Systems and methods for providing a polarization recycling structure for use in applications, such as display systems that include a liquid crystal display assembly. The polarization recycling structure may include a first spatially varying polarizer spaced apart from a second spatially varying polarizer. The first spatially varying polarizer may include a lens array that receives light from a light source and focuses light of a first polarization state and passes light of a second polarization state. The second spatially varying polarizer receive light from the first spatially varying polarizer, passes the focused light of the first polarization state, and transforms the light of the second polarization state into the first polarization state, thereby providing only light of the first polarization state at the output of the polarization recycling structure. The polarization recycling structures improve the efficiency of lighting subsystems, thereby reducing power consumption, cost, space requirements, and providing other advantages.

Provided is an optically anisotropic layer formed of a liquid crystal compound, which includes first and second layers in direct contact along a thickness direction, an alignment state of the liquid crystal compound in the first layer is different from the second layer, and the optically anisotropic layer satisfies a relationship of Expression (2A) Xmax/Xmin<1.10 where a region within a square having a largest size that can be drawn on a surface of the optically anisotropic layer is subdivided into 64 square-shaped sub-regions having the same area, a thickness d1 of the first layer and a thickness d2 of the second layer at a center position of the sub-region are obtained, X represented by Expression (1) X=d1/(d1+d2) for each sub-region is calculated, and among the calculated 64 X's, a maximum value is defined as Xmax and a minimum value is defined as Xmin.

A display device, in which a plurality of pixels is defined, includes: a first insulating substrate; a polarizer disposed on a surface of the first insulating substrate; a second insulating substrate which faces the surface of the first insulating substrate; and a liquid crystal layer interposed between the polarizer and the second insulating substrate, where the liquid crystal layer includes liquid crystals and a dichroic dye.

The present invention provides an optical film including a light reflection layer, in which the light reflection layer is a layer in which alignment of liquid crystal molecules is immobilized, the liquid crystal molecule forms a helical structure in a film thickness direction of the light reflection layer, and a tilt angle of the liquid crystal molecule is 15° to 55°. The present invention also provides a manufacturing method of the optical film including curing a polymerizable liquid crystal composition including a liquid crystal compound and a chiral agent interposed between a support and another support. In the optical film according to the present invention, an absolute value of oblique retardation is smaller. In the liquid crystal display device including the optical film, front surface brightness is high and an oblique change in the shade is suppressed.

A liquid-crystalline medium, preferably having a nematic phase and dielectric anisotropy of 0.5 or more, which has one or more compounds of formula S

##STR00001## in which

##STR00002##

denotes

##STR00003##

and the other parameters have the meanings given in the text. Also, the use of the medium in an electro-optical display, particularly in an active-matrix display based on the IPS or FFS effect. Displays of this type which contain a liquid-crystalline medium of this type. And use of the compounds of formula S for the improvement of the transmission and/or response times of a liquid-crystalline medium which comprises one or more additional mesogenic compounds.

According to one embodiment, a display device including a display panel, a viewing angle control panel and a polarizing axis rotation element, wherein the display panel includes a first liquid crystal layer which modulates a first polarization component, the viewing angle control panel includes a second liquid crystal layer containing twist-aligned liquid crystal molecules, a second polarizing axis of a second polarization component transmitted through the viewing angle control panel is different from a first polarizing axis of the first polarization component, and the polarizing axis rotates element rotating the second polarizing axis such that the second polarizing axis is aligned with the first polarizing axis.

A liquid crystal device includes a liquid crystal panel including a first liquid crystal layer, a first polarizing plate provided on a light incidence side of the liquid crystal panel, a second polarizing plate provided on a light emission side of the liquid crystal panel, a first phase difference adjusting element arranged between the first polarizing plate and the liquid crystal panel and including a second liquid crystal layer, a second phase difference adjusting element arranged between the liquid crystal panel and the second polarizing plate and including a third liquid crystal layer, and a control unit configured to control a phase difference of the second liquid crystal layer and a phase difference of the third liquid crystal layer.

An illumination system is provided. The illumination system includes a light source assembly configured to output a first polarized light having a first handedness. The illumination system also includes a light guide plate configured to guide the first polarized light received from the light source assembly and output a second polarized light having a second handedness opposite to the first handedness. The light guide plate includes two wedges coupled to one other at a slanted surface between the two wedges and a reflective polarizer disposed at the slanted surface. The illumination system also includes a reflective sheet arranged at a first side surface of the light guide plate and configured to reflect the first polarized light as the second polarized light. The reflective polarizer includes a birefringent material having a chirality, and is configured to selectively transmit the first polarized light and reflect the second polarized light.

Improved illumination optics for various applications. The illumination optics may include an optical beam spreading structure that provides a large spread angle for an incident collimated beam or provides finer detail or resolution compared to convention diffractive optical elements. The optical beam spreading structure may include first and second spatially varying polarizers that are optically aligned with each other. The first and second spatially varying polarizers may be formed of a liquid crystal material, such as a multi-twist retarder (MTR). The first and second spatially varying polarizers may diffract light of orthogonal polarization states, which allows for different diffraction patterns to be used in a single optical structure. The two patterns may provide a combined field of view that is larger than either of the first and second fields of view or may provide finer detail or resolution than the first or second fields of view can provide alone.

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.