JP2008116550A - Liquid crystal device, method for manufacturing liquid crystal device, and electronic device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a liquid crystal device capable of preventing generation of cell thickness unevenness due to insufficient hardness of a phase difference layer, while having a phase difference layer that has satisfactory optical characteristics. <P>SOLUTION: In the liquid crystal device provided with a pair of substrates interposing a liquid crystal layer, the phase difference layers 23 provided on the liquid crystal layer side of at least one substrate (substrate main body 20A) of the pair of substrates and photo spacers PS, provided on the liquid crystal layer side of at least one substrate (substrate body 20A) of the pair of substrates, the phase difference layers 23 and the photo spacers PS are disposed so as not to be mutually superimposed two-dimensionally. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a liquid crystal device, a method for manufacturing the liquid crystal device, and an electronic apparatus, and more particularly to a reflective or transflective liquid crystal device in which a retardation layer and a photo spacer are provided inside a liquid crystal panel, and a manufacturing technique thereof. is there.

A transflective liquid crystal device is widely used as a display device such as a mobile phone or a portable information terminal. In a transflective liquid crystal device, in order to realize reflective display and transmissive display using a single liquid crystal layer, it is necessary to adjust a phase difference between display modes. Therefore, in Patent Documents 1 to 3 below, an appropriate reflective display and transmissive display can be obtained by providing a retardation layer in the reflective display region.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-279956 JP 2004-4494 A JP 2003-167126 A

  According to the liquid crystal devices described in Patent Literatures 1 to 3, since the retardation layer is built in the liquid crystal cell, it is necessary to provide a λ / 4 retardation plate for adjusting the retardation on the outside of the liquid crystal cell. Therefore, the liquid crystal device can be reduced in thickness and cost. However, since the retardation layer provided on the inner surface side of the liquid crystal cell is formed using a polymerizable liquid crystal oligomer or cholesteric liquid crystal, the hardness is low, and resin balls (Elastic Ball; EB) or glass balls ( When Glass Ball (GB) is used, the spacer material is buried in the retardation layer, and there is a problem that cell thickness uniformity cannot be ensured.

  With respect to this problem, Patent Document 3 discloses a technique for increasing the hardness of the retardation layer by forming an inorganic insulating film on the surface of the retardation layer. However, this method can improve the cell thickness uniformity of the liquid crystal panel, but requires a new process for forming the inorganic insulating film, which causes problems such as a complicated manufacturing process and an increase in manufacturing cost. To do. In addition, a method of selecting a polymerizable liquid crystal material and increasing the hardness of the retardation layer is disclosed, but this method limits the material of the retardation layer and cannot provide sufficient display characteristics. There is.

  In addition, the liquid crystal device may be exposed to a low-temperature and high-temperature cycle depending on the use environment, and there is a problem that cell thickness unevenness occurs in the liquid crystal panel as a finished product due to the temperature cycle. The reason is as follows. First, if the liquid crystal shrinks at low temperatures, the volume shrinkage of the liquid crystal panel does not follow the shrinkage. As a result, atmospheric pressure (this pressure is higher than the pressure at the time of manufacturing the liquid crystal panel) is applied to the liquid crystal panel. A part of the photo spacer is buried in the retardation layer. When the liquid crystal panel returns to room temperature in this state, the volume of the liquid crystal returns to the original value, so that the average cell thickness is restored. However, since the upper and lower substrates are not supported by the photo spacers, uneven cell thickness occurs. . As the temperature increases, the volume of the liquid crystal further increases, and this uneven cell thickness becomes significant.

  The present invention has been made in view of such circumstances, and includes a retardation layer having good optical characteristics, and is capable of preventing occurrence of cell thickness unevenness due to insufficient hardness of the retardation layer. An object is to provide an apparatus and a method for manufacturing the same. It is another object of the present invention to provide an electronic device with high display quality and high reliability by including such a liquid crystal device.

