JP2009210766A - Liquid crystal device and method of manufacturing the same - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To improve reliability by making the density of inorganic orientation films higher. <P>SOLUTION: A liquid crystal device is constituted so that liquid crystal is interposed between a pair of substrates, and the liquid crystal is regularly oriented by the inorganic orientation films respectively formed on the opposite surfaces of the pair of the substrates. At least one of the inorganic orientation films respectively formed on the opposite surfaces of the pair of the substrates has a plurality of vapor deposition layers including a lowermost layer 62a provided on the surface of the substrates and formed at a vapor deposition angle of 90°, and an orientation layer 62b formed on a liquid crystal layer. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a liquid crystal device that improves the reliability of an alignment film and a method for manufacturing the same.

  In general, as an alignment film for regulating alignment of liquid crystal molecules in a liquid crystal device such as a liquid crystal display panel, an oblique alignment deposition film formed by depositing an inorganic material such as SiO at a predetermined angle with respect to a substrate surface is known. It has been.

  However, when oblique orientation deposition is performed, the coarse density of the alignment film formed on the substrate becomes relatively coarse. If it does so, there exists a possibility that a liquid crystal may enter into the clearance gap between alignment films and may contact with the base ITO layer. When energization is performed in such a state, there is a disadvantage that the liquid crystal is adversely affected and reliability is lowered.

As a method for solving this problem, Patent Document 1 discloses a method of improving the reliability by increasing the density of coarse density by performing oblique deposition from two directions whose azimuth angles are 180 degrees different from each other. Yes.
JP 2005-181794 A

  However, the technique of Patent Document 1 has a problem that the coarse density cannot be sufficiently dense and sufficient reliability cannot be obtained.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a liquid crystal device capable of improving the reliability by forming a sufficiently dense alignment film and a method for manufacturing the same.

  An apparatus for manufacturing a liquid crystal device according to the present invention is a liquid crystal device in which liquid crystal is interposed between a pair of substrates, and the alignment of the liquid crystals is regulated by inorganic alignment films formed on opposite surfaces of the pair of substrates. And at least one of the inorganic alignment films formed on the opposing surfaces of the pair of substrates has a plurality of vapor deposition layers including an alignment layer formed in contact with the liquid crystal layer, and the plurality of vapor deposition layers Of these, the lowermost vapor deposition layer is formed at a vapor deposition angle of 90 degrees.

  According to such a configuration, the lowermost layer of the inorganic alignment film provided on the substrate surface side is formed at a deposition angle of 90 degrees. Thereby, the coarse density of the lowermost layer is sufficiently dense. An alignment layer is formed on the bottom layer. Accordingly, the inorganic alignment film having at least the lowermost layer and the alignment layer has a sufficiently dense coarse density and can improve reliability.

  Further, the inorganic alignment film has one or more vapor deposition layers having different azimuth angles and vapor deposition angles from the alignment layer between the lowermost vapor deposition layer and the alignment layer.

  According to such a configuration, between the lowermost layer and the alignment layer, since the alignment layer has one or more vapor deposition layers having different azimuth angles and vapor deposition angles, the coarse density can be further increased. And reliability can be improved.

  The method for manufacturing a liquid crystal device according to the present invention is a liquid crystal in which a liquid crystal is interposed between a pair of substrates, and the alignment of the liquid crystals is regulated by inorganic alignment films formed on opposing surfaces of the pair of substrates. An apparatus manufacturing method, comprising: forming a lowermost vapor deposition layer at a vapor deposition angle of 90 degrees on at least one of the pair of substrates; and a vapor deposition angle sharper than the lowermost vapor deposition layer And a step of forming an uppermost alignment layer.

  According to such a configuration, the lowermost layer of the inorganic alignment film is formed on the substrate surface side at a deposition angle of 90 degrees. Thereby, the coarse density of the lowermost layer becomes sufficiently dense. An alignment layer is formed on the lowermost layer. Accordingly, the inorganic alignment film having at least the lowermost layer and the alignment layer has a sufficiently dense coarse density and can improve reliability.

