Antiferroelectric liquid crystal display device

An antiferroelectric liquid crystal display device comprising:

• a first substrate;
• a second substrate facing said first substrate;
• an antiferroelectric liquid crystal having liquid crystal molecules sealed between said first and second substrates, said antiferroelectric liquid crystal having a first ferroelectric phase in which the liquid crystal molecules are substantially aligned in a first aligning direction, a second ferroelectric phase in which the liquid crystal molecules are substantially aligned in a second aligning direction, and an antiferroelectric phase in which some of the liquid crystal molecules aligned in said first aligning direction and some of the liquid crystal molecules are aligned in said second aligning direction with an average direction of directors being substantially coincident with a direction of a normal line of a layer formed by a chiral smectic phase, wherein the liquid crystal molecules aligned in one of said first aligning direction and said second aligning direction are changed to be aligned in the other of said first aligning direction and said second aligning direction in accordance with an applied voltage for displaying intermediate gradation, thus forming a plurality of regions of first and second alignment states in a range shorter than a wavelength of light in a visible light band, and wherein directions of said directors are changed in accordance with a ratio of regions in the first alignment state to regions in the second alignment state;
• and
• a controller for applying a voltage to said antiferroelectric liquid crystal and changing said applied voltage to control said ratio of regions in said first and second alignment states, thereby setting said directions of said directors of said antiferroelectric liquid crystal to an arbitrary direction between said first and second aligning directions.