Optical Properties

light:
 Visible light is a small part of the electromagnetic spectrum (figure 1).
The wavelength range of the visible spectrum is from approximately
400 to 700 nm.
 Light is a mixture of various wavelengths.

Figure 1. Electro-magnetic Spectrum

Interaction of light and matter:

When a beam of light falls on a surface of a medium, one of the following may
occur:
1 Reflection:
✓ When light falls on a perfectly smooth surface, it will be reflected only in
one direction where the angle of incidence is equal to the angle of
reflection. This is called specular reflection. Such surface appears shiny.
(figure 2).
 If light falls on a rough surface, it will be reflected in all directions, and
this is called diffuse reflection (figure 2).

Importance in dentistry:
The restoration should have a highly smooth and polished surface, to mimic the
smooth shiny tooth surface.

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 Figure 2. Specular and diffuse reflection

2 Refraction:
Refraction is defined as the change in the direction of light beams (bending) as
they enter another medium (figure 3). It results from the difference in the refractive
indices of the two media due to the difference between the speed of light in air and
other medium.

Figure 3. Refraction
Importance in dentistry:
1. The index of refraction is a characteristic property of the substance and is
used extensively for identification purposes.
2. It is important to control the refractive indices of the dispersed phase and
matrix phase in materials such as ceramics and resins manufactured to
mimic natural tooth. A perfect match of the refractive index of the filler and
matrix phase in either composite resin or porcelain results in a transparent
material whereas a large difference will result in an opaque material.

3 Scattering:
If light rays passing through a medium are obstructed by any different
inclusions, they will be redirected in another direction and will be attenuated, i.e. the
original beam will be weakened by scattering in a direction away from the observer’s
eye, figure 4.
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 Figure 4. Scattering of light

Importance in dentistry:
Presence of scattering centers e.g. opacifiers 😊and air bubbles ☹in a
medium causes light to emerge in all directions and thereby increases
opacity e.g. Opacifiers added to composite resins to give rise to more
opaque shades 😊.

4 Transmission / Absorption:
a. Transparent material: Material that allows the passage of light so that objects
can be clearly seen through it i.e. most of the light waves are transmitted through
the body e.g. glass and acrylic resin (Figure 5).
b. Translucent material: Material that allows the passage of some light such
that objects cannot be clearly seen through it e.g. tooth enamel, porcelain, composite
…etc (Figure 5).
c. Opaque material: Material that prevents the passage of light. Opaque material
absorbs all the light and therefore objects cannot be seen through it (Figure 5).

Figure 5. Transparent, Translucent and Opaque Materials

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6 Dispersion:
White light is composed of a mixture of colors, which is dispersed to its
component colors by passing it through a prism. The series of colored bands that are
observed from the dispersion of light is called the spectrum of the light source, figure
6.

Figure 6. Diffraction of White Light through a Prism

Applications:
To characterize a source of visible light, it is essential to know how much light
energy is emitted at each wavelength (spectral energy distribution curve), figure 7.
The spectra of light sources are not identical. Incandescent light emits light waves
different from neon light. This should be taken into consideration during color
matching.

Figure 7. Spectral energy distribution curves of daylight and Incandescent light

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7. Luminescence [Fluorescence and Phosphorescence]:
• The term luminescence indicates emission of light without heating.
• Immediate emission is called fluorescence, while delayed emission is
called phosphorescence.

Importance in dentistry:
1. Upon excitation by ultraviolet radiation, sound human teeth emit
fluorescent light with the greatest intensity in the blue region of the
spectrum, figure 8. Fluorescence contributes to the brightness and vital
appearance of human teeth.

Figure 8. Fluorescence of natural teeth

2. Some anterior restorative materials and dental porcelains are formulated

with fluorescing agents (rare earths excluding uranium) to reproduce the
natural appearance of the tooth structure.

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 Color
Color Vision and Perception:
• The perception of color is a physiological response to physical stimulus
(light).
• Light that is reflected from an object enters the eye through the pupil
and will be focused on the retina, figure 9.
• Cone-shaped cells in the retina are responsible for color vision. They
are especially sensitive to red, green and blue.
• The signals from the retina will be converted into nerve impulses that
are transmitted to the brain through the optic nerve, figure 10.

