Three-dimensional beam profiling used to characterize dental light-curing units.

Two-dimensional (2D) beam profiling is an emerging technique used to characterize the beam homogeneity in dental light-curing units (LCUs). This project developed a method to combine multiple 2D beam profiles that had been measured along the beam path to create a 3D profile of the beam. This allowed a quantitative investigation of beam divergence and homogeneity at different distances from the source. To illustrate the use of this technique, four representative dental LCUs were measured. In addition, the selected dental LCUs demonstrated the effects of LCU design, particularly that of fiber optic light guides, on beam quality. The results show the value of a program that can recombine multiple beam profile images made at different distances from the source to create a 3D beam profile of a light beam.