  In order to solve the above problems, a liquid crystal device of the present invention includes a pair of substrates that sandwich a liquid crystal layer, a retardation layer provided on the liquid crystal layer side of at least one of the pair of substrates, A photo spacer provided on the liquid crystal layer side of at least one of the pair of substrates, and the retardation layer and the photo spacer are arranged so as not to overlap in a plane. And According to this configuration, even if the hardness of the retardation layer is low, the photo spacer is not embedded in the retardation layer, so that even when exposed to a low-temperature and high-temperature cycle, uneven cell thickness is unlikely to occur. In addition, since the room for selecting the material for the retardation layer is widened, a liquid crystal device having excellent display quality can be provided.

  In the present invention, it is desirable that a light shielding film is provided on one of the pair of substrates, and the light shielding film and the photo spacer are arranged so as to overlap in a plane. According to this configuration, a liquid crystal device with high display quality can be provided even when the orientation of the liquid crystal is disturbed in the vicinity of the photo spacer. In particular, in the case of the present invention, since the retardation layer and the photo spacer are provided so as not to overlap, the height of the photo spacer is increased, and the disorder of the alignment of the liquid crystal near the photo spacer is increased. By shielding the display of the portion with the light shielding film, such display disturbance can be minimized.

  In the present invention, an alignment film is provided on the liquid crystal layer side of the substrate provided with the photo spacer, the alignment film is subjected to rubbing treatment, and the light shielding film passes through the photo spacer and passes through the photo spacer. It is desirable to extend in a direction parallel to the rubbing direction. According to this configuration, even if a rubbing failure occurs in the shadow portion of the photo spacer, the region where the rubbing failure occurs is shielded by the light shielding film and does not affect the display. Therefore, a liquid crystal device with high display quality can be provided.

  In the present invention, it is preferable that the length of the light shielding film in a portion extending in a direction parallel to the rubbing direction is larger than the height of the photo spacer. This is because the region where the rubbing failure occurs due to the shadow of the photo spacer has a size equal to or greater than the height of the photo spacer.

  In the present invention, it is desirable that the retardation layer, the photo spacer, and the light shielding film are provided on the same substrate. According to this configuration, it is possible to reduce the margin of the light-shielding film due to the assembly deviation as compared with the case where the retardation layer and the photo spacer are provided on separate substrates. For this reason, the aperture ratio can be increased and bright display can be realized.

  In the present invention, it is preferable that the photo spacer is provided at a position intermediate between the two retardation layers adjacent to each other. According to this configuration, since the retardation layer and the photo spacer are provided at positions separated from each other, the height, shape, etc. are affected by the other step, shape, etc., and the desired height, shape, etc. The problem of deviating from the shape and the like does not occur. Therefore, it is possible to provide a liquid crystal device having high cell thickness and retardation (birefringence phase difference) accuracy.

  In the present invention, it is desirable that the photo spacer is provided at a boundary portion between sub-pixels provided with different colored layers. According to this configuration, it is possible to minimize the deviation of the retardation layer and the photo spacer from the desired height, shape, and the like. This is because different colored layers are adjacent to each other in the longitudinal direction of the sub-pixel, and therefore, if a photo spacer is arranged at the boundary between such colored layers, the distance from the retardation layer can be maximized.

  In the present invention, it is desirable that the retardation layer and the photospacer are provided on different substrates. According to this configuration, since the retardation layer and the photo spacer are formed on separate substrates, the height, shape, and the like are affected by the other step, shape, etc., and the desired height, There is no problem of deviating from the shape or the like. Therefore, it is possible to provide a liquid crystal device having high cell thickness and retardation (birefringence phase difference) accuracy. In addition, it is possible to use a material whose characteristics of the retardation layer are changed by processing (development, heating, etc.) in the photo spacer formation process, and display quality can be further improved.

  The method for manufacturing a liquid crystal device of the present invention includes a step of forming a retardation layer on a substrate, and a step of forming a photo spacer on the substrate while avoiding a region where the retardation layer is formed. Features. According to this method, even if the hardness of the retardation layer is low, the photo spacer is not buried in the retardation layer, so that even when exposed to low temperature and high temperature cycles, cell thickness unevenness hardly occurs. In addition, since the room for selecting the material for the retardation layer is widened, a liquid crystal device having excellent display quality can be provided. In addition, since the photo spacer is formed after the retardation layer is formed, it is possible to prevent the retardation, the thickness, and the like of the retardation layer from becoming uneven due to the influence of the photo spacer. Since the photo spacer is formed thicker (higher) than the retardation layer, if the material for forming the retardation layer is applied after the formation of the photo spacer, the uniformity of the coating film is increased due to the influence of the photo spacer protruding from the coating film. It is because it is damaged. On the other hand, when the photo spacer forming material is applied after forming the retardation layer, the retardation layer is completely covered with the coating film, so that the coating film is slightly uneven in the retardation layer portion. The other portions are formed with a substantially uniform film thickness. Accordingly, the shape and thickness of the photo spacer are formed with high accuracy.

