Disclosed is a substrate which has thereon a marking or layer comprising a cured chiral liquid crystal precursor composition which does not contain any salt that would change the position of a selective reflection band exhibited by the cured composition. A modifying resin made from one or more polymerizable monomers comprising an average of at least one ether functionali typer polymerizable group is disposed between the substrate and the marking or layer and in contact with the marking or layer in one or more areas thereof. The modifying resin changes the position of a selective reflection band exhibited by the cured chiral liquid crystal precursor composition on the substrate in the one or more areas.

The invention relates to novel anisotropic compounds of formula (I) ##STR00001##
as well as liquid crystalline mixtures, films and electro-optical devices comprising the compound.

Disclosed herein is a light emitting device and method of manufacturing such a device comprised of a series of photopolymerizable, chiral liquid crystalline layers that can be solvent cast on a substrate. The mixture of chiral materials in each successive layer may be blended in such a way that each layer has the same chiral pitch. Further the chiral materials in each layer may also be blended so that the ordinary and extraordinary refractive indices in each layer match the other layers such that the complete assembly of layers will optically function as a single relatively thick layer of chiral liquid crystal. The chiral nematic material in each layer can spontaneously adopt a helical structure with a helical pitch. The light emitting layers of the light emitting device can further comprise electroluminescent material that emits light into the band edge light propagation modes of the photonic crystal.

A polymerizable liquid crystal composition is presented which can form a polymer that allows formation of a uniform homeotropic alignment even without forming an alignment film on the supporting substrate and has excellent chemical strengths such as heat resistance and solvent resistance. The polymerizable liquid crystal composition includes at least one type of polyfunctional polymerizable liquid crystal compound and a cardo-type fluorene monomer, wherein based on a total amount of the polyfunctional polymerizable liquid crystal compound, a content of a monofunctional polymerizable liquid compound is less than 5.0% by weight.

An optically anisotropic layer is formed by a liquid crystal compound represented by General Formula 1, in which the long axes of the molecules are oriented.

##STR00001##

wherein L.sub.1 and L.sub.2 independently represent a linking group having a carbonyl group; F.sub.1 and F.sub.2 independently represent an alkyl group having 1 to 4 carbon atoms, an alkoxy group having 1 to 4 carbon atoms, or a halogen atom; n and m independently represent an integer from 0 to 4; a and b independently represent an integer from 1 to 4; T.sub.1 and T.sub.2 independently represent a spacer portion including a straight chain or branched alkylene or alkylene oxide group having 2 to 20 carbon atoms; and Ar represents a divalent group having at least one aromatic ring selected from a group consisting of aromatic hydrocarbon rings and aromatic heterocycles, the number of electrons in the Ar group being 8 or greater.

The present invention provides a compound represented by the general formula (I), and a polymerizable composition containing the compound. When the polymerizable composition containing the compound represented by the formula (I) is used to form a filmy product, the resulting filmy product exhibits less change over time in phase difference and reverse wavelength dispersion and when the filmy polymer is irradiated with UV light, peeling from a substrate is unlikely to be caused. Further, the invention provides a polymer obtained through polymerization of the polymerizable composition and an optically anisotropic body obtained using the polymer.

The invention relates to a method of preparing a polymer film and to the use of such polymer film as in liquid crystal displays (LCDs) or other optical or electrooptical devices, for decorative or security applications, as alignment layer or optical retardation film.

A compound that is suitably used for formation of an optically anisotropic film having excellent reverse wavelength dispersibility and moisture-heat resistance; a polymerizable composition; an optically anisotropic film; an optical film; a polarizing plate; and an image display device. The present invention relates to a compound represented by Formula (I-1) P.sup.1-SP.sup.1-Ar.sup.1-Mes-Ar.sup.2-SP.sup.2-P.sup.2 (I-1).

A laminate including a vertically oriented liquid crystal cured film and a horizontally oriented phase difference film is provided. The vertically oriented liquid crystal cured film is a cured product of a polymerizable liquid crystal composition containing a polymerizable liquid crystal compound and a dichroic coloring matter. The composition includes, as the dichroic coloring matter, at least one type of dichroic coloring matter having maximum absorption between a wavelength of 400 nm and a wavelength of 750 nm. The vertically oriented liquid crystal cured film is a cured product of the polymerizable liquid crystal composition that is cured in a state in which the polymerizable liquid crystal compound is oriented in a vertical direction with respect to a flat plane of the liquid crystal cured film, and satisfies the following formula (1) and the following formula (2):
0.001?AxC?0.3(1);
AxC(z=60)/AxC>2(2).

Provided is a polymerizable liquid crystal compound represented by formula (1).

##STR00001##

In formula (1), A.sup.1 is 1,4-phenylene, 1,4-cyclohexylene, 1,4-cyclohexenylene, pyridine-2,5-diyl, 1,3-dioxane-2,5-diyl or naphthalene-2,6-diyl, Z.sup.1 is a connecting group, m and n are independently an integer from 0 to 5, in which an expression: 1 m+n8 holds, X.sup.1 is alkylene having 1 to 5 carbons, in which an atom thereof may be replaced by a hetero atom, and at least one of R.sup.1 is a polymerizable functional group.