Optical wave guide driven liquid crystal display employing optical switching for input

• US 5,589,961 A
• Filed: 05/24/1995
• Issued: 12/31/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 04/07/1992
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Original Assignee: Sharp Kabushiki Kaisha (Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd.)
• Inventors: Shigeta, Mitsuhiro, Nonomura, Keisaku
• Primary Examiner(s): NOT, DEFINED
• Assistant Examiner(s): NOT, DEFINED
• Application Number:
  US08/449,664
• Time in Patent Office: 587 Days
• Field of Search: 359/54, 359/55, 359/58, 359/72, 359/82, 359/42, 359/87, 359/88, 385/14, 385/901, 385/132, 250/208.3, 250/227.11, 345/102, 345/103, 345/104
• US Class Current: 349/41
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 2006/12038 Glass (SiO2 based materials)
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/122 Basic optical elements, e.g. light-guiding paths
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/1345 using ion exchange ion exchange in glass C03C21/00
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 6/43 Arrangements comprising a plurality of opto-electronic elements and associated optical interconnections
• CPC Class Codes: G02F 1/135 Liquid crystal cells structurally associated with a photoconducting or a ferro-electric layer, the properties of which can be optically or electrically varied G02F1/133348 takes precedence

Abstract

An optical wave guide, an optical input device, fabrication methods thereof, and a liquid crystal display apparatus using the optical wave guide and optical input device are disclosed. The optical wave guide includes: a core region having a refractive index n_c through which an optical signal is transmitted; and a cladding layer in which low refractive index layers having a refractive index n₁ and high refractive index layers having a refractive index n_h are alternately deposited. A side face of the core region is covered with the cladding layer, and the refractive indices satisfy conditions of n₁ <n_h, and n₁ <n_c. The optical input device includes: a transparent substrate; the optical wave guide formed in the transparent substrate; an optical input portion; and a plurality of optical output portions for connecting a side face of the optical wave guide to a surface of the transparent substrate. The optical signal from the optical input portion is transmitted through the optical wave guide and output from the optical output portions to the outside of the transparent substrate. The liquid crystal display apparatus includes: a display medium; a plurality of pixel electrodes for driving the display medium; a plurality of signal lines; a plurality of photoconductors having photoconductive portions provided for the pixel electrodes, respectively; and the optical input device. The optical input device allowing the optical signal to selectively illuminate the photoconductive portions of the photoconductors for connecting or disconnecting the signal lines to or from the pixel electrodes.

Claims

1. A liquid crystal display apparatus comprising:

a display medium;

a plurality of pixel electrodes arranged in row and column directions for driving said display medium;

a plurality of signal lines arranged in the row or column direction;

a plurality of photoconductors having photoconductive portions provided for said plurality of pixel electrodes, respectively, said photoconductors functioning to connect or disconnect said signal lines to or from said pixel electrodes in accordance with an optical signal which illuminates said photoconductive portions; and

an optical input device, a part of said optical input device being disposed in a direction across said plurality of signal lines, said optical input device allowing said optical signal to selectively illuminate said photoconductive portions of said plurality of photoconductors,

wherein said optical input device includes;

a transparent substrate;

a plurality of optical wave guides formed in a surface portion of said transparent substrate;

an optical input portion provided at one end of said optical wave guide;

a plurality of optical switch elements provided with said plurality of optical wave guides, respectively; and

a plurality of optical output portions for connecting a side face of said optical wave guide to a suffice of said transparent substrate; and

wherein said plurality of switch elements optically connecting one of said plurality of optical wave guides selectively,

said optical signal input from said optical input portion is transmitted through said one of optical wave guide and output from said optical output portions to the outside of said transparent substrate, said optical signal illuminating said photoconductive portions of said plurality of photoconductors, respectively.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein each of said photoconductors includes a semiconductor device having a layered structure in which three or more layers of an n-type semiconductor layer and a p-type semiconductor layer are alternately deposited.

3. An apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said layered structure further includes an intrinsic semiconductor layer between said n-type semiconductor layer and said p-type semiconductor layer.

4. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said optical input device includes a single light source.

5. An apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said light source has a single opening for emitting a light into said optical input portion.

6. A liquid crystal display apparatus comprising:

a display medium;

a plurality of pixel electrodes arranged in row and column directions for driving said display medium;

a plurality of signal lines arranged in the row or column directions;

a plurality of photoconductors having photoconductive portions provided for said plurality of pixel electrodes, respectively, said photoconductors functioning to connect or disconnect said signal lines to or from said pixel electrodes in accordance with an optical signal which illuminates said photoconductive portions; and

an optical input device disposed in a direction across said plurality of signal lines, said optical input device allowing said optical signal to selectively illuminate said photoconductive portions of said plurality of photoconductors,

wherein said optical input device includes;

a transparent substrate;

a main optical input device comprising a part of an optical wave guide formed in a surface portion of said transparent substrate and an optical input portion provided at one end of said optical wave guide;

a plurality of optical output portions for connecting a side face of said optical wave guide to a surface of said transparent substrate, and

a plurality of sub optical input devices constituted by another part of said optical wave guide and said plurality of optical output portions; and

a plurality of optical switch elements with liquid crystal cladding layer, provided between said main optical input device and said sub optical input devices, for optically connecting said main optical input device to said sub optical input devices, respectively;

wherein said optical signal input from said optical input portion is transmitted through said optical wave guide and output from said optical output portions to the outside of said transparent substrate, said optical signal illuminating said photoconductive portions of said plurality of photoconductors, respectively.

7. A liquid crystal display apparatus comprising:

a display medium;

a plurality of pixel electrodes arranged in row and column directions for driving said display medium;

a plurality of signal lines arranged in the row or column directions;

a plurality of photoconductors having photoconductive portions provided for said plurality of pixel electrodes, respectively, said photoconductors functioning to connect or disconnect said signal lines to or from said pixel electrodes in accordance with an optical signal which illuminates said photoconductive portions; and

an optical input device disposed in a direction across said plurality of signal lines, said optical input device allowing said optical signal to selectively illuminate said photoconductive portions of said plurality of photoconductor,

wherein said optical input device includes;

a transparent substrate;

an optical wave guide formed in a surface portion of said transparent substrate;

an optical input portion provided at one end of said optical wave guide; and

a plurality of optical output portions for connecting a side face of said optical wave guide to a surface of said transparent substrate; and

wherein said pixel electrodes are directly formed on said optical wave guide of said optical input device, and a thickness of said pixel electrodes is 1/10 or less of a wavelength of the light emitted from a light source which is connected to said optical input portion, and said optical signal input from said optical input portion is transmitted through said optical wave guide and output from said optical output portions to the outside of said transparent substrate, said optical signal illuminating said photoconductive portions of said plurality of photoconductors, respectively.