  An electronic apparatus of the present invention includes the liquid crystal device of the present invention described above or the liquid crystal device manufactured by the method of manufacturing the liquid crystal device of the present invention described above. According to this configuration, an electronic apparatus with high display quality and excellent reliability can be provided.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. This embodiment shows one aspect of the present invention, and does not limit the present invention, and can be arbitrarily changed within the scope of the technical idea of the present invention. Moreover, in the following drawings, in order to make each structure easy to understand, an actual structure and a scale, a number, and the like in each structure are different.

  In the following description, an XYZ orthogonal coordinate system is set, and the positional relationship of each member will be described with reference to this XYZ orthogonal coordinate system. At this time, the predetermined direction in the horizontal plane is the X-axis direction, the direction orthogonal to the X-axis direction in the horizontal plane is the Y-axis direction, and the direction orthogonal to each of the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction (that is, the vertical direction) is the Z-axis direction. And For example, in the present embodiment, the X-axis direction is the scanning line extending direction, the Y-axis direction is the data line extending direction, and the Z-axis direction is the viewing direction of the liquid crystal panel by the observer.

[First Embodiment]
FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of a liquid crystal device 100 according to a first embodiment of the liquid crystal device of the present invention. As shown in the figure, the liquid crystal device 100 includes a first substrate 10 and a second substrate 20 facing each other, and a liquid crystal layer 50 sandwiched between the first substrate 10 and the second substrate 20. . The first substrate 10 has a substrate body 10A made of glass, quartz, plastic, or the like as a base, and a plurality of pixel electrodes 12 made of ITO or the like are provided on the liquid crystal layer 50 side of the substrate body 10A. The pixel electrodes 12 are arranged in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction, and a plurality of data lines 11 extending in the Y-axis direction along the gap between the pixel electrodes 12 are provided. The area where the pixel electrode 12 is arranged constitutes a sub-pixel which is the minimum unit of display, and the sub-pixel is arranged in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction to form a display area as a whole.

A thin film diode (Thin Film Diode; hereinafter abbreviated as “TFD”) element 13 which is a pixel switching element is provided between the data line 11 and the pixel electrode 12. The TFD element 13 includes an elongated first conductive film 13a whose longitudinal direction is the X-axis direction, an insulating film (not shown) formed to cover the surface of the first conductive film 13a, and a surface of the insulating film. A long second conductive film 13c is provided so as to be covered and arranged in parallel with the data line 11. The data line 11 includes a branch portion that branches in the X-axis direction toward the pixel electrode 12, and the branch portion serves as a first conductive film 13a. An anodized film is formed on the surfaces of the data line 11 and the first conductive film 13a, and the anodized film serves as the insulating film. The pixel electrode 12 is formed so as to run over a part of the second conductive film 13c, and the second conductive film 13c and the pixel electrode 12 are electrically connected at a portion where both overlap. Note that tantalum (Ta) is used as the first conductive film 13a, and tantalum oxide (Ta ₂ O ₅ ) is used as the insulating film. Further, chromium (Cr) is used for the second conductive film 13c.

A reflective film 14 having a rectangular shape in plan view is provided between the pixel electrode 12 and the substrate body 10A. The pixel electrode 12 is formed so as to cover the reflective film 14 partially provided in the sub-pixel region. In one subpixel, a region where the reflective film 14 and the pixel electrode 12 overlap in a plane is a reflective display region, and a region where the reflective film 14 and the pixel electrode 12 do not overlap in a plane is a transmissive display region. In the case of this embodiment, the pixel electrode 12 is a conductive film made of a transparent conductive material such as ITO (indium tin oxide), and the reflective film 14 is a light-reflective metal film such as aluminum or silver, or a refractive index. It is composed of a dielectric laminated film (dielectric mirror) in which different dielectric films (SiO ₂ and TiO ₂ or the like) are laminated. The liquid crystal device 100 preferably has a function of scattering the reflected light from the reflective film 14, and such a configuration can improve the visibility of the reflective display.