  Further, the method includes a step of forming one or more vapor deposition layers having different azimuth angles and vapor deposition angles from the alignment layer between the step of forming the lowermost layer and the step of forming the uppermost layer. And

  According to such a configuration, one or more vapor deposition layers having different azimuth angles and vapor deposition angles from the alignment layer are formed between the lowermost layer and the alignment layer, so that the coarse density is further increased. And reliability can be improved.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 shows a liquid crystal device according to a first embodiment of the present invention, and is a plan view of an element substrate as viewed from the counter substrate side together with the components configured thereon. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the liquid crystal device after the assembly process in which the element substrate and the counter substrate are bonded to each other and the liquid crystal is sealed is cut along the line HH ′ in FIG. In each of the above drawings, the scale is different for each layer and each member so that each layer and each member can be recognized in the drawing.

  First, the overall configuration of the liquid crystal device 100 of the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. 1 and 2 exemplify a transmissive liquid crystal display device of a TFT active matrix driving method with a built-in driving circuit as an example of the liquid crystal device.

  1 and 2, the liquid crystal device 100 includes a liquid crystal 50 sandwiched between a TFT substrate 10 made of glass, quartz, or the like and a counter substrate 20, and changes the alignment state of the liquid crystal 50, thereby displaying an image. By modulating the light incident on the region 10a from the counter substrate 20 side and emitting from the TFT substrate 10 side, an image is displayed in the image display region 10a.

  In the liquid crystal device 100, the TFT substrate 10 and the counter substrate 20 are disposed to face each other. The TFT substrate 10 and the counter substrate 20 are bonded to each other by a seal material 52 provided in a seal region located around the image display region 10a, and the TFT substrate 10 and the counter substrate 20 are bonded by the seal material 52. Liquid crystal 50 is sealed between them. Further, in the sealing material 52, a gap material such as a glass fiber or a glass bead (not shown) is provided for setting the distance between the TFT substrate 10 and the counter substrate 20 to a predetermined value.

  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. A part or all of the frame light shielding film 53 may be provided as a built-in light shielding film on the TFT substrate 10 side.

  The periphery of the image display area 10a is a non-display area. In the non-display area, the data line driving circuit 101 and the mounting terminal 102 are provided along one side of the TFT substrate 10 in an area located outside the seal area where the seal material 52 is disposed. Although not shown, by connecting a flexible printed circuit board or the like to the mounting terminals 102 exposed on the surface of the TFT substrate 10, electrical connection between the liquid crystal device 100 and the outside such as a control device of an electronic device is performed. Is called.

  The scanning line driving circuit 104 is provided along two sides adjacent to one side of the TFT substrate 10 on which the data line driving circuit 101 and the mounting terminals 102 are provided, and is covered with the frame light shielding film 53. Further, a plurality of wirings 105 are covered by the frame light shielding film 53 along the remaining side of the TFT substrate 10, that is, the side facing the one side of the TFT substrate 10 on which the data line driving circuit 101 and the mounting terminal 102 are provided. Provided. The two scanning line driving circuits 104 are electrically connected to each other by the plurality of wirings 105.

  In addition, at least one corner of the counter substrate 20 is provided with a vertical conductive material 106 that electrically connects the TFT substrate 10 and the counter substrate 20. On the other hand, the TFT substrate 10 is provided with vertical conduction terminals in a region corresponding to the vertical conduction material 106. Electrical connection is made between the TFT substrate 10 and the counter substrate 20 via the vertical conductive member 106 and the vertical conductive terminal.

  In FIG. 2, an inorganic alignment film 16 is formed on the TFT substrate 10 on the pixel electrode 9a after the pixel switching TFT, the scanning line, the data line, and the like are formed. On the other hand, on the counter substrate 20, in addition to the counter electrode 21, a light shielding film 23 having a lattice shape or a stripe shape is formed, and an inorganic alignment film 22 is formed on the uppermost layer portion. The inorganic alignment films 16 and 22 formed on the surfaces of the TFT substrate 10 and the counter substrate 20 that are in contact with the liquid crystal 50 are thin films made of an inorganic material such as SiO 2, SiO, or MgF 2.

