JP2008145558A - Electro-optical device and electronic apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce connecting resistance between a pixel electrode and a relay layer formed below the layer in an electrooptical device such as a liquid crystal device. <P>SOLUTION: A first part 85p1 is different from a contact hole and having a fixed area and extending in a plane shape along a direction X. Thereby, a contact area between a second relay layer 85 and the pixel electrode 9a1 can be increased as compared with when the second relay layer 85 and the pixel electrode 9a1 are electrically connected through a contact hole. Accordingly, the connecting resistance between the second relay layer 85 and the pixel electrode 9a1 can be reduced according to the increased contact area. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a technical field of an electro-optical device applied to a light valve of a projection display device such as a liquid crystal projector, and an electronic apparatus such as a projection display device.

  In this type of electro-optical device, a multilayer structure is formed in which conductive portions such as wirings or pixel electrodes and semiconductor elements such as pixel switching TFTs are insulated from each other by an insulating film. The conductive portion and the semiconductor element are electrically connected to each other through a contact hole that penetrates the insulating film. Patent Document 1 discloses an electro-optical device capable of reducing the pixel pitch by reducing the contact hole diameter.

JP 2001-249361 A

  However, for example, when a conductive film such as a pixel electrode is electrically connected to a semiconductor element such as a TFT and a relay layer that relays the conductive film through a contact hole, the conductive film such as the pixel electrode is a dot-like region. Therefore, there is a problem in that the connection resistance between the conductive film and the contact hole increases. In addition, as the pixel pitch becomes finer, it becomes technically difficult to form a contact hole in a narrow region on the substrate with high accuracy so as to avoid an opening region of a pixel that substantially transmits light. In addition, the manufacturing process at the time of manufacturing the electro-optical device is complicated and the yield is reduced.

  Therefore, the present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems. For example, an electro-optical device capable of reducing connection resistance between a conductive film such as a pixel electrode and a relay layer formed on a lower layer thereof, and the It is an object to provide an electronic apparatus including such an electro-optical device.

  In order to solve the above problems, an electro-optical device according to the present invention has a plurality of scanning lines and a plurality of data lines formed so as to intersect with each other in a display region on a substrate, and the intersection of the scanning lines and the data lines. A plurality of pixel electrodes formed corresponding to each other, a pixel switching element for supplying an image signal to one pixel electrode among the plurality of pixel electrodes, and the one pixel electrode overlapping each other, and A first portion in contact with one pixel electrode, the pixel switching element; and a relay layer electrically relaying the one pixel electrode.

  According to the electro-optical device of the present invention, each of the plurality of pixel electrodes is a transparent electrode such as ITO (Indium Tin Oxide), for example, on the substrate corresponding to the intersection of the plurality of data lines and the plurality of scanning lines. Are arranged in a matrix in the display area.

  The pixel switching element is a semiconductor element such as a thin film transistor (TFT) formed on a substrate, for example, and is provided in a pixel portion where one pixel electrode is formed. A scanning signal is supplied to the gate of a pixel switching element such as a TFT via a scanning line. The pixel switching element is turned on / off in response to the supply of the scanning signal, and supplies the image signal supplied via the data line to one pixel electrode. On the plurality of pixel electrodes, for example, an alignment film that regulates the alignment of an electro-optical material such as liquid crystal is formed. Such an alignment film is, for example, an organic film such as a rubbed polyimide film or an inorganic film formed by depositing an inorganic material such as SiO using a film forming method such as oblique vapor deposition.