  The pixel electrode 12 has a structure in which the reflective film 14 is formed so as to cover the reflective film 14 as in the present embodiment, and a transparent electrode made of a transparent conductive material and a reflective electrode made of a light reflective metal material are planar. A transparent electrode arranged corresponding to the transmissive display area, and a reflective electrode arranged corresponding to the reflective display area, both electrodes being a transmissive display area and a reflective display Those that are electrically connected to each other between the regions (boundary portions) can also be employed. In this case, the reflective electrode also functions as a reflective film for performing reflective display.

  An alignment film 18 made of polyimide or the like is provided on the liquid crystal layer 50 side of the pixel electrode 12 so as to cover the data line 11, the pixel electrode 12, and the TFD element 13. A first polarizing plate 19 is provided on the opposite side of the substrate body 10 </ b> A from the liquid crystal layer 50. Further, a lighting device (backlight) (not shown) is provided on the opposite side of the first polarizing plate 19 from the substrate body 10A.

  On the other hand, the second substrate 20 has a substrate body 20A made of a translucent material such as glass, plastic, or quartz as a base, and a color filter 22 is provided on the liquid crystal layer 50 side of the substrate body 20A. The color filter 22 includes a plurality of colored layers 22R, 22G, and 22B having different colors. Each of the colored layers 22R, 22G, and 22B is formed in a stripe shape extending in the Y-axis direction, and these are alternately arranged in the X-axis direction. A light shielding film 22BM is provided between the color filter 22 and the substrate body 20A. The light shielding film 22BM is provided with openings (not shown) corresponding to the transmissive display area and the reflective display area, and light transmitted through the colored layers 22R, 22G, and 22B is emitted to the outside through these openings. It has come to be. In each sub pixel area, a colored layer of one of the three primary colors is arranged, and one pixel area including three colored layers 22R, 22G, and 22B is formed by the three sub pixel areas.

  On the liquid crystal layer 50 side of the color filter 22, a plurality of retardation layers 23 are provided corresponding to the reflective display region. The retardation layer 23 extends in the X-axis direction and is provided in a strip shape, and is disposed across the plurality of pixel electrodes 12 arranged in the X-axis direction. The retardation layer 23 gives a phase difference of approximately ½ wavelength (λ / 2) to light having a vibration direction parallel to the optical axis direction, and is provided on the inner surface side of the substrate body 20A. It is a so-called inner surface retardation layer. The retardation layer 23 may be formed by a method in which a polymer liquid crystal (cholesteric liquid crystal or the like) solution or a liquid crystal monomer (or liquid crystal oligomer) solution is applied onto an alignment film and is oriented in a predetermined direction when dried and solidified. it can. Further, the phase difference to be applied is not limited to this, and a phase difference of approximately ¼ wavelength (λ / 4) may be applied according to the structure.

  In the case of this embodiment, the retardation layer 23 also functions as a liquid crystal layer thickness adjusting layer for making the thickness of the liquid crystal layer 50 in the reflective display region smaller than the thickness of the liquid crystal layer 50 in the transmissive display region. ing. In the transflective liquid crystal device, light incident on the reflective display region is transmitted twice through the liquid crystal layer 50, but light incident on the transmissive display region is transmitted only once through the liquid crystal layer 50. As a result, if the retardation of the liquid crystal layer 50 is different between the reflective display area and the transmissive display area, a difference in light transmittance occurs, and a uniform image display cannot be obtained. Therefore, a so-called multi-gap structure is realized by forming the retardation layer 23 so as to protrude toward the liquid crystal layer 50. Specifically, the layer thickness of the liquid crystal layer 50 in the reflective display region is set to about half the layer thickness of the liquid crystal layer 50 in the transmissive display region, and the retardation of the liquid crystal layer 50 in the reflective display region and the transmissive display region is substantially the same. Is set to Thereby, a uniform image display can be obtained in the reflective display area and the transmissive display area.