  Thin films made of these inorganic materials are formed by vapor deposition. The liquid crystal 50 is, for example, a mixture of one kind or several kinds of liquid crystals, and takes a predetermined alignment state between the pair of inorganic alignment films 16 and 22.

  Further, for example, a TN (twisted nematic) mode, an STN (super TN) mode, and a D-STN (double-STN) are respectively provided on the side on which the incident light of the counter substrate 20 enters and the side on which the outgoing light of the TFT substrate 10 exits. ) Mode, VA (vertical alignment) mode, and other modes, and a normally white mode / normally black mode, a polarizing film, a retardation film, a polarizing plate, and the like are arranged in a predetermined direction.

  Thus, in the liquid crystal device 100, the alignment film for regulating the alignment of liquid crystal molecules is formed of an inorganic alignment film that is a thin film made of an inorganic material such as SiO2, SiO, or MgF2. An inorganic alignment film composed of an inorganic material is superior in light resistance and heat resistance to an alignment film composed of an organic material such as polyimide, so that a liquid crystal device that does not deteriorate over time and does not deteriorate display quality is used. realizable.

  FIG. 3 is an explanatory view specifically showing the configuration of the inorganic alignment films 16 and 22 in FIG.

  In the present embodiment, the inorganic alignment films 16 and 22 have a multilayer structure. On the electrodes 9a and 21 (hereinafter collectively referred to as the ITO film 61) made of ITO (conductive material), the multilayered inorganic alignment films 16 and 22 (hereinafter collectively referred to as the inorganic alignment film 62) are also referred to. ) Is configured. The inorganic alignment film 62 has a structure having two vapor deposition layers of a first layer 62a formed on the ITO film 61 and an alignment layer 62b formed on the first layer 62a. The first layer 62a is formed on the ITO film 61 with a predetermined film thickness by a vapor deposition method with a vapor deposition angle of 90 degrees. An alignment layer 62b is formed on the first layer 62a by an oblique vapor deposition method with a vapor deposition angle of θ degrees.

  Next, an assembly process of the liquid crystal device 100 will be described. FIG. 4 is a flowchart of the assembly process of the liquid crystal device.

  The liquid crystal device 100 is formed by first forming a plurality of liquid crystal devices 100 integrally and then dividing them into individual pieces. In other words, the liquid crystal device 100 is formed by a method of multi-cavity from a mother substrate which is a so-called large format substrate. FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a TFT array substrate 35 in which a plurality of TFT substrates 10 are configured on a mother substrate.

  As shown in FIG. 5, on the substrate surface 35b of the TFT array substrate 35 having a disk shape, patterns to be a plurality of TFT substrates 10 for constituting the liquid crystal device 100 are respectively provided in the row and column directions. They are arranged at intervals.

  In the assembly process of the liquid crystal device 100, first, a pattern to be a plurality of TFT substrates 10 is formed on the TFT array substrate 35. For example, data lines, scanning lines, TFTs, etc. are formed by film formation by CVD or sputtering, patterning by photolithography, etc., heat treatment, etc., and a pixel electrode 9a made of ITO is formed on the uppermost layer (step S11). ).

  Next, in the inorganic alignment film forming step, the inorganic alignment film 16 made of SiO 2 is formed on the pixel electrode 9a by performing vapor deposition on the substrate surface 35b of the TFT array substrate 35 using a vapor deposition apparatus described later in detail ( Step S12). In this embodiment, the inorganic alignment film 16 is configured by forming a large number of columnar structures 63 (see FIG. 3) such as SiO 2 with a predetermined density. This columnar structure is also called a column structure, and is a nanometer-order structure formed by depositing SiO2 molecules by a vapor deposition method under predetermined conditions.

