A liquid crystal display panel is described. In an embodiment, the liquid crystal panel display includes: a first linear polarizer; a second linear polarizer; a first quarter-wave plate disposed between a first substrate and the first linear polarizer, an angle between a slow axis of the first quarter-wave plate and an absorption axis of the first linear polarizer being 45° or 135′; a second quarter-wave plate disposed between a liquid crystal layer and the first substrate, slow axes of the first quarter-wave plate and the second quarter-wave plate being perpendicular, and absorption axes of the first linear polarizer and the second linear polarizer being perpendicular; a first retardation film disposed between the first quarter-wave plate and the second quarter-wave plate; and a second retardation film disposed at a side of the first quarter-wave plate facing away from the first retardation film, or disposed between the second linear polarizer and the liquid crystal layer.

A switchable backlight for a switchable privacy display apparatus comprises a collimated backlight arranged to provide two off-axis beams and at least one polar control liquid crystal retarder arranged between parallel polarisers. The alignment layers of the liquid crystal retarder are rotated with respect to the electric vector transmission direction of the polarisers. In use in the centre stack of a vehicle, in one mode of operation high image luminance and high image visibility is provided for the passenger while the image is invisible to the driver. In another mode of operation an image is provided to the driver with low stray light to the passenger for night time operation. In a third mode of operation both passenger and driver can see an image with high luminance and image visibility.

A display device comprising a spatial light modulator having a display polariser arranged on one side of the spatial light modulator is provided with an additional polariser arranged on the same side as the display polariser and polar control retarders between the additional polariser and the display polariser. The polar control retarders include a liquid crystal retarder having two surface alignment layers disposed adjacent to a layer of liquid crystal material on opposite sides. The surface alignment layers provide alignment in the adjacent liquid crystal material with an in-plane component, wherein the angle of said in-plane component changes monotonically along a predetermined axis across the display device, providing reduction of luminance in directions that are offset from a viewing axis, increasing uniformity in the reduction of luminance in directions that are offset from a viewing axis.

Systems and methods for providing a display for an electronic device that includes a liquid crystal display panel assembly, a backlight assembly that includes a light source, and a spatially varying polarizer that provides phase retardation that varies as a function of propagation length away from the light source. The display may also include a linear polarizer and other optical components that improve the efficiency of the backlight assembly, thereby reducing power consumption, cost, space requirements, and provide other advantages.

The polymerizable liquid crystal compound has reverse wavelength dispersion or low wavelength dispersion and has high solubility in various solvents. The polymerizable liquid crystal compound provides an optically anisotropic body having high adhesiveness to substrates (or alignment films), by adding the polymerizable liquid crystal compound to a polymerizable composition and polymerizing the polymerizable composition using ultraviolet light. The invention provides a polymerizable composition containing the polymerizable liquid crystal compound having reverse wavelength dispersion or low wavelength dispersion, a polymer obtained by polymerizing the polymerizable composition, and an optically anisotropic body using the polymer. The present invention provides a polymerizable low wavelength dispersion or polymerizable reverse wavelength dispersion compound having in the molecule a partial structure represented by the general formula (AO-1); and also provides a composition containing the compound, a polymer obtained by polymerizing the composition, and an optically anisotropic body and the like using the polymer. ##STR00001##

An imaging directional backlight apparatus including a waveguide, a light source array, for providing large area directed illumination from localized light sources. The waveguide may include a stepped structure, in which the steps may further include extraction features optically hidden to guided light, propagating in a first forward direction. Returning light propagating in a second backward direction may be refracted, diffracted, or reflected by the features to provide discrete illumination beams exiting from the top surface of the waveguide. Retarder stack arrangements are provided to reduce the display visibility to snoopers located in polar viewing regions of the display while achieving minimal reduction of head-on luminance. Further visibility of light reflections from automotive windscreens may be reduced.

The present invention provides a display panel in which deterioration of color tone may be suppressed regardless of the reflectance of the display element.

A display panel including a display element (A), a retardation layer (B) positioned upon the light emission surface side of the display element, and a polarizer (C) positioned upon the light emission surface side of the retardation layer, in which the retardation layer (B) has a λ/4 retardation layer (B1), and the in-plane retardation of the λ/4 retardation layer (B1) satisfies the following Condition 1:

<Condition 1>

The spectral reflectance of the display element is measured by an SCI method, the average reflectance at wavelengths over the range of 400 nm or more and less than 550 nm is obtained as R.sub.1, the average reflectance at wavelengths over the range of 550 nm or more and less than 700 nm is obtained as R.sub.2, and when the value of R.sub.1/R.sub.2 is calculated and obtained as x, the in-plane retardation of the λ/4 retardation layer falls within the range of −4.6002x+119.24 nm or more and −4.6002x+129.24 nm or less.

A spatial light modulator (SLM) includes a first liquid crystal panel and a second liquid crystal panel that are oppositely configured, and a polarization adjustment part configured between the first liquid crystal panel and the second liquid crystal panel. An alignment direction of the first liquid crystal panel is parallel to an alignment direction of the second liquid crystal panel. The first liquid crystal panel is configured to perform a phase modulation on incident linear-polarized light. The polarization adjustment part is configured to rotate, by a preset angle, a polarization direction of linear-polarized light exited from the first liquid crystal panel. The second liquid crystal panel is configured to adjust a polarization state of linear-polarized light exited from the polarization adjustment part to adjust an amplitude of exited light.

The present invention provides: a laminate which has a polarizer and an optically anisotropic layer and has excellent thermal durability; and an organic electroluminescent device and a liquid crystal display device, which include the laminate. The laminate according to the embodiment of the present invention is a laminate having two substrates, and a polarizing plate disposed between the two substrates, in which the polarizing plate has an optically anisotropic layer and a polarizer, the optically anisotropic layer is formed of a composition containing a polymerizable liquid crystal compound represented by Formula (I), the polarizer contains a polyvinyl alcohol-based resin, and a moisture permeability of the substrate is 10.sup.−3 g/m.sup.2.Math.day or less.

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An optical device includes a first layer including a first birefringent material having a negative birefringence dispersion property. The optical device also includes a second layer including a second birefringent material having a positive birefringence dispersion property. The first layer and the second layer are structurally patterned to provide at least one predetermined optical function.