  The relay layer is formed using a conductive material, has a first portion that overlaps with one pixel electrode and is in contact with the one pixel electrode, and electrically connects the pixel switching element and the one pixel electrode. Relay. Accordingly, the connection resistance can be reduced as compared with the case where the relay layer and the one pixel electrode are electrically connected to each other through the contact hole having the dotted connection portion. More specifically, since the first portion is in contact with and overlaps the one pixel electrode, the relay layer and the one pixel electrode are electrically connected to each other by the first portion which is a planar contact portion. Will be. Therefore, the contact area between the relay layer and the one pixel electrode can be increased, and the connection resistance between the relay layer and the one pixel electrode can be reduced as much as the contact area can be increased. Note that the first portion and the one pixel electrode need only overlap and contact each other, and thus either the first portion or the one pixel electrode may be formed on the upper layer side.

  In addition, by directly connecting the relay layer to one pixel electrode, there is no need to form a contact hole for connecting the relay layer and one pixel electrode, so that the manufacturing process for forming the contact hole can be omitted. In addition, the manufacturing process of the electro-optical device can be simplified and the yield can be improved.

  As described above, according to the electro-optical device according to the present invention, since the connection resistance between the relay layer and one pixel electrode can be reduced, for example, the signal delay due to the connection resistance is reduced, and the power consumption consumed in the connection resistance. It is possible to display a high-quality image with low power consumption. In addition, according to the electro-optical device of the present invention, the manufacturing process of the electro-optical device can be simplified and the yield can be improved.

  In one aspect of the electro-optical device according to the invention, the relay layer may include a metal film and a protective film that is formed on the metal film and protects the metal film.

  According to this aspect, the relay layer includes, for example, a metal film such as aluminum and titanium (such as aluminum) that protects the metal film from being oxidized by oxygen (O) contained in the pixel electrode such as ITO. It has a multilayer structure composed of a protective film such as Ti) or titanium oxide (TiO). Therefore, according to this aspect, it is possible to reduce a decrease in conductivity of the relay layer due to oxidation of the relay layer.

  In another aspect of the electro-optical device according to the aspect of the invention, the first portion includes an array in which the other pixel electrode adjacent to the one pixel electrode and the one pixel electrode are arranged among the plurality of pixel electrodes. You may extend along the direction which crosses a direction.

  According to this aspect, since the first portion extends between the other pixel electrode and the one pixel electrode, that is, along the direction intersecting the arrangement direction from the non-opening region, the contact between the one pixel electrode and the first portion. The area can be made larger along the direction intersecting the arrangement direction. Therefore, the larger the area of one electrode and the overlapping area of the first portion along the direction intersecting the arrangement direction, the larger the contact area of the one pixel electrode and the relay layer, and the relay layer via the contact hole. In addition, the connection resistance between the one pixel electrode and the relay layer can be further reduced as compared with the case where the one pixel electrode is electrically connected.

  In this aspect, the relay layer includes a second portion extending in a direction intersecting the arrangement direction between the one pixel electrode and the other pixel electrode, and at least the second portion of the relay layer is The light shielding film may also be used as a light shielding film for blocking light incident between the one pixel electrode and the other pixel electrode.

  According to this aspect, the relay layer is made of, for example, a non-transparent conductive film, and is also used as a light shielding film that shields incident light incident between the one pixel electrode and the other pixel electrodes from the light source. Therefore, according to this aspect, it is possible to shield a pixel switching element such as a TFT formed on the lower layer side of the pixel electrode without separately forming a light shielding film, and to reduce a light leakage current generated in the element. In addition, according to this aspect, not only the second part but also the first part can function as a light shielding film.

  In order to solve the above problems, an electronic apparatus according to the present invention includes the above-described electro-optical device of the present invention.

  According to the electronic apparatus according to the present invention, since the electro-optical device according to the present invention described above is provided, a projection display device, a mobile phone, an electronic notebook, a word processor, and a viewfinder type capable of high-quality display. Alternatively, various electronic devices such as a monitor direct-view video tape recorder, a workstation, a videophone, a POS terminal, and a touch panel can be realized. In addition, as an electronic apparatus according to the present invention, for example, an electrophoretic device such as electronic paper can be realized.