  In the present embodiment, the columnar structure 63 of the inorganic alignment film 16 is formed by depositing the vapor deposition material at an angle of 90 degrees with respect to the substrate surface in the first layer 62a, and the vapor deposition material is at an elevation angle θ in the alignment layer 62b. It is formed by depositing.

  Next, in the cleaning process, a cleaning liquid is supplied onto the surface of the inorganic alignment film 16 formed on the TFT array substrate 35 to clean the surface of the inorganic alignment film 16 (step S13).

  On the other hand, the light shielding film 23 and the counter electrode 21 are formed on the counter substrate 20 by, for example, film formation by CVD or sputtering, patterning by photolithography, or the like (step S21).

  Next, the above-described steps S12 to S13 are performed on the counter substrate 20. That is, the inorganic alignment film 22 made of SiO2 is formed on the counter electrode 21 by vapor deposition (step S22). Thereby, the inorganic alignment film 22 having the same structure as the inorganic alignment film 16 is formed. Next, a cleaning liquid is supplied onto the surface of the inorganic alignment film 22 to clean the surface of the inorganic alignment film 22 (step S23).

  Then, after the pre-process of the TFT array substrate 35 (TFT substrate 10) and the counter substrate 20 is completed, the alignment of the TFT array substrate 35 and the counter substrate 20 is adjusted in a predetermined manner through the sealing material 52 in the bonding process. Bonding in a state (step S31).

  Next, in the liquid crystal injection process, the liquid crystal 50 is injected and sealed in the region formed by the TFT array substrate 35 and the counter substrate 20 bonded together via the sealing material 52 (step S32). In this embodiment, the liquid crystal is injected by the cell injection method. However, in the case of the liquid crystal dropping method, before the TFT array substrate 35 and the counter substrate 20 are bonded, one substrate (generally, the TFT array). Since the liquid crystal 50 is dropped on the substrate 35) and the TFT array substrate 35 and the counter substrate 20 are bonded together via the sealing material 52, the liquid crystal is held, so step S31 (bonding step) and step S32 (liquid crystal) The injection process is reversed.

  Then, in the dividing step, the TFT array substrate 35 in a state where the counter substrate 20 is bonded is cut into pieces and separated to complete the liquid crystal device 100 (step S33).

  As described above, in this embodiment, the inorganic alignment film 16 is formed on the substrate surface 35b of the TFT array substrate 35 in a state before the plurality of TFT substrates 10 are cut out individually. The inorganic alignment film 16 on the TFT array substrate 35 is formed by a vapor deposition apparatus 300 described below.

  Next, a vapor deposition method will be described with reference to FIGS. The vapor deposition apparatus 300 as a manufacturing apparatus of the liquid crystal device 100 is to form the inorganic alignment film 16 made of, for example, SiO2 as a vapor deposition material on the substrate surface 35b of the TFT array substrate 35 by a vapor deposition method. 6 and 7 are diagrams schematically showing the configuration of the vapor deposition apparatus 300. FIG. Note that in the following description, the upper side of the paper surface of FIGS. 6 and 7 is the upper side of the vapor deposition apparatus 300.

  As illustrated in FIG. 6, the vapor deposition apparatus 300 includes a control unit 310 including an arithmetic device, a storage device, and the like, and a vacuum chamber 301 that keeps the inside airtight, and includes a vapor deposition material 302 in the vacuum chamber 301. A vapor deposition source 311, a substrate holder 305 and a linear motion stage 306 that are moving means, a mask 200 that is a mask member, and a shutter 307 that is a shielding means are provided.

  FIG. 7 shows a state in which the substrate holder 305, the linear motion stage 306, and the mask 200 in FIG. 6 are rotated. These members are rotatably supported by a support member (not shown), and the elevation angle θ with respect to the vertical direction can be changed.

  Further, the vapor deposition apparatus 300 includes a vacuum pump 308 connected to the inside of the vacuum chamber 301. During the vapor deposition process described later, the vacuum chamber 301 is discharged by discharging the air in the vacuum chamber 301 by the vacuum pump 308. The inside is kept in a vacuum (reduced pressure state).

