The present invention relates to a liquid crystal display device that includes a particular color filter containing a material containing chiral liquid crystals and a particular pigment. The present invention provides a liquid crystal display device that can prevent a decrease in the voltage holding ratio (VHR) of a liquid crystal layer and solve the problem of display defects, such as white spots, variations in alignment, and burn-in. Because liquid crystal display devices according to the present invention characteristically prevent a decrease in the voltage holding ratio (VHR) of a liquid crystal layer and reduces the occurrence of display defects, such as burn-in, the liquid crystal display devices are particularly useful as liquid crystal display devices in IPS mode and FFS mode for active-matrix driving and can be applied to household electrical appliances, automobiles, production facilities, measuring and analytical instruments, and communication devices.

An optical device (20) includes an electro-optical layer, including a liquid crystal material (24) with a heliconical structure having a pitch that is less than 250 nm and is modifiable by an electric field. An array of excitation electrodes (28) extends over the electro-optical layer. Control circuitry (23) is coupled to apply control voltage waveforms to the excitation electrodes and is configured to modify the control voltage waveforms so as to locally modify a molecule director angle of the heliconical structure and thus to generate a specified phase modulation profile in the electro-optical layer.

Provided are a method for producing a reflective layer having excellent diffuse reflectivity and a reflective layer having excellent diffuse reflectivity. The method for producing a reflective layer of the present invention includes Step 1 of applying a composition containing a liquid crystal compound and a chiral agent onto a substrate and heating the applied composition to align the liquid crystal compound into a cholesteric liquid crystalline phase state, and Step 2 of forming a reflective layer by cooling or heating the composition so that the helical twisting power of the chiral agent contained in the composition in the cholesteric liquid crystalline phase state increases by 5% or more.

The present invention relates to a method for preparing a solid-state photonic crystal IPN composite functionalized with an enzyme, a photonic crystal IPN composite prepared by the method, and a biosensor using the photonic crystal IPN composite. The method of the present invention includes (1) mixing a nonreactive chiral dopant with a reactive nematic mesogen, curing the mixture, and removing the chiral dopant while maintaining a helical structure, to form a solid-state helical photonic crystal structure, (2) infiltrating a PAA hydrogel into the internal space of the photonic crystal structure, followed by curing to form an IPN-structured composite, and (3) immobilizing an enzyme in the IPN-structured composite. The PAA hydrogel is infiltrated into the solid-state helical photonic crystal structure and the enzyme is immobilized such that a pH change caused by the enzymatic reaction induces shrinkage and expansion of the PAA hydrogel, leading to a color change.

An object of the present invention is to provide a compound having an excellent rate of change in HTP caused by exposure. Another object of the present invention is to provide a composition formed of the compound, a cured product, an optically anisotropic body, and a reflective film.

The compound of the present invention is a compound represented by General Formula (1).

##STR00001##

There is provided a laminate including, in the following order, a protective layer, a base material, a reflective layer having a maximum reflection wavelength in a wavelength range of 380 nm to 2,000 nm, and an adhesive layer, in which in a case where a modulus of elasticity of the protective layer is denoted by E1, a modulus of elasticity of the base material is denoted by E2, and a modulus of elasticity of the adhesive layer is denoted by E3, a relationship of E1≥E2>E3 is satisfied. The laminate is preferably a layer having an uneven structure, and more preferably the uneven structure has an uneven structure having a depth of 1 μm or more.

A compound has a strong HTP and a high temperature dependence of HTP. In addition, a liquid crystal composition, a cured substance, an optical anisotropic boy, and a reflection film the above-described compound. The compound is represented by General Formula (1), wherein X.sup.1 and X.sup.2 each independently represent —CH═CH—or C≡C—. ##STR00001##

Provided is a liquid crystal composition capable of forming an optically anisotropic layer, and method thereof, in which a variation in a twisted angle of liquid crystal compound in an in-plane direction is suppressed an optical film, and a circularly polarizing plate for an organic EL display. The liquid crystal composition contains a liquid crystal, optically active compound A which is a photosensitive optically active compound whose helical twisting power changes upon irradiation with light and has a molar absorption coefficient of 5,000 M.sup.−1.Math.cm.sup.−1 or more with respect to light having a wavelength of 365 nm, and an optically active compound B having a molar absorption coefficient with respect to light having a wavelength of 365 nm smaller than the molar absorption coefficient of the optically active compound A, in which a mass content ratio of the optically active compound A to the liquid crystal compound is less than 0.01.

An object of the present invention is to provide a method for producing a cholesteric liquid crystal layer, which is capable of freely controlling a tilt angle of an arrangement direction of bright portion and dark portion derived from a cholesteric liquid crystalline phase with respect to a normal line of a main surface of the cholesteric liquid crystal layer; a cholesteric liquid crystal layer; an optically anisotropic body; and a reflective film.

The method for producing a cholesteric liquid crystal layer according to the present invention includes a step X of forming a cholesteric liquid crystal layer A in which a liquid crystal compound is aligned into a state of a cholesteric liquid crystalline phase, satisfying all of the conditions 1 to 3, and a step Y of carrying out a treatment to increase or decrease a helical pitch of the cholesteric liquid crystalline phase in the cholesteric liquid crystal layer A obtained by the step X to increase or decrease a tilt angle of an arrangement direction of bright portion and dark portion derived from the cholesteric liquid crystalline phase, as observed in a cross-section perpendicular to a main surface of the cholesteric liquid crystal layer A, with respect to a normal direction of the main surface of the cholesteric liquid crystal layer A.

A polymerizable LC material comprising one or more reactive mesogenic compounds, one or more chiral compounds and a block copolymer that comprises at least one polyfluorooxetane block bonded to a polyether block, said polyfluorooxetane block having a repeating unit of the formula

##STR00001##

Further, a method for its preparation, a polymer film obtainable from a corresponding polymerizable LC material, a method of preparation of such polymer film, and the use of such polymer film and said polymerizable LC material in optical, electro-optical, decorative or security devices.