Skip to main content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Official websites use .gov
A .gov website belongs to an official government organization in the United States.

Secure .gov websites use HTTPS
A lock ( ) or https:// means you’ve safely connected to the .gov website. Share sensitive information only on official, secure websites.

Measurements and Predictions of Light Scattering by Clear Coatings

Published

Author(s)

M E. McKnight, Theodore V. Vorburger, Egon Marx, Maria E. Nadal, P Y. Barnes, Michael A. Galler

Abstract

Comparisons are made between calculations and measured angle-resolved light scattering distributions from clear dielectric isotropic epoxy coatings over a range of rms roughness conditions, resulting in strongly specular scattering characteristics. Calculated distributions are derived from topography measurements performed with interferometric microscopes. Two methods of calculations are used. One determines the intensity of scattered light waves using a phase integral in the Kirchoff approximation. The other is based on the reflection of light rays by locally flat surfaces. The angle-resolved scattering distributions for the coatings are measured with the spectral trifunction automated reference reflectometer (STARR) developed by the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Comparisons between measured and calculated results are shown for three surfaces with rms roughness values of approximately 3, 150, and 800 nm for an angle of incidence of 20 .
Citation
Applied Optics
Volume
40
Issue
No. 13

Keywords

appearance, BRDF, coatings, measurement, modeling, scattering

Citation

McKnight, M. , Vorburger, T. , Marx, E. , Nadal, M. , Barnes, P. and Galler, M. (2001), Measurements and Predictions of Light Scattering by Clear Coatings, Applied Optics, [online], https://tsapps.nist.gov/publication/get_pdf.cfm?pub_id=860265 (Accessed March 29, 2024)
Created May 1, 2001, Updated February 19, 2017