  Such an operation and other advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the embodiments described below.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of an electro-optical device and an electronic apparatus according to the invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

<1: Overall configuration of electro-optical device>
First, an electro-optical device according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. 1 is a plan view of the electro-optical device when the TFT array substrate is viewed from the counter substrate side together with the components formed thereon, and FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line II-II ′ of FIG. In this embodiment, as an example of an electro-optical device, a TFT active matrix driving type liquid crystal device with a built-in driving circuit is cited.

  1 and 2, in the liquid crystal device 1, a TFT array substrate 10 and a counter substrate 20 are disposed to face each other. A liquid crystal layer 50 is sealed between the TFT array substrate 10 and the counter substrate 20, and the TFT array substrate 10 and the counter substrate 20 are positioned around an image display region 10a that is a pixel region in which a plurality of pixel portions are provided. They are bonded to each other by a sealing material 52 provided in the sealing area.

  The sealing material 52 is made of, for example, an ultraviolet curable resin, a thermosetting resin, or the like for bonding the two substrates, and is applied on the TFT array substrate 10 in the manufacturing process and then cured by ultraviolet irradiation, heating, or the like. It is. In the sealing material 52, a gap material such as glass fiber or glass beads for dispersing the distance between the TFT array substrate 10 and the counter substrate 20 (inter-substrate gap) to a predetermined value is dispersed. That is, the electro-optical device according to the present embodiment is suitable for a small and enlarged display for a projector light valve.

  A light-shielding frame light-shielding film 53 that defines the frame area of the image display area 10a is provided on the counter substrate 20 side in parallel with the inside of the seal area where the sealing material 52 is disposed. However, part or all of the frame light shielding film 53 may be provided as a built-in light shielding film on the TFT array substrate 10 side. There is a peripheral area located around the image display area 10a. In other words, particularly in the present embodiment, when viewed from the center of the TFT array substrate 10, the distance from the frame light shielding film 53 is defined as the peripheral region.

  A data line driving circuit 101 and an external circuit connection terminal 102 are provided along one side of the TFT array substrate 10 in a region located outside the sealing region in which the sealing material 52 is disposed in the peripheral region. The scanning line driving circuit 104 is provided along two sides adjacent to the one side so as to be covered with the frame light shielding film 53. Further, in order to connect the two scanning line driving circuits 104 provided on both sides of the image display area 10 a in this way, a plurality of the pixel lines are covered along the remaining side of the TFT array substrate 10 and covered with the frame light shielding film 53. Wiring 105 is provided.

  Vertical conductive members 106 functioning as vertical conductive terminals between the two substrates are disposed at the four corners of the counter substrate 20. On the other hand, the TFT array substrate 10 is provided with vertical conduction terminals in a region facing these corner portions. Thus, electrical conduction can be established between the TFT array substrate 10 and the counter substrate 20.

  In FIG. 2, an alignment film 16 is formed on the TFT array substrate 10 on a plurality of pixel electrodes 9a formed after formation of TFTs as pixel switching elements, wiring lines such as scanning lines and data lines. Yes. The pixel electrode 9a is made of, for example, a transparent conductive film such as an ITO (Indium Tin Oxide) film, and the alignment film 16 is an organic film such as a polyimide film or an inorganic alignment film formed by using an oblique deposition method. . The TFT array substrate 10 is, for example, a transparent substrate such as a quartz substrate or a glass substrate, or a semiconductor substrate such as a silicon substrate.

  On the other hand, on the counter substrate 20, in addition to the counter electrode 21, a lattice-shaped or striped light-shielding film 23 and an alignment film are formed on the uppermost layer portion. The counter substrate 20 is a transparent substrate like the TFT array substrate 10. The liquid crystal layer 50 is made of, for example, a liquid crystal in which one or several types of nematic liquid crystals are mixed, and takes a predetermined alignment state between a pair of alignment films.

