Patent ID: 7164458

Claim:
An active matrix type liquid crystal display, comprising: an in-plane switching type liquid crystal display panel having an active device substrate, an opposing substrate and a liquid crystal layer held sandwiched between said active device substrate and said opposing substrate; a first polarizer laid out on one side of said liquid crystal display panel; a second polarizer laid out on the opposite side of said liquid crystal display panel; at least a first optical compensator, placed between said first polarizer and said liquid crystal display panel, having characteristics for compensating for retardation of said liquid crystal layer substantially independently of retardation of said first or second polarizer; and at least a second optical compensator, placed between said liquid crystal display panel and said second polarizer, having characteristics for compensating for retardation of said first or second polarizer substantially independently of retardation of said liquid crystal layer, wherein an absorption axis of said first polarizer is set perpendicular to said alignment direction of said liquid crystal layer and an absorption axis of said second polarizer is set parallel to said alignment direction of said liquid crystal layer and wherein said direction of said refractive index nx of said first optical compensator is set perpendicular to said alignment direction of said liquid crystal layer, and said direction of said refractive index nx of said second optical compensator is set parallel to said alignment direction of said liquid crystal layer and wherein said first optical compensator has a retardation (nx−ny)d set within a range of 250 nm to 450 nm and (nx−nz)/(nx−ny) set within a range of 0.4 to 1.3, and said second optical compensator has a retardation (nx−ny)d set within a range of −150 nm to −500 nm and (nx−nz)/(nx−ny) set within a range of 0.7 to 1.5 where nx is a refractive index in an x direction in a plane; ny is a refractive index in a y direction in said plane, nz is a refractive index in a thickness direction, and d is a film thickness of each of said optical compensators in a direction perpendicular to a screen.