The dichroic effect is generated
by evaporating layers of transparent dielectric materials of differing
refractive indexes to precisely controlled microscopic thickness onto
a glass substrate.
The effect is that a specific wavelength range of the
visible light spectrum is reflected from the dichroic surface and the
remaining light is transmitted through the substrate. Since the evaporated
materials are transparent, the light is not absorbed as with paints and
pigments. This creates crisp and vibrate colors.
Diverse wavelength ranges can be selected by design. For
a given dichroic design, the wavelength range varies with the angle of
reflection or transmission. The visible result is that light reflected
from the dichroic surface will appear one color, and the light transmitted
will appear the complimentary color. As the angle at which the surface
is viewed changes, the color that is reflected and transmitted also changes.