Figure 9. The human eye

Figure 10. Color Perception

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 Color Dimensions/Parameters, figure 11:
a. Hue:
Hue is the color itself and is related to the dominant wavelength e.g. blue,
red and green, etc.
b. Chroma:
Chroma describes the degree of saturation or strength and intensity of color.
c. Value:
Value describes the amount of grayness in a given color (lightness or
darkness). It is identified on a scale ranging from white (high value), to black (low
value). Between the white and black scale, there is a series of grayness levels. A
black standard has a zero value, whereas the value of a white standard equals 10.
❖ Value is the most important parameter of color in dentistry, because it is
intimately related to the aspect of vitality in human teeth.
❖ A dead tooth has low value (more gray or dark) whereas a vital tooth has
higher value (more vivid and translucent).
❖ When we make a restoration and the hue (color) matches the adjacent
dentition but its value is too low, we end up with a finished restoration
that looks dead look (non-vital). Conversely, when hue matches but the
value is too high, we always have a result of a false look (too bright).

Figure 11. Hue, Chroma and Value

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Color mixing:
It is important to note that mixing colored lights is entirely different from
mixing colored paints.

1 Additive color mixing, figure 12:

This process applies only to colored lights. When all three primary colors are
combined in equal proportions, the result will be white light.

▪ Primary colors:
Blue, green and red are known as primary colors because it is not possible to
produce them by mixing light of any other colors together. Mixing suitable
proportions of lights of the three primary colors results in white.

▪ Secondary colors:
Combination of two primary colors results in secondary colors e.g. cyan,
magenta or yellow.
Green + blue → cyan.
Blue + red → magenta.
Red + green → yellow.

▪ Complementary colors:
Two colors are complementary to each other, when their combination results
in white, e.g. yellow is the complementary color of blue.

Figure 12. Additive color mixing

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2 Subtractive color mixing, figure 13:
 This process applies to pigments and paints. The secondary colors
(hues) in the additive mixing are primaries in the subtractive mixing.
Cyan, magenta and yellow are considered the primary hues in
subtractive mixing.
 When all three subtractive primary colors are mixed in equal
proportion, all light is absorbed, and the result is black.

Figure 13. Subtractive color mixing

Factors affecting color perception:

1- Light Source:
o Different light sources have different color content (different spectral
distribution curves), i.e. Daylight is different in its color content from
incandescent or fluorescent lights.
o Objects that appear to be color matched under one light may appear
different under another light source. This phenomenon is called
metamerism.
o Metamerism: It is the change of color matching of two objects under
different light sources.

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2- Surroundings:
Surroundings modify the type of light reaching the object. Colors of walls,
clothing and lips contribute to the color of light incident on the teeth.
3- Object:
a. Translucency controls the lightness or darkness of color. High
translucency gives a lighter color appearance (higher value).

b. Smooth surface appears brighter than rough surface.

c. Presence of scattering centers as inclusions or voids increase opacity and

lower the value (darker).

d. Fluorescence makes the human teeth bright and vital as it increases the
brightness.

e. Thickness of a restoration can affect its appearance. Increasing the

thickness will increase both opacity and chroma and lower the value.

f. Metamerism: The change in color matching of two objects under different

light sources is called metamerism.

4- Observer:
a. Color vision:
Some individuals may have color blindness. A color-blind individual
cannot distinguish between certain colors due to lack of certain cone shaped
cells in the retina.

b. Color response:
Eye responds differently among individuals.

c. Color fatigue:
Constant stimulus of one color decreases the response to that color. A
complementary color image persists after removal of the stimulus.
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Color Matching
In dental practice, color matching is most often performed with the use of
a shade guide, such as the one shown in figure 14. Recently, intra-oral
instrumental devices as spectrophotometers or calorimeters are utilized for
color selection, figure 15.

Figure 14. Shade guide used for color matching

Figure 15. Intra-oral spectrophotometer

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