  A counter electrode 20 is provided over the entire surface of the counter substrate 20, and an alignment film 22 is provided below the counter electrode 21. The counter electrode 21 is made of a transparent conductive film such as an ITO film. The alignment film 22 is formed by the same material and film formation method as the alignment film 16.

  1 and 2, on the TFT array substrate 10, in addition to the drive circuits such as the data line drive circuit 101 and the scanning line drive circuit 104, the image signal on the image signal line is sampled to obtain data. Sampling circuit that supplies lines, precharge circuit that supplies pre-charge signals of a predetermined voltage level to multiple data lines in advance of image signals, inspection of quality, defects, etc. of the electro-optical device during production or shipment An inspection circuit or the like may be formed.

<2: Electrical connection configuration of pixel portion>
Next, the electrical connection configuration of the pixel portion of the liquid crystal device 1 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is an equivalent circuit of various elements, wirings, and the like in a plurality of pixels formed in a matrix that forms the image display area of the liquid crystal device 1.

  In FIG. 3, a pixel electrode 9 a and a TFT 30 which is an example of the “pixel switching element” of the present invention are formed in each of a plurality of pixels formed in a matrix that forms the image display region 10 a of the liquid crystal device 1. ing. The TFT 30 is electrically connected to the pixel electrode 9a, and performs switching control of the pixel electrode 9a when the liquid crystal device 1 operates. The data line 6a to which the image signal is supplied is electrically connected to the source of the TFT 30. The image signals S1, S2,..., Sn to be written to the data lines 6a may be supplied line-sequentially in this order, or may be supplied for each group to a plurality of adjacent data lines 6a. May be.

  The scanning line 11a is electrically connected to the gate of the TFT 30, and the liquid crystal device 1 line-sequentially applies the scanning signals G1, G2,..., Gm to the scanning line 11a in a pulsed manner at a predetermined timing. It is comprised so that it may apply. The pixel electrode 9a is electrically connected to the drain of the TFT 30, and by closing the TFT 30 as a switching element for a certain period, the image signals S1, S2,. Written with timing. Image signals S1, S2,..., Sn written to the liquid crystal via the pixel electrode 9a are held for a certain period with the counter electrode 21 formed on the counter substrate 20.

  The liquid crystal contained in the liquid crystal layer 50 modulates light and enables gradation display by changing the orientation and order of the molecular assembly depending on the applied voltage level. In the normally white mode, the transmittance for incident light is reduced according to the voltage applied in units of each pixel, and in the normally black mode, the light is incident according to the voltage applied in units of each pixel. The light transmittance is increased, and light having a contrast corresponding to the image signal is emitted from the liquid crystal device as a whole. In order to prevent the image signal held here from leaking, a holding capacitor 70 is added in parallel with the liquid crystal capacitor formed between the pixel electrode 9 a and the counter electrode 21. Thereby, the potential holding characteristic in the pixel electrode 9a is improved, and display characteristics such as contrast and flicker can be improved.

  In the liquid crystal device 1 according to the present embodiment, vertical line inversion in which image signals having different polarities, that is, different polarities with respect to the potential of the counter electrode 21, are supplied to the adjacent data lines of the data lines 6a. Driving (1S inversion driving) or dot inversion driving in which image signals having different polarities are supplied to adjacent pixels is employed.

<3: Specific Configuration of Pixel Unit>
Next, a specific configuration of the pixel portion in the liquid crystal device 1 will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 4 is an enlarged plan view showing a part of the image display area 10a in the liquid crystal device 1 in an enlarged manner. 5 and 6 are a cross-sectional view taken along the line VV ′ and a cross-sectional view taken along the line VI-VI ′ of FIG.

  4, 5, and 6, the liquid crystal device 1 includes a plurality of pixel electrodes 9 a, scanning lines 11 a, data lines 6 a, TFTs 30, contact holes 81, 82 and 83, a first relay layer 84, a “relay” of the present invention. The second relay layer 85 which is an example of the “layer” is provided.

