction of documents or the like, e.g. facsimile transmission, details thereof H04N1/00)

## Abstract

A liquid crystal device (LCD) has improved brightness by the use of a patterned alignment structure. The LCD includes a liquid crystal (LC) layer; an electrode arrangement configured to apply an electric field to the LC layer, the electrode arrangement including a patterned electrode layer having a plurality of individual electrode elements and adjacent individual electrode elements are spaced apart from each other by an inter-electrode gap; and a patterned alignment structure that is deposited on the patterned electrode layer and is positioned to align LC molecules of the LC layer. The patterned alignment structure is configured such that a stronger anchoring energy is present at electrode edges of the individual electrode elements of the patterned electrode layer, as compared to a weaker anchoring energy present at electrode centers of the individual electrode elements and/or present at least at a portion of the inter-electrode gaps between adjacent individual electrode elements.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A liquid crystal device (LCD) comprising:
a liquid crystal (LC) layer;
an electrode arrangement configured to apply an electric field to the LC layer, the electrode arrangement including a patterned electrode layer having a plurality of individual electrode elements and adjacent individual electrode elements are spaced apart from each other by an inter-electrode gap; and
a patterned alignment structure that is deposited on the patterned electrode layer and is positioned to align LC molecules of the LC layer;
wherein the patterned alignment structure is configured such that a stronger anchoring energy is present at electrode edges of the individual electrode elements of the patterned electrode layer, as compared to a weaker anchoring energy present at electrode centers of the individual electrode elements and/or present at least at a portion of the inter-electrode gaps between adjacent individual electrode elements.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The LCD of claim 1, wherein:
the patterned alignment structure comprises a patterned alignment layer including a plurality of individual alignment elements;
adjacent individual alignment elements are spaced apart from each other; and
each individual alignment element spans a respective edge of an individual electrode element of the patterned electrode layer, and there is an absence of individual alignment elements at the centers of the individual electrode elements and/or the portion of the inter-electrode gaps between adjacent individual electrode elements.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The LCD of claim 2, wherein each individual alignment element spans an entirety of an individual electrode element, and there is an absence of individual alignment elements only at the portion of the inter-electrode gaps between adjacent individual electrode elements.

### Claim 4 (depends on 2)

The LCD of claim 2, wherein the patterned alignment layer is a strong alignment layer in which each of the plurality of individual alignment elements has an anchoring energy of at least 10−3 J/m2.

### Claim 5 (depends on 2)

The LCD of any of claim 2, wherein the patterned alignment layer is a weak alignment layer in which each of the plurality of individual alignment elements has a non-zero anchoring energy of 10−3 J/m2 or less.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The LCD of claim 1, wherein:
the patterned alignment structure comprises a dual alignment layer structure comprising an un-patterned alignment layer and a patterned alignment layer; and
the patterned alignment layer includes a plurality of individual alignment elements and adjacent individual alignment elements are spaced apart from each other.

### Claim 7 (depends on 6)

The LCD of claim 6, wherein the un-patterned alignment layer is deposited directly on the patterned electrode layer, and the patterned alignment layer is deposited directly on the un-patterned alignment layer on a side of the un-patterned alignment layer opposite from the patterned electrode layer.

### Claim 8 (depends on 6)

The LCD of claim 6, wherein:
the un-patterned alignment layer has a weaker anchoring energy relative to a stronger alignment energy of the patterned alignment layer; and
each individual alignment element of the patterned alignment layer spans an edge of an individual electrode element of the patterned electrode layer, and there is an absence of individual alignment elements at the centers of the individual electrode elements and/or the portion of the inter-electrode gaps between adjacent individual electrode elements.

### Claim 9 (depends on 8)

The LCD of claim 8, wherein each individual alignment element spans an entirety of an individual electrode element, and there is an absence of individual alignment elements only at the portion of the inter-electrode gaps between adjacent individual electrode elements.

### Claim 10 (depends on 6)

The LCD of claim 6, wherein:
the un-patterned alignment layer has a stronger anchoring energy relative to a weaker anchoring energy of the patterned alignment layer; and
individual alignment elements of the patterned alignment layer do not span an electrode edge of an individual electrode element of the patterned electrode layer.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

The LCD of claim 10, wherein individual alignment elements of the patterned alignment layer further do not span a center of an individual electrode element of the patterned electrode layer.

### Claim 12 (depends on 1)

The LCD of claim 1, wherein the patterned alignment structure comprises a single alignment layer including first anchoring energy elements interspersed with second anchoring energy elements, wherein the first anchoring energy elements have a first anchoring energy that is a stronger anchoring energy relative to a second anchoring energy of the second anchoring energy elements.

### Claim 13 (depends on 12)

The LCD of claim 12, wherein each first anchoring energy element of the alignment layer spans an edge of an individual electrode element of the patterned electrode layer, and the second anchoring energy elements of the alignment layer span the centers of the individual electrode elements and/or the portion of the inter-electrode gaps between adjacent individual electrode elements.

### Claim 14 (depends on 13)

The LCD of claim 13, wherein each first anchoring energy element spans an entirety of an individual electrode element, and the second anchoring energy elements span only the portion of the inter-electrode gaps between adjacent individual electrode elements.

### Claim 15 (depends on 12)

The LCD of claim 12, wherein the first anchoring energy elements and the second anchoring energy elements are made of a same material and subjected to different processing to set the first anchoring energy and the second anchoring energy.

### Claim 16 (depends on 12)

The LCD of claim 12, wherein the first anchoring energy elements and the second anchoring energy elements are made of different materials, and a material of the first anchoring energy elements has the first anchoring energy and a material of the second anchoring energy elements has the second anchoring energy.

### Claim 17 (depends on 12)

The LCD of claim 12, wherein the first anchoring energy elements have a strong anchoring energy of at least 10−3 J/m2, and the second anchoring energy elements have a weak anchoring energy of 10−3 J/m2 or less.

### Claim 18 (depends on 17)

The LCD of claim 17, wherein the second anchoring energy elements have a zero anchoring energy.

### Claim 19 (depends on 12)

The LCD of claim 12, wherein the first anchoring energy elements have a weak non-zero anchoring energy of 10−3 J/m2 or less, and the second anchoring energy elements have a zero anchoring energy.

### Claim 20 (depends on 1)

The LCD of claim 1, wherein the LCD further comprises an un-patterned alignment layer located on a side of the LC layer opposite from the patterned alignment structure.