Hamp, Shannon M.Logan, Riley D.Shaw, Joseph A.2022-09-132022-09-132021-07Shannon M. Hamp, Riley D. Logan, and Joseph A. Shaw, "Optical transmittance of 3D printing materials," Appl. Opt. 60, 6573-6578 (2021)1559-128Xhttps://scholarworks.montana.edu/handle/1/17151The increasing prevalence of three-dimensional (3D) printing of optical housings and mounts necessitates a better understanding of the optical properties of printing materials. This paper describes a method for using multithickness samples of 3D printing materials to measure transmittance spectra at wavelengths from 400 to 2400 nm [visible to short-wave infrared (IR)]. In this method, 3D samples with material thicknesses of 1, 2, 3, and 4 mm were positioned in front of a uniform light source with a spectrometer probe on the opposing side to measure the light transmittance. Transmission depended primarily on the thickness and color of the sample, and multiple scattering prevented the use of a simple exponential model to relate transmittance, extinction, and thickness. A Solidworks file and a 3D printer file are included with the paper to enable measurements of additional materials with the same method.en-UScopyright Optica Publishing Group 2021https://opg.optica.org/submit/review/copyright_permissions.cfmoptical transmittance 3d printing materialsArticle