  The plurality of pixel electrodes 9a are arranged along the X direction, which is an example of the “arrangement direction” in the present invention, and the Y direction, which is an example of the “direction intersecting the arrangement direction” in the present invention. . Among the plurality of pixel electrodes 9a, the pixel electrode 9a1 is an example of “one pixel electrode” of the present invention, and the pixel electrode 9a2 disposed adjacent to the pixel electrode 9a1 along the X direction is It is an example of “another pixel electrode”.

  The scanning line 11a extends along the X direction so as to overlap a region between the pixel electrodes 9a adjacent to each other along the Y direction. The scanning line 11a also functions as a light shielding film that shields light irradiated on the TFT 30 from the lower side in the figure. The data line 6a extends along the Y direction so as to overlap a region between the pixel electrodes 9a adjacent to each other along the X direction.

  The TFT 30 includes a semiconductor layer 1a and a gate electrode 3a, and is formed in a region between adjacent pixel electrodes 9a. The semiconductor layer 1a has a channel length along the Y direction, and the gate electrode 3a extends in the X direction so as to overlap the channel region formed in the semiconductor layer 1a.

  The gate electrode 3 a is electrically connected to the scanning line 11 a through a contact hole 83 that penetrates the first interlayer insulating film 41 formed on the TFT array substrate 10. A source region of the semiconductor layer 1 a, that is, a region electrically connected to the data line 6 a is electrically connected to the data line 6 a through a contact hole 81 that penetrates the second interlayer insulating film 42.

  The drain region of the semiconductor layer 1a, that is, the region electrically connected to the pixel electrode 9a1, is a contact hole 82 penetrating the second interlayer insulating film 42 and a first relay layer 84 formed on the second interlayer insulating film 42. The pixel electrode 9a1 is electrically connected through the contact hole 86 formed in the third interlayer insulating film 43 and the second relay layer 85. The TFT 30 is turned on / off according to the scanning signal supplied via the scanning line 11a, and the image signal supplied via the data line 6a is supplied to the pixel electrode 9a1.

  The second relay layer 85 includes a first portion 85p1 that overlaps and is in contact with the pixel electrode 9a1, and a second portion 85p2 that extends directly below the alignment film 16 between the pixel electrodes 9a1 and 9a2.

  The second portion 85p2 is formed in a region between the pixel electrode 9a1 and the pixel electrode 9a2, that is, a non-opening region that does not substantially transmit light, and is in contact with the alignment film 16 on the lower surface of the alignment film 16. In other words, the second portion 85p2 is disposed immediately below the alignment film 16 positioned at the uppermost layer among the layers constituting the stacked structure formed on the TFT array substrate 10.

  The counter electrode 21 is opposed to the plurality of pixel electrodes 9a and the second portion 85p2 with the alignment film 16 in between. For example, a fixed potential is supplied to the counter electrode 21, and a voltage corresponding to a difference between the fixed potential and the potential of each pixel electrode 9 a is applied to the liquid crystal layer 50, whereby the alignment state of the liquid crystal contained in the liquid crystal layer 50 is changed. As a result, an image corresponding to the image signal is displayed in the image display area 10a.

  When the liquid crystal device 1 is driven, a region between the pixel electrode 9a1 and the pixel electrode 9a2 along the thickness direction of the liquid crystal layer 50, that is, a non-opening region, according to the difference between the potential of the second portion 85p2 and the potential of the counter electrode 21. A vertical electric field Ev is generated. Therefore, even when the horizontal electric field Eh is generated between 9a1 and the pixel electrode 9a2 along the substrate surface of the TFT array substrate 10, the horizontal electric field Eh can be reduced by the vertical electric field Ev. In addition, since the second relay layer 85 is arranged immediately below the alignment film 16, the first relay layer 85 is formed on the TFT array substrate 10 on the lower layer side of the pixel electrode 9a1 as compared with the case where the second relay layer 85 is formed. The interval between the relay layer 85 and the counter electrode 21 is narrowed. Therefore, the strength of the vertical electric field Ev generated between the second portion 85p2 and the counter electrode 21 can be increased, and the influence of the horizontal electric field Eh that causes a liquid crystal alignment defect can be reduced more effectively. Such a vertical electric field Ev can reduce display defects such as light leakage caused by the horizontal electric field Eh.