  The vapor deposition source 311 includes a crucible 303 that houses the vapor deposition material 302 and an electron gun 304 for heating the vapor deposition material 302. The vapor deposition source 311 generates vapor of the vapor deposition material 302 by heating and vaporizing the vapor deposition material 302 by irradiating the vapor deposition material 302 with an electron beam generated by the electron gun 304 in a vacuum.

  The vapor deposition material 302 has a linear shape with the longitudinal direction facing the paper surface of FIGS. 6 and 7, and the longitudinal width of the vapor deposition material 302 is substantially the same as the diameter of the TFT array substrate 35. Or larger than the diameter of the TFT array substrate 35.

  On the other hand, a substrate holder 305 and a linear motion stage 306 for supporting the TFT array substrate 35 are disposed vertically above the vapor deposition material 302. The TFT array substrate 35 is supported by a substrate holder 305 with the substrate surface 35b on the side where vapor deposition is performed facing the vapor deposition material 302. The substrate holder 305 is supported by a linear motion stage 306 having a linear motion mechanism such as a uniaxial linear motor that can move linearly so as to advance and retreat in one direction. The linear motion stage 306 is electrically connected to the control unit 310, and the control unit 310 controls the driving of the linear motion stage 306 so that the substrate holder 305 and the TFT array substrate 35 supported by the substrate holder 305 are positioned. Is done.

  The moving axis M of the linear movement stage 306 is inclined in the horizontal direction in FIG. FIG. 7 shows a state where the moving axis M of the linear motion stage 306 is inclined by θ degrees = 90 degrees with respect to the vertical axis.

  In the substrate holder 305 and the linear motion stage 306, the angle (deposition angle) formed by the vertical axis passing through the center of gravity of the deposition material 302 and the substrate surface 35b of the TFT array substrate 35 is always θ degrees during one deposition. The TFT array substrate 35 is supported so as to be movable. Therefore, the TFT array substrate 35 supported by the substrate holder 305 is moved along the movement axis M in the vacuum chamber 301 so that the substrate surface 35b is moved on the plane including the substrate surface 35b by the linear motion stage 306. Are translated and positioned. 5 shows the TFT array substrate 35 in the direction of arrow A in FIGS. 6 and 7, and the arrow M in FIG. 5 indicates the direction of the movement axis M in FIGS.

  In the state of FIG. 6, the TFT array substrate 35 is supported by the substrate holder 305 so that the y axis is parallel to the movement axis M of the linear motion stage 306, and is translated in the y axis direction. In the present embodiment, the substrate holder 305 can arrange the TFT array substrate 35 in an appropriate direction. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, the TFT array substrate 35 can be arranged so that the orientation flat is positioned on the lower side of the paper surface when the movement axis M is set in the vertical direction of the paper surface. The TFT array substrate 35 may be arranged and fixed in an arbitrary direction. That is, in this embodiment, the azimuth angle at the time of vapor deposition can be arbitrarily set.

A mask 200 and a shutter 307 are disposed between the TFT array substrate 35 and the vapor deposition material 302.
The mask 200 is a member in which a slit hole 210 as an opening is formed in a rectangular flat plate as shown in FIGS. The mask 200 is fixed in the vacuum chamber 301 such that the slit hole 210 is positioned vertically above the vapor deposition material 302 and the surface of the mask 200 is parallel to the substrate surface 35 b of the TFT array substrate 35. That is, the angle formed by the surface of the mask 200 and the vertical axis passing through the center of gravity of the vapor deposition material 302 is θ degrees (θ = 90 degrees in FIG. 7).

  In other words, the flat mask 200 having the slit hole 210 as an opening is disposed in the vacuum chamber 301 with its relative position to the vapor deposition material 302 being fixed. In the TFT array substrate 35, the substrate surface 35 b faces the mask 200 side (vapor deposition material 302 side) on the side of the mask 200 opposite to the vapor deposition material 302, and the substrate surface 35 b is parallel to the surface of the mask 200. As shown, the linear movement stage 306 and the substrate holder 305 which are moving means are supported. The TFT array substrate 35 is moved in parallel with the movement axis M on the plane including the substrate surface 35 b by driving the linear motion stage 306 on the side opposite to the vapor deposition material 302 of the mask 200.