  In the present embodiment, the retardation layer 23 is selectively formed in the reflective display area. However, from the viewpoint of the function as the retardation layer, the phase difference with respect to the transmitted light in the transmissive display area and the transmitted light in the reflective display area. From the viewpoint of the function as the liquid crystal layer thickness adjusting layer, it is sufficient that the phase difference with respect to the liquid crystal layer 50 is formed so as to protrude toward the liquid crystal layer 50 rather than in the transmissive display region. Therefore, a phase difference layer having a different thickness depending on the part may be formed on the color filter 22. That is, a retardation layer having a thin film thickness and a small phase difference in the transmissive display region and a thick film thickness and a large phase difference in the reflective display region may be formed.

  A plurality of scanning lines 21 made of ITO or the like are provided on the liquid crystal layer 50 side of the retardation layer 23 so as to cover the retardation layer 23 and the color filter 22. The scanning line 21 extends in the X-axis direction and is provided in a strip shape, and is disposed across the plurality of pixel electrodes 12 arranged in the X-axis direction. The pixel electrodes 12 are common electrodes. On the liquid crystal layer 50 side of the color filter 22, an alignment film 28 made of polyimide or the like is provided so as to cover the scanning lines 21 and the color filter 22. A polarizing plate 29 is provided on the opposite side of the substrate body 20A from the liquid crystal layer 50. The transmission axis of the polarizing plate 29 and the transmission axis of the polarizing plate 19 are arranged so as to be orthogonal to each other.

  Next, a method for manufacturing the liquid crystal device 100 will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 to 6, the description will focus on the formation process of the second substrate 20, and the description of the other processes will be omitted.

  First, as shown in FIG. 2, a substrate body 20A on which a light shielding film 22BM and a color filter 22 are formed is prepared. The light shielding film 22BM is provided in a lattice shape along the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction, and includes rectangular openings H1 and H2 in portions corresponding to the reflective display area and the transmissive display area, respectively. The openings H1 and H2 are arranged at regular intervals in the X-axis direction so as to face the colored layers 22R, 22G, and 22B of the color filter 22, respectively. Further, the openings H1 and the openings H2 are alternately arranged along the extending direction (Y-axis direction) of the colored layers 22R, 22G, and 22B. The colored layers 22R, 22G, and 22B are formed in stripes extending in the Y-axis direction, and the colored layers 22R, 22G, and 22B are alternately arranged with no gap along the X-axis direction.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 3, a retardation layer 23 is formed on the color filter 22. The retardation layer 23 is formed in a planar view band shape across a plurality of sub-pixel regions arranged in the X-axis direction. The phase difference layer 23 is formed corresponding to the reflective display region of each sub-pixel region (more specifically, the region facing the reflective display region opening H1), and is arranged at equal intervals in the Y-axis direction. The

  The retardation layer 23 can be formed by the following method, for example. First, an alignment film forming material is applied and baked on the color filter 22 by a spin coating method or a flexographic printing method, and then a rubbing process is performed. Next, a polymer liquid crystal solution is applied onto the alignment film by spin coating. Next, the applied polymer liquid crystal solution is pre-baked and heated at a temperature equal to or higher than the isotropic transition temperature (phase transition temperature) of the polymer liquid crystal layer obtained by baking, and then gradually cooled to polymer. Align the liquid crystal. Here, the phase transition temperature is a temperature that changes by causing a phase difference. Next, a resist is patterned on the formed polymer liquid crystal layer on a planar region corresponding to the reflective display region, and the polymer liquid crystal layer is etched using the resist as a mask. In addition to dry etching, wet etching can be applied to the etching process. Through the above steps, the retardation layer 23 made of a polymer liquid crystal layer can be formed in a region corresponding to the reflective display region.