  The first portion 85p1 extends below the pixel electrode 9a1 from the region between the pixel electrodes 9a1 and 9a2 along the X direction, and is in contact with the pixel electrode 9a1. Therefore, since the second relay layer 85 is directly electrically connected to the pixel electrode 9a1 via the first portion 85p1, the TFT 30 and the pixel electrode 9a1 are electrically connected. In addition, unlike the contact hole, the first portion 85p1 is a portion extending in a planar shape along the X direction having a certain area, and the second relay layer 85 and the pixel electrode 9a1 are electrically connected via the contact hole. Compared with the case of connecting to the second relay layer 85, the contact area between the second relay layer 85 and the pixel electrode 9a1 can be increased. Accordingly, the connection resistance between the second relay layer 85 and the pixel electrode 9a1 is reduced by the amount of contact area, and the signal delay due to the connection resistance can be reduced and the power consumed in the connection resistance can be reduced. Therefore, the liquid crystal device 1 can display a high-quality image with low power consumption.

  In addition, since the second relay layer 85 is directly connected to the pixel electrode 9a1, it is not necessary to form a contact hole for connecting the second relay layer 85 and the pixel electrode 9a1, and therefore a manufacturing process for forming a contact hole The manufacturing process of the liquid crystal device 1 can be simplified and the yield can be improved. The effect of improving the yield due to the simplification of the contact hole forming process becomes so great that it is difficult to secure a space for forming the contact hole when the pixel pitch is miniaturized.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the first portion 85p1 and the second portion 85p2 extend along the Y direction. Therefore, in the non-opening region between the pixel electrodes 9a1 and 9a2, the area where the second portion 85p2 overlaps the counter electrode 21 can be increased, and therefore, the vertical electric field Ev can be generated in a wide range of the non-opening region. Is possible. According to such a second portion 85p2, the lateral electric field Eh generated in the non-opening region can be further reduced.

  In addition, since the first portion 85p1 extends along the Y direction, the contact area where the first portion 85p1 and the pixel electrode 9a1 are in contact with each other can be increased, and the second relay layer 85 and the pixel The connection resistance of the electrode 9a1 can be further reduced.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the first relay layer 85 has a multilayer structure in which a metal film 85a and a protective film 85b are stacked. The metal film 85a is made of a metal material such as aluminum, and the protective film 85b is made of a material such as titanium (Ti) or titanium oxide (TiO). The protective film 85b protects the metal film 85a so that the metal film 85a is not oxidized by the pixel electrode 9a1 made of ITO. Therefore, according to the protective film 85b, it is possible to reduce the decrease in the conductivity of the second relay layer 85 caused by the oxidation of the metal film 85a.

  Since the second relay layer 85 is a non-transparent film composed of the metal film 85a and the protective film 85b, it is also used as a light shielding film that blocks light incident between the pixel electrodes 9a1 and 9a2. Therefore, the second relay layer 85 can block the whole or a part of the TFT 30 positioned on the lower layer side of the second relay layer 85 so that incident light incident from the upper side in the drawing is not irradiated. According to the second relay layer 85, the pixel switching element such as the TFT 30 formed on the lower layer side of the pixel electrode 9a can be shielded without forming a separate light shielding film, and the light leakage current generated in the element can be shielded. Can be reduced. In particular, in the present embodiment, since the second portion 85p2 extends along the Y direction in the region between the pixel electrodes 9a1 and 9a2, most of the region between the pixel electrodes can be shielded from light.