  The slit hole 210, which is an opening formed in the mask 200, has a shape that exposes the deposition area of the TFT array substrate 35 to the deposition material 302 side, and the movement axis M that is the movement direction of the TFT array substrate 35. It has an elongated slit shape with the direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction as the longitudinal direction. The slit holes 210 expose all the rows arranged in the row direction (x direction) among the plurality of image display regions 10 a arranged in a matrix on the substrate surface 35 b of the TFT array substrate 35 to the vapor deposition material 302 side. And has a shape covering the mounting terminal 102.

  On the other hand, the shutter 307 serving as shielding means is a device that is disposed between the vapor deposition material 302 and the mask 200 and shields or opens the vapor passage 307 a from the vapor deposition material 302 toward the mask 200 and the TFT array substrate 35. . A driving unit (not shown) of the shutter 307 is electrically connected to the control unit 310, and the shutter 307 is driven by a signal from the control unit 310 so that the passage 307 a is blocked or opened by the shutter 307. Is selected.

  In addition, a film thickness sensor 309 serving as a film thickness measuring unit is disposed on the vapor deposition material 302 side of the mask 200. The film thickness sensor 309 is a film thickness meter of a known form using a crystal resonator, and from the change in the natural frequency of the crystal resonator due to the film thickness of the vapor deposition material deposited on the crystal resonator, This is an apparatus for calculating the film thickness deposited on the child. The film thickness sensor 309 is disposed in the vicinity of the slit hole 210 of the mask 200, and can measure the film pressure of the vapor deposition material deposited on the TFT array substrate 35 through the slit hole 210. The film thickness sensor 309 is electrically connected to the control unit 310 and transmits a measurement result of the deposited film thickness to the control unit 310.

  According to such a vapor deposition apparatus 300, the vapor deposition material can be deposited at the vapor deposition angle (elevation angle) θ and at the azimuth angle indicated by the arrow M in FIG. 5 in the state of FIG. The deposition material can be deposited at a deposition angle of 90 degrees.

  A process of depositing the inorganic alignment film 16 (inorganic alignment film 62) on the surface of the TFT array substrate 35 using the vapor deposition apparatus 300 having the above configuration will be described below. FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a process for depositing the inorganic alignment film 62 on the surface of the TFT array substrate 35.

  Note that in the process described below, the inside of the vacuum chamber 301 of the vapor deposition apparatus 300 is kept in a vacuum state by the vacuum pump 308, and the vapor deposition material 302 of the vapor deposition source 311 is heated, so that the vapor of the vapor deposition material 302 is vaporized. Is performed in a state where the

  First, the TFT array substrate 35 is carried into the vacuum chamber 301 by a transfer device (not shown) (step S1). Next, in step S <b> 2, the TFT array substrate 35 is fixed to the substrate holder 305. In this case, the TFT array substrate 35 is supported and fixed so that the azimuth angle with respect to the movement axis M becomes an appropriate angle.

  Next, in step S3, the substrate holder 305, the linear motion stage 306, and the mask 200 are rotated to set the vapor deposition angle (elevation angle) θ.

  In the present embodiment, the inorganic alignment film 62 is formed in a multi-layered film, and the vapor deposition angle is set to 90 degrees for the lowermost first layer. That is, vapor deposition is performed in the state of FIG. 7 when the first layer 62a is formed.

  Next, the control unit 310 drives the linear motion stage 306 to position the TFT array substrate 35 at the initial position. Here, the initial position is a position at which the deposition area of the TFT array substrate 35 where y is the outermost side in the positive direction is exposed to the deposition material 302 side of the mask 200 through the slit hole 210 (step). S4).

