Hardness Enhancement of Amalgam Teeth Fillings Using Diode Laser (675 nm)

This work aimed to enhance the hardness of human teeth filler material (Amalgam), in a short possible time via irradiation by low level laser. Hardening tests were carried out on different amalgam mixtures subjected to irradiation for two minutes by diode laser with wavelength of 675 nm and power of 15 mW. The samples were left for different time intervals and for each time interval hardening test was carried out using Brinell hardness test. Other samples were prepared for the same test with the same procedure but without irradiation, i.e. control group. The irradiated samples showed a considerable increasing in their hardness compared with samples without irradiation. The samples irradiated by laser need only 6 hours to reach the same value of hardness that the control group reached after 30 hours. In Conclusion, the irradiation of amalgam by this type of laser with the above parameters believed to be recrystalizing the material so it become harder with shorter time compared with the amalgam without irradiation.