  As described above, according to the electro-optical device according to the present embodiment, since the contact area between the second relay layer 85 and the pixel electrode 9a1 can be increased, the connection resistance between the second relay layer 85 and the pixel electrode 9a1. , The signal delay due to the connection resistance can be reduced, and the power consumed in the connection resistance can be reduced. Therefore, the liquid crystal device 1 can display a high-quality image with low power consumption.

(Modification)
Next, a modification of the electro-optical device according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 7 is a partial cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of a modification of the electro-optical device according to the present embodiment. FIG. 8 is an enlarged cross-sectional view showing the configuration of another modification of the electro-optical device according to the present embodiment, and FIG. 9 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line IX-IX ′ of FIG. In the following modified example, the same reference numerals are assigned to the same parts as those of the liquid crystal device 1 described above, and detailed description thereof is omitted.

  In FIG. 7, in the liquid crystal device according to this example, the second relay layer 86 formed on the upper surface of the pixel electrode 9a1 overlaps the pixel electrode 9a1 and is in contact with the pixel electrode 9a1. The second relay layer 86 includes a second portion 86p2 extending in a region between the pixel electrodes 9a1 and 9a2, and a first portion 86p1 overlapping the pixel electrode 9a1, and the first portion 86p1 is in contact with the pixel electrode 9a1. Therefore, the connection resistance between the second relay layer 86 and the pixel electrode 9a1 is reduced. The second relay layer 86 has a laminated structure in which a metal film 86a is laminated on a protective film 86b in contact with the pixel electrode 9a1, and the protective film 86b made of titanium (Ti) or the like is made of a metal such as aluminum. The metal film 86a is protected so that the metal film 86a made of the material is not oxidized by the pixel electrode 9a1 made of ITO. Thus, the second relay layer 86 may be formed so as to run over the pixel electrode 9a1.

  Next, another modification of the electro-optical device according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 8 and 9. In the electro-optical device according to this example, the potential of the counter electrode 21 is used as a reference for the pixel electrodes 9a arranged in different rows along the Y direction among the plurality of pixel electrodes 9a arranged in a matrix at the time of driving. The horizontal line inversion drive (1H inversion drive) to which potentials having different polarities are supplied is employed.

  8 and 9, in the liquid crystal device according to this example, a pixel electrode 9a1 that is an example of “one pixel electrode” of the present invention, and a pixel electrode 9a3 that is an example of “another pixel electrode” of the present invention, The second relay layer 87 extends in the X direction along the X direction. The second relay layer 87 includes a second portion 87p2 and a first portion 87p1 extending along the X direction between the pixel electrodes 9a1 and 9a3.

  The first portion 87p1 extends in the X direction, overlaps with the pixel electrode 9a1, and is in contact with the pixel electrode 9a1. Therefore, compared with the case where the second relay layer 87 and the pixel electrode 9a1 are connected through the contact hole, the contact area between the second relay layer 87 and the pixel electrode 9a1 can be increased, and the second relay layer 87 and the pixel The connection resistance of the electrode 9a1 can be reduced.

  The second portion 87p2 is formed immediately below the alignment film 16 in the region between the pixel electrodes 9a1 and 9a3. Therefore, the vertical electric field Ev is generated between the counter electrode 21 and the second portion 87p2, and the horizontal electric field Eh generated between the pixel electrodes 9a1 and 9a3 can be effectively weakened. In addition, since the second relay layer 87 has a multilayer structure composed of the metal film 87a and the protective film 87b in contact with the pixel electrode 9a1, the oxidation of the metal film 87a can be reduced.

<4: Electronic equipment>
Next, a case where the electro-optical device described in detail above is applied to an electronic device will be described.