  Next, the control unit 310 moves the shutter 307 to the open position. Thus, the vapor passage 307a from the vapor deposition material 302 toward the mask 200 and the TFT array substrate 35 is opened (step S5). The vapor of the vapor deposition material 302 adheres to the vapor deposition region of the TFT array substrate 35 through the slit hole 210 of the mask 200 and begins to be deposited.

  Next, the control unit 310 uses the film thickness sensor 309 to measure the film thickness deposited on the deposition area of the TFT array substrate 35 through the slit hole 210 (step S6). The vapor deposition material 302 is deposited and deposited on the vapor deposition region of the TFT array substrate 35 from the direction of the vapor deposition angle of 90 degrees when the first layer 62a is formed.

  Next, when the film thickness of the vapor deposition material 302 deposited on the vapor deposition region reaches a predetermined value, the control unit 310 moves the shutter 307 to the shielding position and shields the vapor passage 307a (Step S310). S7). Thereby, the film-forming of the 1st layer 62a is completed to the vapor deposition area | region exposed to the vapor deposition material 302 side through the slit hole 210 among several vapor deposition area | regions.

  Since the vapor deposition angle is set to 90 degrees in the first layer 62a, the columnar structures 63 are formed relatively densely so that the coarse density can be densely configured.

  Next, the controller 310 determines whether or not a vapor deposition film has been formed on all of the plurality of vapor deposition regions stored in advance on the substrate surface 35b of the TFT array substrate 35 (step S8). If completed, the process proceeds to step S10 to determine whether or not all layers have been formed.

  On the other hand, if the deposition film formation is not completed for all the deposition regions, the process proceeds to step S9, where the control unit 310 drives the linear motion stage 306 to move the TFT array substrate 35 in the y direction (moving axis M direction). ) Is moved by a predetermined distance interval. As a result, a deposition area where no vapor deposition film is formed on the substrate surface 35 b of the TFT array substrate 35 is newly exposed to the vapor deposition material 302 side through the slit hole 210. Thereafter, the process returns to step S5, and deposition of a deposited film is started on a new deposition region.

  When the first layer 62a of FIG. 3 is formed in this way, the process returns from step S10 to step S2, and the alignment layer 62b is formed. That is, in this case, the azimuth angle is set in step S2, and the vapor deposition angle is set in step S3. For example, the azimuth angle is made to coincide with the movement axis M as shown in FIG. 5, and the vapor deposition angle is set to θ. For example, vapor deposition is performed in the state of FIG. Since the uppermost layer of the inorganic alignment film 62 contributes to the alignment direction of the liquid crystal, it is necessary to set the azimuth angle and the evaporation angle during film formation to specified values.

  Thereafter, the processes in steps S4 to S9 are repeated to form the alignment layer 62b. In this way, the alignment layer 62b in which the azimuth angle and the vapor deposition angle are defined is obtained. When film formation of all layers is completed, the TFT array substrate 35 is unloaded from the vacuum chamber 301 by the transfer device, and the vapor deposition process is ended (step S11).

  Since the first layer 62a, which is the lowermost layer of the inorganic alignment film 62, is densely formed, the coarse density of the inorganic alignment film 62 can be increased, and the reliability of the liquid crystal device can be improved. it can.

  As described above, in the present embodiment, the vapor deposition film constituting the alignment film is formed in a multilayer structure, and the first lowermost layer is formed at a vapor deposition angle of 90 degrees. Thereby, the coarse density of the inorganic alignment film can be made dense and the reliability can be improved.

  FIG. 9 is an explanatory diagram for explaining a second embodiment of the present invention.

  In the first embodiment, the inorganic alignment film has a two-layer structure, but the inorganic alignment film may have a multilayer structure of three or more layers. Even in this case, the vapor deposition film is formed with the vapor deposition angle of 90 degrees for the first lowermost layer, and the azimuth angle and vapor deposition angle are set to predetermined values according to the alignment direction of the liquid crystal for the uppermost layer. For the layers other than the lowermost layer and the uppermost layer, the azimuth angle and the vapor deposition angle can be freely set.

