The present application relates to a circularly polarizing plate and a use thereof. The present application can provide a circularly polarizing plate, which can be applied to a display device such as an organic light emitting display device to minimize blocking of light in the visible light region affecting image quality while blocking harmful ultraviolet rays appropriately and also has excellent durability. In addition, the present application can provide a circularly polarizing plate having excellent compensation characteristics at a viewing angle while ensuring process simplification and cost competitiveness.

An object of the present invention is to provide a method for manufacturing an optical laminate in which an alignment defect is less likely to occur in a light-absorbing anisotropic layer even in a case where a surface of a photo-alignment layer is rubbed; an optical laminate; and an image display device. The method for manufacturing an optical laminate according to an embodiment of the present invention is a method for manufacturing an optical laminate in which an optical laminate including a photo-alignment layer and a light-absorbing anisotropic layer and having a front transmittance of 60% or less is produced and which includes a photo-alignment layer formation step of forming a photo-alignment layer on a polymer film, and a light-absorbing anisotropic layer formation step of applying a liquid crystal composition containing a dichroic substance and a high-molecular liquid crystalline compound onto the photo-alignment layer to form a light-absorbing anisotropic layer.

Provided is a composition containing a compound of formula (1), and a polymerizable liquid crystal compound or a liquid crystalline polymer compound. n represents 1 or 2; Ar.sup.1, Ar.sup.2, and Ar.sup.3 each represent a 1,4-phenylene group or a divalent sulfur-containing aromatic heterocyclic group; At least one of Art and Ar.sup.2 has a fluorine atom; R.sup.1 represents a single bond or a group selected from —OC(═O)—, —C(═O)O—, —C≡C—, —CH═CH—, —CH═N—, —N═N—, and —N═CH—; R.sup.2 represents an alkylamino group or an alkoxy group; R.sup.3 represents a group selected from an alkanediyl group, an alkanediyloxy group, an alkanediyloxycarbonyl group, and an alkanediylcarbonyloxy group; and R.sup.4 represents a polymerizable group or a hydrogen atom.

R.sup.4—R.sup.3—Ar.sup.1—(—R.sup.1—Ar.sup.2—).sub.n—N═N—Ar—R.sup.2   (1)

Provided is a composition for forming a polarizer from which a polarizer with an excellent surface state can be formed, a polarizer, a laminate, and an image display device. The composition for forming a polarizer includes a polymerizable liquid crystal compound which has two or more rings selected from the group consisting of an aromatic ring and an alicyclic ring and two polymerizable groups and exhibits a liquid crystal state of a smectic phase, a monofunctional polymerizable compound which has two or more rings selected from the group consisting of an aromatic ring and an alicyclic ring and one polymerizable group, and a dichroic material, in which the number of atoms NA of the polymerizable liquid crystal compound and the number of atoms NB of the monofunctional polymerizable compound satisfy Expression (1), 0.35≤NB/NA≤0.65 (1).

Provided is a polymerizable liquid crystal composition with which an image display device having an excellent contrast can be manufactured; and a cured product, an optical film, a polarizing plate, and an image display device. The polymerizable liquid crystal composition contains a compound represented by Formula (I). L.sup.1-SP.sup.1-D.sup.5-(A.sup.1).sub.a1-D.sup.3-(G.sup.1).sub.g1-D.sup.1-[Ar-D.sup.2].sub.q1-(G.sup.2).sub.g2-D.sup.4-(A.sup.2).sub.a2-D.sup.6-SP.sup.2-L.sup.2 . . . (I), and a compound represented by Formula (II), L.sup.5-SP.sup.5-D.sup.9-(A.sup.5).sub.a3-D.sup.10-(G.sup.3).sub.g3-D.sup.11-M . . . (II).

An optical film, a polarizing plate, and an image display device, each having an optically anisotropic layer obtained by curing a polymerizable liquid crystal composition including immobilizing an alignment state of a rod-shaped liquid crystal compound (LCC) having reverse wavelength dispersibility and a monofunctional compound, in which the rod-shaped LCC has polymerizable groups P.sup.1 and P.sup.2, and three or more rings B.sup.1 selected from the group consisting of an aromatic ring and an alicyclic ring a.sub.1 atoms of the rod-shaped LCC and a.sub.2 atoms of the monofunctional compound having polymerizable group P.sup.3, satisfy a relationship of Expression (1): 0.2<a.sub.2/a.sub.1<0.55; b.sub.1 of the rings B.sup.1 contained in the rod-shaped LCC and a total b.sub.2 of the rings B.sup.2 and the aromatic rings Ar contained in the monofunctional compound satisfy a relationship of Expression (2): b.sub.2=b.sub.1×0.5 or b.sub.2=(b.sub.1+1)×0.5.

Provided is an optically anisotropic layer in which the occurrence of a haze is suppressed and a winding aptitude is excellent; and an optical film, a polarizing plate, and an image display device, each having the optically anisotropic layer. The optically anisotropic layer is obtained by polymerizing a polymerizable liquid crystal composition containing a polymerizable liquid crystal compound, in which in a case where an amplitude value at each wavelength determined by subjecting data of a three-dimensional surface roughness to a Fourier transform is defined as L, the amplitude value L at a wavelength of 5.0 μm or more is 0.125 or more, and the amplitude value L at a wavelength of 2.0 to 2.5 μm is 0.025 or less.

Provided is a liquid crystal composition with which an optically anisotropic layer having excellent light resistance can be formed and an image display device having an excellent contrast can be manufactured, an optically anisotropic layer, an optical film, a polarizing plate, and an image display device. The liquid crystal composition contains a liquid crystal compound and a non-liquid crystal compound, in which both of the liquid crystal compound and the non-liquid crystal compound are compounds having any of aromatic rings selected from the group consisting of groups represented by predetermined formulae, and a ratio of a molecular weight of the non-liquid crystal compound to a molecular weight of the liquid crystal compound is 1 or less.

A polymerizable liquid crystal composition capable of manufacturing an optically anisotropic film having excellent light fastness; and an optically anisotropic film, an optical film, a polarizing plate, an image display device, and an organic electroluminescent display device, each of which uses the polymerizable liquid crystal composition. The polymerizable liquid crystal composition of an embodiment of the present invention contains a polymerizable liquid crystal compound having reverse-wavelength dispersion properties and an aromatic polyether-based compound.

A laminate is provided having excellent adhesiveness between a light absorption anisotropic film and a barrier layer, a manufacturing method of the laminate, and an image display device using the laminate. A laminate having: a barrier layer A; and a light absorption anisotropic film B, in which the barrier layer A is adjacently provided on the light absorption anisotropic film B, a relationship between a highest content of a compound A1 contained in the barrier layer A and a highest content of a compound B1 contained in the light absorption anisotropic film B satisfies a relationship in which a value of distance calculated from Hansen solubility parameters and represented by Formula (I) is within a range of 0.0 to 5.0, and the light absorption anisotropic film B contains a component same as the compound A1.
distance={4×(δ.sub.D(B1)−δ.sub.D(A1)).sup.2+(δ.sub.P(B1)−δ.sub.P(A1)).sup.2+(δ.sub.H(B1)−δ.sub.H(A1)).sup.2}.sup.0.5  (I)