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.

An object of the present invention is to provide a polarizer having a high degree of alignment and an image display device including the polarizer. The polarizer according to the embodiment of the present invention is a polarizer which is formed of a polarizer-forming composition containing a polymer liquid crystal compound and a dichroic material, in which the polymer liquid crystal compound is a thermotropic liquid crystal and a crystalline polymer, and the polymer liquid crystal compound and the dichroic material are horizontally aligned.

Liquid crystal polymers (LCPs) are described herein that include novel arrangements of bio-mimicking properties for use in surgery, therapy, and treatment of medical or comfort issues. Through the particular arrangements medical devices and portions of them may be adapted to have properties that dampen and dissipate vibrations such as shocks to body tissues during surgical recovery and/or during subsequent use. This dampening is attained by novel arrangements of LCP and processes for forming them that vary from prior attempts at synthesizing activated LCP elements. These novel arrangements include using LCP bodies that include thicknesses and properties that have not been demonstrated or achieved for medical or other purposes and that are achieved using distinct processes. These novel LCP arrangements and methods of creating them can produce medical devices that bio-mimic natural tissue or operation to provide better results for patients.

A photoreactive liquid crystal composition containing (A) a photoreactive polymer liquid crystal which includes a photoreactive side chain in which at least one type of reaction selected from (A-1) photocrosslinking and (A-2) photoisomerization occurs, and (B) a low molecular weight liquid crystal. An optical element or display element is formed having a liquid crystal cell including the photoreactive liquid crystal composition.

Self-aligned liquid crystal materials and structures are disclosed. The structures can exhibit piezoelectric and flexoelectric properties.

A first object of the present invention is to provide a liquid crystal composition which has excellent planarity in a case of being formed into a coating film and is also capable of forming a reflective layer having excellent diffuse reflectivity. A second object of the present invention is to provide a reflective layer that is formed using the liquid crystal composition, as well as a method for producing a reflective layer. A third object of the present invention is to provide a copolymer that can be used as an alignment control agent for a liquid crystal compound.

The liquid crystal composition of the present invention includes a polymerizable liquid crystal compound and a copolymer having a predetermined structure.

An optically anisotropic layer including a polymer and a compound having a mesogen skeleton, wherein the polymer has a property such that a film of the polymer that is formed by a coating method using a solution of the polymer satisfies nz(P)>nx(P)ny(P), wherein nx(P) is a refractive index in a direction which, among in-plane directions of the film, gives a maximum refractive index, ny(P) is a refractive index in a direction which is perpendicular to the direction of nx(P) among the in-plane directions of the film, and nz(P) a refractive index in a thickness direction of the film, and the compound having a mesogen skeleton shows an in-plane retardation with reverse wavelength distribution under specific conditions.

A phase difference film is formed by using a liquid crystal compound and that indicates an Nz factor of more than 0 and less than 1, an optical film with same, and a display device. The phase difference film is formed by using a composition including a polymerizable liquid crystal compound having a mesogen group, where an order parameter of the mesogen group in an in-plane slow axis direction of the phase difference film is set as Sx, an order parameter of the mesogen group in a direction orthogonal to the in-plane slow axis direction in a plane is set as Sy, and an order parameter of the mesogen group in a thickness direction of the phase difference film is set as Sz, in a case where the mesogen group has a rod or a disc shape, differing Expressions are satisfied.

The limitation of the different classes of responsive liquid crystals such as volatility in case of low molecular weight liquid crystals (LMWLCs) can be overcome by the development of a responsive film based on polymerliquid crystals (PLCs) and reactive mesogens (RMs or reactive liquid crystal monomers) to create a responsive film or coating material which appears to be easily alignable and processable. That coating material shows a large response of which the properties can be tuned in a modular approach. In this way, the advantages of both materials, PLCs and RMs, were combined, yielding stable films, which can be aligned when desired and which stimuli-responsive properties can be tuned by the choice of RMs. Thus mixtures of PLCs with RMs open the doors to a wide variety of stimuli-responsive coating systems, without the need of time consuming trial-and-error synthesis of PLCs and closed liquid crystal cells. By choosing chiral RMs, cholesteric LC coatings can for instance be fabricated, while a light responsive RM could provide a light responsive coating. In addition, one could use similar methods as were used for LMWLCs with RMs in closed cells to prepare for example broadband reflectors or patterned coatings that change topography by a stimulus.

A liquid crystal composition contains a side chain type polymer liquid crystalline compound which can form a light absorption anisotropic film having a high alignment degree and has excellent solubility in a general-purpose solvent, a light absorption anisotropic film obtained using the composition, a laminate, and an image display device. The composition includes: a side chain type polymer liquid crystalline compound; and a dichroic substance, in which the compound is a copolymer having a repeating unit (1) containing a mesogenic group with a molecular weight of greater than 280 and a repeating unit (2) with a molecular weight of 280 or less, a content of the repeating unit (2) is less than 14% by mass with respect to a total mass of the compound, and a content of the dichroic substance is greater than 2% by mass with respect to a total solid content of the composition.