  In addition, as a formation method of the phase difference layer 23, after apply | coating the solution of a liquid crystal monomer or a liquid crystal oligomer on the color filter 22, the method of exposing and polymerizing can also be applied. In this formation method, the resist film on the polymer liquid crystal layer can be easily patterned after being partially exposed to the coating film of the liquid crystal monomer or liquid crystal oligomer and then developed. There is an advantage that pattern formation, etching and resist stripping are unnecessary.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 4, a photo spacer PS that is a gap material is formed in a region that does not overlap with the retardation layer 23. The photo spacer PS can be formed by, for example, applying a photosensitive material by spin coating or flexographic printing so as to cover the color filter 22 and the retardation layer 23, and subjecting the photosensitive material to exposure processing and development processing. it can. Here, the thickness (height) of the photo spacer PS is the same as the distance (gap) between the first substrate and the second substrate in the transmissive display region. In the case of the present embodiment, since this interval is about twice the thickness of the retardation layer 23, the thickness of the photo spacer PS is also about twice the thickness of the retardation layer 23.

  FIG. 5 is a plan view of one pixel region viewed from the phase difference layer 23 and the photo spacer PS side. As shown in the figure, the photo spacer PS is formed in a region overlapping the light shielding film 22BM in a planar manner. The photo spacer PS is provided at an intermediate position between the two retardation layers 23 adjacent in the Y-axis direction. As described above, since the photosensitive material constituting the photospacer PS is formed so as to cover the retardation layer 23, the thickness of the photosensitive material is affected by unevenness due to the retardation layer 23. However, since the photo spacer PS is formed at an intermediate position between the phase difference layer 23 and the phase difference layer 23 (that is, a position farthest from the phase difference layer 23), the photosensitive material PS is formed in the region where the photo spacer PS is formed. The film thickness is stable and variations in film thickness are minimized. Further, since the photo spacer PS is formed in the region where the blue color filter 22B is arranged, even if light leaks from the position of the photo spacer PS, the adverse effect on the display is small. This is because blue has the least visual impact compared to green and red.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 6, the scanning line 21 is formed on the color filter 22 and the retardation layer 23, and the alignment film 28 is formed to cover the scanning line 21, the retardation layer 23 and the color filter 22. Then, the alignment film 28 is rubbed. The rubbing direction Rub is a direction parallel to the extending direction (X-axis direction) of the scanning line 21 and the retardation layer 23. Thereafter, the first substrate on which the data lines, the reflective film, the pixel electrodes, the external connection terminals, and the like are formed is disposed opposite to the second substrate, and the first substrate and the second substrate are interposed through the sealing material formed on the first substrate. Paste together. Then, the sealing material is cured, the liquid crystal is injected into a space surrounded by the first substrate, the second substrate, and the sealing material, and a polarizing plate is attached to the outer surfaces of the first substrate and the second substrate, thereby providing a liquid crystal device. Complete.

  As described above, in the liquid crystal device 100 according to the present embodiment, the retardation layer 23 and the photo spacer PS are arranged so as not to overlap in a plan view. The spacer PS is not buried in the retardation layer 23, and even when the spacer PS is exposed to a low-temperature and high-temperature cycle, the cell thickness unevenness hardly occurs. Further, since the room for selecting the material of the retardation layer 23 is widened, the liquid crystal device 100 having excellent display quality can be provided.

  In addition, since the photo spacer PS and the light shielding film 22BM are arranged so as to overlap in a plane, a liquid crystal device with high display quality can be provided even when the alignment of the liquid crystal is disturbed in the vicinity of the photo spacer PS. In particular, in the case of the present embodiment, since the retardation layer 23 and the photo spacer PS are provided so as not to overlap with each other, the height of the photo spacer PS becomes high, and the alignment disorder of the liquid crystal near the photo spacer is Although it becomes large, such display disturbance can be minimized by shielding the portion of the display with the light shielding film 22BM.

  Further, since the phase difference layer 23, the photo spacer PS, and the light shielding film 22BM are provided on the same substrate 20, compared to the case where the phase difference layer 23 and the photo spacer PS are provided on different substrates, due to assembly deviation. The margin of the light shielding film 22BM can be reduced. For this reason, the aperture ratio can be increased and bright display can be realized.

