ABSTRACT
This study determined whether it was possible to detect deformations and fractures in dental hard tissues or in composite material from internal stresses using double-exposure holographic interferometry. On the proximal side of eight intact human permanent premolars, a direct Class II cavity was prepared and restored with a self-etching adhesive (Clearfil SE Bond) and Tetric Ceram, a resin composite. In five of the specimens, Tetric Flow was used as an elastic layer. The samples were illuminated using a helium-neon laser beam, and the holograms of samples were recorded using Agfa 10E75 photographic plates. Hologram reconstructions were captured with an 8-bit monochrome CCD camera and qualitatively analyzed. Deformations and fractures appeared as fringe patterns on all interferograms, where the distribution of fringes provided location information, while the density of fringes gave the amplitude information. Greater fringe densities were observed in samples treated without a flowable composite.
