Polymerizable liquid crystal ink formulations

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12460134-B2
Application number	US-201917312857-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 9, 2019
Priority date	Dec 12, 2018
Publication date	Nov 4, 2025
Grant date	Nov 4, 2025

Abstract

The present invention relates to polymerizable liquid crystalline formulations and especially to an ink formulation for inkjet printing comprising 10 to 50% w/w of one or more polymerizable liquid crystalline compounds and 50 to 90% w/w of one or more organic solvents selected from the group of aliphatic ketones, cyclic ketones, alkyl ethers of ethylene glycol or propylene glycol, alkyl esters of menthyl or aromatic solvents.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1 . An ink formulation comprising:
10 to 50% w/w of one or more polymerizable liquid crystalline compounds and 50 to 90% w/w of organic solvent, wherein the organic solvent is (a) a mixture of cyclohexanone and di(propylene glycol) methyl ether acetate at a ratio of 2:1 to 1:2, or (b) a mixture of di(propylene glycol) methyl ether acetate and propylene glycol monomethyl ether acetate at a ratio of 2:1 to 1:2, wherein said one or more polymerizable liquid crystalline compounds are selected from formulae DRMa1, MRM1, and MRM7,

wherein
P 0 is, in case of multiple occurrence independently of one another, a polymerizable group, preferably an acryl, methacryl, oxetane, epoxy, vinyl, heptadiene, vinyloxy, propenyl ether or styrene group,
L has on each occurrence identically or differently one of the meanings given for L 1 in formula DRM, and is preferably, in case of multiple occurrence independently of one another, selected from F, Cl, CN or optionally halogenated alkyl, alkoxy, alkylcarbonyl, alkoxycarbonyl, alkylcarbonyloxy or alkoxycarbonyloxy with 1 to 5 C atoms,
r is 0, 1, 2, 3 or 4,
x and y are independently of each other 0 or identical or different integers from 1 to 12,
z is each and independently, 0 or 1, with z being 0 if the adjacent x or y is 0,
R 0 is alkyl, alkoxy, thioalkyl, alkylcarbonyl, alkoxycarbonyl, alkylcarbonyloxy or alkoxycarbonyloxy with 1 or more, preferably 1 to 15 C atoms or denotes Y 0 ,
w is 1,
and wherein, in formulae MRM1 and MRM7, the benzene and naphthalene rings can additionally be substituted with one or more identical or different groups L, and
wherein said ink formulations is suitable for inkjet printing.

2 . The ink formulation according to claim 1 , further comprising one or more chiral additives.

3 . The ink formulation according to claim 1 , further comprising one or more photoinitiators.

4 . A polymer film obtained from inkjet printing an ink formulation according to claim 1 on a substrate and curing of the ink formulation.

5 . An optical component, comprising one or more polymer films according to claim 4 .

6 . The optical component according to claim 5 , wherein the one or more polymer films are selected from A plates, C plates, biaxial polymer films, cholesteric polymer films, and any combination thereof.

7 . The optical component according to claim 5 , wherein the optical component is a color filter comprising the one or more polymer films.

8 . The optical component according to claim 5 , wherein the optical component is a quantum material-based color filter comprising one or more polymer films.

9 . The ink formulation according to claim 1 , wherein the organic solvent is a mixture of cyclohexanone and di(propylene glycol) methyl ether acetate at a ratio of 2:1 to 1:2.

10 . The ink formulation according to claim 1 , wherein the organic solvent is a mixture of di(propylene glycol) methyl ether acetate and propylene glycol monomethyl ether acetate at a ratio of 2:1 to 1:2.

11 . A method of production of an ink formulation according to claim 1 comprising: mixing at least 10 to 50% w/w of one or more the polymerizable liquid crystalline compounds with 50 to 90% w/w of the organic solvent.

12 . A method of printing comprising printing with an ink jet printer using an ink formulation according to claim 1 .

13 . A method of production of a polymer film comprising inkjet printing an ink formulation according to claim 1 , on a substrate and curing of the ink formulation.

Assignees

• Merck Patent Gmbh

Inventors

• Gracia Eduardo Beltran
• Mulcahy Stephen
• Walker Daniel

Classifications

• C09K2019/525

  Solvents · CPC title

• C09K2219/00

  Aspects relating to the form of the liquid crystal [LC] material, or by the technical area in which LC material are used · CPC title

• C09D11/30 Primary

  Inkjet printing inks · CPC title

• G02B5/201

  in the form of arrays · CPC title

• C09K2019/0448

  the end chain group being a polymerizable end group, e.g. -Sp-P or acrylate · CPC title