  For example, FIG. 9 shows an example of forming an inorganic alignment film having a five-layer structure in which four layers of inorganic alignment films are deposited at the first layer and four azimuth angles M1 to M4. The example of FIG. 9 shows that vapor deposition is performed with an azimuth angle M1 of 90 degrees, an azimuth angle M2 of 270 degrees, and an azimuth angle M3 of 180 degrees with the azimuth angle M4 as a reference.

  As described above, in the second embodiment, it is possible to form an inorganic alignment film having a denser density by forming vapor deposition layers having various azimuth angles and vapor deposition angles.

  In the above embodiment, the azimuth angle and vapor deposition angle of the uppermost layer only need to be specified values, and it is obvious that the azimuth angles and vapor deposition angles of the second layer and the third layer can be set as appropriate.

  In each of the above embodiments, the multilayer structure shown in FIG. 3 is applied to both the inorganic alignment film 16 of the TFT substrate 10 and the inorganic alignment film 22 of the counter substrate 20, but only one of the inorganic alignment films is used. You may apply. In addition, the number of layers, the azimuth angle, the deposition angle, and the like may be set differently for the inorganic alignment film 16 and the inorganic alignment film 22.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be appropriately changed without departing from the spirit or concept of the invention that can be read from the claims and the entire specification. The manufacturing apparatus and the manufacturing method of the liquid crystal device are also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

The liquid crystal device which concerns on the 1st Embodiment of this invention is shown, The top view which looked at the element substrate from the opposing board | substrate side with each component comprised on it. FIG. 2 is a cross-sectional view of the liquid crystal device after the assembly process in which the element substrate and the counter substrate are bonded to each other and the liquid crystal is sealed is cut along the line HH ′ in FIG. Explanatory drawing which shows the structure of the inorganic orientation films | membranes 16 and 22 in FIG. 6 is a flowchart of an assembly process of a liquid crystal device. The top view of the TFT array substrate 35 which is a substrate for liquid crystal devices of this embodiment. The figure which shows the structure of the vapor deposition apparatus 300 typically. The figure which shows the structure of the vapor deposition apparatus 300 typically. 10 is a flowchart of a process of depositing an inorganic alignment film 62 on the surface of the TFT array substrate 35. Explanatory drawing for demonstrating the 2nd Embodiment of this invention.

Explanation of symbols

    9a ... pixel electrode, 10 ... TFT array substrate, 16, 22, 62 ... inorganic alignment film, 20 ... counter substrate, 21 ... counter electrode, 61 ... ITO film, 62a ... first layer, 62b ... alignment layer.

Claims (4)

A liquid crystal device in which a liquid crystal is interposed between a pair of substrates, and the alignment of the liquid crystal is regulated by inorganic alignment films respectively formed on opposing surfaces of the pair of substrates;
At least one of the inorganic alignment films formed on the opposing surfaces of the pair of substrates has a plurality of vapor deposition layers including an alignment layer formed in contact with the liquid crystal layer,
The lowest vapor deposition layer of the plurality of vapor deposition layers is formed at a vapor deposition angle of 90 degrees.   2. The inorganic alignment film according to claim 1, wherein the inorganic alignment film includes one or more vapor deposition layers having different azimuth angles and vapor deposition angles from the alignment layer between the lowermost vapor deposition layer and the alignment layer. The liquid crystal device described. A method of manufacturing a liquid crystal device, wherein a liquid crystal is interposed between a pair of substrates, and the alignment of the liquid crystals is regulated by inorganic alignment films formed on opposing surfaces of the pair of substrates,
Forming a lowermost vapor deposition layer at a vapor deposition angle of 90 degrees on at least one of the pair of substrates;
Forming the uppermost alignment layer at a vapor deposition angle sharper than the lowermost vapor deposition layer;
A method for manufacturing a liquid crystal device, comprising:   Between the step of forming the lowermost layer and the step of forming the uppermost layer, the method further comprises the step of forming one or more vapor deposition layers having different azimuth angles and vapor deposition angles from the alignment layer. A method for manufacturing a liquid crystal device according to claim 3.

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