  In addition, since the photo spacer PS is provided at an intermediate position between the two phase difference layers 23 adjacent to each other, the height, shape, etc. of the desired height, shape, etc. are affected by the other step, shape, etc. Problems such as deviation from height, shape, etc. can be avoided. In particular, in the present embodiment, since the photo spacer PS is provided at the boundary between sub-pixels provided with different colored layers, the distance from the retardation layer 23 can be maximized, and the shape and the like can be increased. Can be minimized. This is because the different colored layers are adjacent in the longitudinal direction of the sub-pixel. Therefore, it is possible to provide a liquid crystal device having high cell thickness and retardation (birefringence phase difference) accuracy.

  In the present embodiment, since the photo spacer PS is formed after the phase difference layer 23 is formed, it is possible to prevent the shape, thickness, and the like of the phase difference layer 23 from becoming uneven due to the influence of the photo spacer PS. . Since the photo spacer PS is formed thicker (higher) than the retardation layer 23, when the material for forming the retardation layer 23 is applied after the photo spacer PS is formed, the coating film is affected by the photo spacer PS protruding from the coating film. This is because the uniformity of the is greatly impaired. On the other hand, when the material for forming the photo spacer PS is applied after forming the retardation layer 23, the retardation layer 23 is completely covered with the coating film, so that the coating film is slightly uneven in the retardation layer 23 portion. Although formed, the other portions are formed with a substantially uniform film thickness. Therefore, the shape and thickness of the photo spacer PS are formed with high accuracy.

  In the present embodiment, the retardation layer 23, the photo spacer PS, and the light shielding film 22BM are provided on the same substrate. However, the retardation layer 23 and the photo spacer PS may be provided on different substrates. In this case, since the retardation layer 23 and the photo spacer PS are formed on different substrates, the height, shape, etc. are affected by the other step, shape, etc., and the desired height, shape, etc. The problem of deviating from the above does not occur. Therefore, it is possible to provide a liquid crystal device having high cell thickness and retardation (birefringence phase difference) accuracy. In addition, it is possible to use a material whose characteristics of the phase difference layer 23 are changed by processing (development, heating, etc.) in the formation process of the photo spacer PS, and the display quality can be further improved.

[Second Embodiment]
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 7 is a process diagram of a process of performing a rubbing process on the alignment film 28. In this embodiment, the basic configuration of the liquid crystal device is the same as that of the liquid crystal device of the first embodiment, and the only difference is the rubbing direction Rub of the alignment film 28.

  FIG. 8 is a plan view of one pixel region viewed from the phase difference layer 23 and the photo spacer PS side. As shown in the figure, the photo spacer PS is formed in a region overlapping the light shielding film 22BM in a planar manner. The rubbing direction Rub is a direction parallel to the extending direction (Y-axis direction) of the colored layers 22R, 22G, and 22B of the color filter 22. The light shielding film 22BM extends in a direction parallel to the rubbing direction Rub through the photo spacer PS. For this reason, even if a rubbing failure occurs in the shaded portion of the photo spacer PS, the region D in which the rubbing failure occurs is shielded by the light shielding film 22BM and does not affect the display. Therefore, a liquid crystal device with high display quality can be provided.

[Third Embodiment]
Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 9 is a plan view of one pixel region viewed from the phase difference layer 23 and the photo spacer PS side. In this embodiment, the basic configuration of the liquid crystal device is the same as that of the liquid crystal device of the first embodiment, and the only difference is the arrangement position of the photo spacers PS.

  As shown in FIG. 9, the photo spacer PS is formed in a region overlapping the light shielding film 22BM in the vicinity of the retardation layer 23. The rubbing direction Rub is a direction parallel to the extending direction (X-axis direction) of the retardation layer 23. The light shielding film 22BM extends in a direction parallel to the rubbing direction Rub through the photo spacer PS. For this reason, even if a rubbing failure occurs in the shaded portion of the photo spacer PS, the region D in which the rubbing failure occurs is shielded by the light shielding film 22BM and does not affect the display. Therefore, a liquid crystal device with high display quality can be provided.

  In FIG. 9, the photo spacer PS is formed in the vicinity of the retardation layer 23. However, when the width of the light shielding film 22BM extending in the Y-axis direction is wide, the photo spacer PS is disposed in the region indicated by the dotted line. You can also. In this case, the length of the portion of the light shielding film 22BM extending in the direction parallel to the rubbing direction Rub (the width of the light shielding film 22BM in the X-axis direction) is preferably larger than the height of the photo spacer PS. This is because the region D where the rubbing failure occurs due to the shadow of the photo spacer PS has a size equal to or greater than the height of the photo spacer PS.

