A liquid-crystal display panel using polarizers as panel substrates

A liquid-crystal display (LCD) using polarizers as the panel substrates is investigated. The optical properties of TN LCD's using biaxially drawn polyester films and uniaxially drawn polyester films are evaluated. As a result, the latter films are selected as supporting films of the polarizers. Since both uniaxially drawn polyester films and LC molecules are optically anisotropic, interference colors may result due to birefringence. Also, as these polyester films are thermally anisotropic, warping of the LCD panel may occur after heat treatment. The influence of the arrangement of the polarizers on the optical and thermal properties of the LCD is discussed and the most suitable structure is determined. The developed plastic LCD is 0.5 mm in thickness and has better optical characteristics than those of a conventional LCD using glass substrates.