  Here, a projector using the liquid crystal device as the electro-optical device as a light valve will be described. FIG. 10 is a plan view showing a configuration example of the projector. As shown in FIG. 10, a projector 1100 includes a lamp unit 1102 made of a white light source such as a halogen lamp. The projection light emitted from the lamp unit 1102 is separated into three primary colors of RGB by four mirrors 1106 and two dichroic mirrors 1108 arranged in the light guide, and liquid crystal as a light valve corresponding to each primary color. Incident to devices 100R, 100B, and 100G. The configurations of the liquid crystal devices 100R, 100B, and 100G are the same as those of the above-described liquid crystal device, and R, G, and B primary color signals supplied from the image signal processing circuit are modulated in each. Light modulated by these liquid crystal devices is incident on the dichroic prism 1112 from three directions. In the dichroic prism 1112, R and B light is refracted at 90 degrees, while G light goes straight. As a result, the images of the respective colors are combined, and a color image is projected onto the screen 1120 and the like via the projection lens 1114.

  In the present embodiment, the liquid crystal device has been described as a specific example of the electro-optical device of the present invention. However, the electro-optical device of the present invention includes other electrophoretic devices such as electronic paper and electron-emitting devices. It can be realized as a display device used (Field Emission Display and Surface-Conduction Electron-Emitter Display). In addition to the projector described above, the electro-optical device according to the present invention includes a television receiver, a viewfinder type or a monitor direct view type video tape recorder, a car navigation device, a pager, an electronic notebook, and a calculator. It can be applied to various electronic devices such as a word processor, a workstation, a video phone, a POS terminal, and a device having a touch panel.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be appropriately changed without departing from the gist or concept of the invention that can be read from the claims and the entire specification. The apparatus and an electronic apparatus including such an electro-optical device are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

1 is a plan view of an electro-optical device according to an embodiment. It is II-II 'sectional drawing of FIG. 3 is an equivalent circuit of various elements, wirings, and the like in a plurality of pixels formed in a matrix that forms an image display region of the electro-optical device according to the embodiment. FIG. 4 is an enlarged plan view illustrating a part of an image display area in the electro-optical device according to the embodiment in an enlarged manner. It is VV 'sectional drawing of FIG. It is VI-VI 'sectional drawing of FIG. FIG. 10 is a partial cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of a modification of the electro-optical device according to the embodiment. FIG. 10 is an enlarged cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of another modification of the electro-optical device according to the embodiment. It is IX-IX 'sectional drawing of FIG. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a configuration of a liquid crystal projector that is an embodiment of an electronic apparatus according to the invention.

Explanation of symbols

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Liquid crystal device, 9a ... Pixel electrode, 10 ... TFT array substrate, 20 ... Counter substrate, 30 ... TFT, 84 ... 1st relay layer, 85 ... 2nd Relay layer

Claims (5)

A plurality of scanning lines and a plurality of data lines formed to intersect each other in a display region on the substrate;
A plurality of pixel electrodes formed corresponding to intersections of the scanning lines and the data lines;
A pixel switching element for supplying an image signal to one of the plurality of pixel electrodes;
A first layer that overlaps with the one pixel electrode and is in contact with the one pixel electrode, the pixel switching element and a relay layer that electrically relays the one pixel electrode. An electro-optical device. The electro-optical device according to claim 1, wherein the relay layer includes a metal film and a protective film formed on the metal film and protecting the metal film. The first portion extends along a direction intersecting an arrangement direction in which the other pixel electrode adjacent to the one pixel electrode and the one pixel electrode are arranged among the plurality of pixel electrodes. The electro-optical device according to claim 1. The relay layer includes a second portion extending in a direction intersecting the arrangement direction between the one pixel electrode and the other pixel electrode, and at least the second portion of the relay layer includes the one pixel electrode. The electro-optical device according to claim 3, wherein the electro-optical device is also used as a light-shielding film that blocks light incident between the pixel electrode and the other pixel electrode. An electronic apparatus comprising the electro-optical device according to any one of claims 1 to 4.

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