Provided are: a retardation-increasing agent that has excellent compatibility and, when incorporated into a resin film, is capable of not only adjusting the thickness-direction phase difference toward a positive direction but also imparting the film with high retardation; a cellulose-based resin composition comprising the retardation-increasing agent; and a film that is obtained from the cellulose-based resin composition and has excellent optical properties. The retardation-increasing agent comprises a compound represented by the following Formula (1) or (2):

##STR00001## (wherein, R.sup.1 to R.sup.10 each independently represent a hydrogen atom or the like); or

##STR00002## (wherein, R.sup.21 to R.sup.28 each independently represent a hydrogen atom or the like).

A liquid crystal display includes: a liquid crystal panel of a vertical alignment (VA) type; first and second TAC (triacetyl cellulose) films which sandwich the liquid crystal panel; first and second retardation plates which sandwich the first and second TAC films; and first and second polarizers which sandwich the first and second retardation plates. The first and second polarizers include first and second absorption axes, respectively, which are substantially perpendicular to each other. The first and second retardation plates include first and second slow axes, respectively, which are substantially perpendicular to each other. The first and second slow axes intersect at about 45° with the first and second absorption axes, respectively.

A pretilt angle of a liquid crystal molecule on the side of an array substrate is formed such that the liquid crystal molecule goes away from the array substrate in a direction to the left when viewed from a position facing a display surface of a liquid crystal panel. The pretilt angle on the side of a counter substrate is formed such that the liquid crystal molecule goes away from the counter substrate in a direction to the right when viewed from a position facing the display surface. The directions to the left and the right define a direction X corresponding to a horizontal direction of the liquid crystal panel. A direction of a delay phase axis of a biaxial phase difference film is arranged in a position rotated anticlockwise in an angular range from over 0° to 1° from the direction X.

An LCD module includes an LCD panel, and a polarizing plate formed on each of the upper and lower surfaces of the LCD panel. The polarizing plate includes a polarizer and a polyester film formed on at least one surface of the polarizer. The polyester film has a difference between the index of refraction in the x-axis direction and the index of refraction in the z-axis direction (nx−nz) of about 0.1 to about 0.18, where nx and nz are the indices of refraction in the x-axis and z-axis directions, respectively, at a wavelength of 550 nm. The LCD module has a CR 45° and a CR 135° of about 1.0% or greater.

An optical system is downsized by reducing a tilt angle of an optical compensating plate including a medium having a small refractive index in the thickness direction, in achieving a predetermined contrast. A liquid crystal display apparatus according to the present technology includes a vertical alignment liquid crystal panel, a first optical compensation unit including a medium having a small refractive index in a thickness direction, and being arranged with being tilted from a state parallel to the liquid crystal panel, at a position at which light having passed through the liquid crystal panel or not having passed through the liquid crystal panel enters, and a second optical compensation unit having refractive index aeolotropy at least in an in-plane direction, and being arranged at a position at which light having passed through the liquid crystal panel or not having passed through the liquid crystal panel enters.

A multilayer optical retardation compensation film having at least one positive C-plate and at least one negative C-plate is used in an LCD device. The multilayer film may have a substantially flat wavelength dispersion curve, or the multilayer film combined with other layers in the LCD device may have a substantially flat wavelength dispersion curve. Polymer films for the positive C-plate may be identified according to their absorbance maxima at certain wavelength ranges.

A liquid crystal display device: includes: a first polarizer; a liquid crystal cell including a liquid crystal layer containing liquid crystal molecules aligned in parallel with a substrate of the liquid crystal cell; a first compensation film; and a second polarizer, wherein, as viewed perpendicularly to the substrate, an absorption axis of the first polarizer is parallel with an optical axis of the first compensation film, and an angle φ between the absorption axis of the first polarizer and an optical axis of the liquid crystal layer satisfies 0°<φ, in a cross section of the liquid crystal cell as viewed along a transmission axis of the first polarizer, an optical axis of the liquid crystal layer and the optical axis of the first compensation film have a tilt angle in the same direction to a face of the substrate, and the first compensation film has a positive birefringence.

This invention relates to novel compositions comprising regioselectively substituted cellulose esters. One aspect of the invention relates to processes for preparing regioselectively substituted cellulose esters from cellulose dissolved in ionic liquids. Another aspect of the invention relates to the utility of regioselectively substituted cellulose esters in applications such as protective and compensation films for liquid crystalline displays.

A liquid crystal display device in which light leak and a tint change when being seen from an oblique direction at the time of black display are suppressed. The liquid crystal display device includes: a liquid crystal cell and a pair of polarizing plates that are disposed such that the liquid crystal cell is interposed between the pair of polarizing plates, in which a tilt angle of the liquid crystal compound is 1.0° or less, respective color filters that are disposed on respective pixel regions of the liquid crystal cell are provided between the pair of polarizing plates, Rth of the respective color filters satisfy predetermined requirements, the polarizing plate that is disposed on the visible side among the pair of polarizing plates includes an optical compensation layer and a polarizer in this order from the liquid crystal cell side, and the optical compensation layer satisfies a predetermined requirement.

A liquid crystal display panel and a liquid crystal display device, the liquid crystal panel including a color filter sheet and a liquid crystal layer, an optical compensation film layer being disposed between the color filter sheet and the liquid crystal layer. With the optical compensation film layer inside the liquid crystal panel, contrast ratio is increased in a full-viewing-angle direction, and color shift in a diagonal direction of the liquid crystal pane is alleviated; further, the optical compensation film layer is provided on the color filter sheet of the liquid crystal panel, leading to a compact structure of the liquid crystal panel, reducing production costs and decreasing light leakage and mura phenomenon that are caused by light reflection and refraction; gray level, contrast ratio, color phase or the like of an LCD can be also improved.