[Electronics]
Next, an embodiment of an electronic apparatus including the liquid crystal device of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 10 is a schematic configuration diagram of an example in which the liquid crystal device of FIG. 1 which is an example of the liquid crystal device of the present invention is applied to a display unit of a mobile phone. A cellular phone 1300 shown in the figure includes the liquid crystal device of the above embodiment as a small-sized display portion 1301 and includes a plurality of operation buttons 1302, an earpiece 1303, and a mouthpiece 1304. The liquid crystal device of each of the above embodiments is not limited to the mobile phone, but an electronic book, a projector, a personal computer, a digital still camera, a television receiver, a viewfinder type or a monitor direct view type video tape recorder, a car navigation device, It can be suitably used as an image display means for devices such as pagers, electronic notebooks, calculators, word processors, workstations, videophones, POS terminals, touch panels, etc., and by adopting such a configuration, electronic devices having excellent display characteristics Can provide.

It is a schematic block diagram of the liquid crystal device of 1st Embodiment. FIG. 26 is an explanatory diagram representing a production method of the liquid crystal device. FIG. 26 is an explanatory diagram representing a production method of the liquid crystal device. FIG. 26 is an explanatory diagram representing a production method of the liquid crystal device. FIG. 26 is an explanatory diagram representing a production method of the liquid crystal device. FIG. 26 is an explanatory diagram representing a production method of the liquid crystal device. It is explanatory drawing of the manufacturing method of the liquid crystal device of 2nd Embodiment. FIG. 26 is an explanatory diagram representing a production method of the liquid crystal device. It is explanatory drawing of the manufacturing method of the liquid crystal device of 3rd Embodiment. It is a schematic block diagram of the mobile telephone which is an example of an electronic device.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 ... 1st board | substrate, 20 ... 2nd board | substrate, 22BM ... Light shielding film, 22R, 22G, 22B ... Colored layer, 23 ... Phase difference layer, 28 ... Orientation film, 50 ... Liquid crystal layer, 100 ... Liquid crystal device, 1300 ... Mobile Telephone (electronic equipment), PS ... Photo spacer, Rub ... Rubbing direction

Claims (10)

A pair of substrates sandwiching a liquid crystal layer; a retardation layer provided on the liquid crystal layer side of at least one of the pair of substrates; and the liquid crystal layer of at least one of the pair of substrates. A photo spacer provided on the side,
The liquid crystal device, wherein the retardation layer and the photo spacer are arranged so as not to overlap in a plane.   2. The liquid crystal device according to claim 1, wherein a light-shielding film is provided on one of the pair of substrates, and the light-shielding film and the photo spacer are arranged so as to overlap in a plane.   An alignment film is provided on the liquid crystal layer side of the substrate provided with the photo spacer, the alignment film is subjected to rubbing treatment, and the light shielding film passes through the photo spacer and is parallel to the rubbing direction. The liquid crystal device according to claim 2, wherein the liquid crystal device extends in a direction.   The liquid crystal device according to claim 3, wherein a length of the light shielding film in a portion extending in a direction parallel to the rubbing direction is larger than a height of the photo spacer.   The liquid crystal device according to claim 2, wherein the retardation layer, the photo spacer, and the light shielding film are provided on the same substrate.   The liquid crystal device according to claim 5, wherein the photo spacer is provided at an intermediate position between the two retardation layers adjacent to each other.   The liquid crystal device according to claim 6, wherein the photo spacer is provided at a boundary portion between sub-pixels provided with different colored layers.   The liquid crystal device according to claim 2, wherein the retardation layer and the photo spacer are provided on different substrates.   A method of manufacturing a liquid crystal device, comprising: a step of forming a retardation layer on a substrate; and a step of forming a photo spacer on the substrate while avoiding a region where the retardation layer is formed.   An electronic apparatus comprising the liquid crystal device according to claim 1 or the liquid crystal device manufactured by the method for manufacturing a liquid crystal device according to claim 9.

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