Polymers for control of orientation and stability of liquid crystals
First Claim
1. An electrooptically active gel layer comprising:
- a quantity of liquid crystal molecules; and
a polymer having at least one middle portion solvated by the liquid crystal molecules, the middle portion being incorporated between at least two end portions, the end portions being physically associated with each other.
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Accused Products
Abstract
An electro-optically active polymer gel material comprising a high molecular weight alignment polymer adapted to be homogeneously dispersed throughout a liquid crystal to control the alignment of the liquid crystal molecules and/or confer mechanical stability is provided. The electro-optically active polymer gel comprises a homogenous gel in which the polymer strands of the gel are provided in low concentration and are well solvated by the small molecule liquid crystal without producing unacceptable slowing of its electrooptic response. During formation of the gel, a desired orientation is locked into the gel by physical or chemical cross-linking of the polymer chains. The electro-optically active polymer is then utilized to direct the orientation in the liquid crystal gel in the “field off” state of a liquid crystal display. The electro-optically active polymer also provides a memory of the mesostructural arrangement of the liquid crystal and acts to suppress the formation of large scale deviations, such as, for example, fan-type defects in a FLC when subjected to a mechanical shock. A method of making an electro-optically active polymer gel material and an electrooptic device utilizing the electro-optically active polymer gel of the present invention is also provided.
20 Citations
39 Claims
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1. An electrooptically active gel layer comprising:
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a quantity of liquid crystal molecules; and a polymer having at least one middle portion solvated by the liquid crystal molecules, the middle portion being incorporated between at least two end portions, the end portions being physically associated with each other. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22)
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- 23. An electrooptic device comprising two substrates, which are provided with at least one electrode, and an electro-optically active gel layer which is located between the two substrates, wherein the electro-optically active gel layer includes a quantity of liquid crystal molecules and a polymer having at least one middle portion solvated by the liquid crystal molecules, the middle portion being incorporated between at least two end portions, the end portions being physically associated with each other.
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34. An electrooptically active gel layer comprising:
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a quantity of liquid crystal molecules; and a quantity of polymer molecules, the polymer molecules being homogeneously dispersed within the liquid crystal molecules, the liquid crystal molecules solvating at least a portion of each polymer molecule, each polymer molecule comprising at least one other portion physically associated with a corresponding portion of another polymer molecule. - View Dependent Claims (35, 36, 37, 38, 39)
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Specification